Poll shows levels of trust in the police markedly lower among black people than white people
More than half of black people stopped and searched by the police say they were left with feelings of humiliation or embarrassment, according to a survey.
It also shows levels of trust in the police are markedly lower among black people (46%) than white people (64%), with barely a third (35%) of black Caribbean people saying they had confidence.
Continue reading...Chief constables most to blame for crises sapping legitimacy of policing, says Police Federation leader
Police chiefs have been covering up the misogyny suffered by female officers and staff, and must stop using gagging orders to silence victims, the leader of rank and file officers has revealed.
Steve Hartshorn, chair of the Police Federation, which represents 130,000 officers up to the rank of chief inspector, said there should be a “hostile environment” for corrupt officers. He told the Guardian that chief constables bore the brunt of the blame for the crises that were sapping the legitimacy of policing.
Continue reading...Inspectorate for England and Wales says potentially thousands officers cleared who should have failed checks
Defective vetting and failures by police leaders have allowed a “prevalent” culture of potentially thousands of officers who are “predatory” towards women to join and stay in the ranks, a damning official report has concluded.
Officers staged unwarranted stops of women in an abuse of power known as “booty patrols”, with crimes such as sexual assault covered up and ignored along with large-scale harassment of female officers and members of the public.
A special constable cleared to join despite a past conviction for indecent exposure seven times over a two-week period as a juvenile, when he had masturbated at his bedroom window, coughing to attract the attention of a woman. He also had a caution for threats to commit criminal damage.
A support officer cleared to join after slapping his partner in the face.
A police officer allowed to join despite robbing an 80-year-old woman, who was knocked to the ground and had her handbag stolen.
A police officer cleared to join despite concerns he had a theft conviction and potential criminal links.
A police officer arrested twice for assaults on women who were left with marks on their necks, and witness intimidation, as well as having a historical drink-driving conviction.
An officer cleared to join despite an arrest for rape while a juvenile, about 20 years earlier.
An officer, who still works with vulnerable people, given a final written warning for sending extremely sexually explicit and racist messages to a female colleague.
Continue reading...Sir Mark Rowley says humour cannot be ‘used as an excuse’ after Casey review highlights misogyny and racism
The Metropolitan police commissioner has issued direct orders to officers and staff, saying those who make jokes about violent attacks on women or who fail to stand up to hate speech should expect to be sacked.
Sir Mark Rowley issued the instructions, seen by the Guardian, after a review by Louise Casey found racists and misogynists had been left in the ranks of Britain’s biggest police force by a hugely flawed disciplinary system.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Louise Casey’s long-awaited review will say the force has allowed ‘abhorrent’ officers to stay in its ranks
The Metropolitan police must take a “zero-tolerance” approach to misogyny and racism and enable offending officers to be sacked more easily, a report into culture and standards at Britain’s biggest police force will say on Monday.
The long-awaited report by Louise Casey into how Scotland Yard deals with officers accused of sexual misconduct and domestic abuse has uncovered systemic failings that have allowed too many “abhorrent” individuals to remain on the frontline.
Continue reading...Sir Mark Rowley says he is not interested in ‘labels’, while vowing to root out racism in the force
The new commissioner of the Metropolitan police declined to say whether his force was institutionally racist or not, saying he was not interested in “labels”, while vowing to root out racism in the force.
Sir Mark Rowley’s comments, as he carried out a round of media interviews were criticised by black officers and the surviving brother of Stephen Lawrence, whose murder by a racist gang was botched by the Met and which led to the Macpherson inquiry in 1999 finding the Met was institutionally racist.
Continue reading...Police accused of unnecessary force as president’s son shares video of detention to show Britons ‘don’t like communists either’
The Metropolitan police have been accused of using unnecessary force and handing a propaganda coup to Brazil’s far right after a peaceful demonstrator was detained and handcuffed during a protest outside the Brazilian ambassador’s London residence.
Ali Rocha, a 50-year-old Brazilian and British citizen, and her flatmate were intercepted by officers on Sunday lunchtime as they joined a protest against Brazil’s radical rightwing president, Jair Bolsonaro, who was in the UK for the Queen’s funeral.
Continue reading...Jefferson Bosela, family spokesperson, says IOPC’s timeline for homicide investigation too long
“He was the life of the party, you know, everywhere he went, he didn’t shy away from showing the people he cared for that he cared for them,” says Jefferson Bosela, describing his cousin Chris Kaba. “He was a big brother, he was a fiance, he was a dad-to-be, so he had so much going for him, which makes this tragedy all the worse.”
On 5 September, Kaba was driving through Streatham, south London, when the vehicle was flagged by automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) before being pursued and intercepted by two Metropolitan police cars.
Continue reading...Officers drafted in from across country as hundreds of thousands of people expected in London and Windsor
Police chiefs say their operation for Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral will be the biggest ever, with more than 10,000 officers on duty determined to thwart any attempt to disrupt or exploit the event.
Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to line the funeral route through central London, and then in Windsor, Berkshire, where the late Queen will be buried, and the route in between.
Continue reading...IOPC watchdog insists review of evidence led it to investigate firearms officer for homicide
The family of Chris Kaba will be allowed to watch police video of the incident that led to his killing, the Guardian has learned, as the police watchdog insisted evidence and not public pressure led it to investigate an officer for homicide offences.
Kaba, 24, who was unarmed, was shot once by an officer from the Metropolitan police on 5 September. The bullet struck him in the head as he sat in the driver’s seat of a car which had come under suspicion in Lambeth, south London. He died just over two hours later.
Continue reading...Hundreds of protesters march through Whitehall demanding justice as police watchdog launches homicide investigation
The family of Chris Kaba has called for the immediate suspension of the Metropolitan police officer involved in his fatal shooting.
The 24-year-old, who was due to become a father for the first time, was shot dead by a firearms officer in Streatham, south London, on Monday night.
Continue reading...Metropolitan police firearms officers fatally shot 24-year-old in Streatham Hill, south London, on Monday
The police watchdog has launched a homicide investigation into the fatal shooting of Chris Kaba by armed Metropolitan police officers in south London.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said this followed its review of the evidence gathered so far after the incident in Streatham Hill on Monday night.
Continue reading...Commander Julian Bennett refused to take a drug test in 2020 after his lodger contacted police alleging drug use
A senior Metropolitan police commander who wrote the force’s drug strategy allegedly smoked cannabis in front of his lodger every day, a gross misconduct hearing has been told.
Commander Julian Bennett later threatened to resign when he was asked to take a drug test on 21 July 2020, a disciplinary panel heard.
Continue reading...Former Met chief given support by findings, but London mayor Sadiq Khan’s move against her remains popular
Amid the claim and counter-claim, the huffing and puffing and the machinations detailed by Tom Winsor’s report on the ousting of Cressida Dick, one thing is clear: there definitely was a political hit job. The mystery is: who was the target?
Winsor’s version has Dick, a hard-working Metropolitan police commissioner, taken out by an ambitious local politician, when the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, had no good reason to.
Continue reading...Relatives ‘caught completely off guard’ by announcement of compensation – and two families have still to settle
The Metropolitan police have been accused of “insensitivity” over their announcement that they have settled compensation claims with relatives of some of the victims murdered by the serial killer Stephen Port.
Families were taken completely by surprise at the public announcement, while claims brought by relatives of two of the victims have yet to be settled, the families’ spokesperson said.
Continue reading...Watchdog refers case back to Met police for its own investigation over sprinter’s claims of aggression and racism
The police watchdog has ruled out an investigation into the Metropolitan police’s treatment of an athlete who was pulled over in his car by seven armed officers.
Ricardo dos Santos, a Portuguese sprinter based in London, released a video of the incident in central London that took place earlier this month.
Continue reading...Met hurriedly apologised and withdrew images that it initially said showed missing woman in a shop
The Metropolitan police issued pictures of the wrong black woman in an early appeal for information about the missing student nurse Owami Davies, it has emerged.
As the force’s handling of the case faces increased scrutiny, it has come to light that Scotland Yard issued CCTV images on 3 August that it said showed Davies in a shop in Croydon, but in fact showed another woman.
Continue reading...College of Policing for England and Wales is planning policies to deal with harassment and racism in forces after string of scandals
Police leaders have admitted officers were kept on duty who should be sacked as they launched a promised crackdown on those who attack, abuse or harass women.
A series of scandals have rocked confidence in policing, with its leaders under pressure to do more to eliminate what one police chief called “toxic behaviour and [a] damaging culture”.
Continue reading...Athlete and his partner, sprinter Bianca Williams, were stopped and handcuffed two years ago
An athlete who was allegedly racially profiled during a stop and search two years ago has said he was pulled over for a second time by “seven armed officers” while driving home in London at the weekend.
The Portuguese sprinter Ricardo Dos Santos published a series of tweets and video footage of him being pulled over and questioned by police.
Continue reading...Appropriate adults were often absent during the search, and the majority of children were innocent
The children’s commissioner for England has denounced the Metropolitan police’s record on child protection after new data revealed that 650 children were strip-searched over a two-year period and the majority were found to be innocent of the suspicions against them.
Dame Rachel de Souza said she was not convinced that the force was “consistently considering children’s welfare and wellbeing” after police data showed that in almost a quarter of cases (23%) an appropriate adult was not present during the search, despite this being a requirement under statutory guidance.
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