IPCC Stockwell One Report
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Stockwell One Investigation into the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell underground station on 22 July 2005 2 Contents Contents ............................................................................................................................3 Summary chronology .........................................................................................................4 Foreword............................................................................................................................5 Stockwell One - Report into the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell underground station on 22 July 2005.................................................................................8 Addendum to the report into the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell underground station on 22 July 2005.............................................................................145 Supplementary report into the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell underground station on 22 July 2005.............................................................................150 Summary chronology 7 July 2005 Four bombs explode on the London Transport network 21 July 2005 Four failed bomb attacks on the London Transport network 22 July 2005 Jean Charles de Menezes shot and killed by officers from the Metropolitan Police Service 27 July 2005 IPCC Stockwell 1 investigation begins 19 January 2006 IPCC investigation completed and report submitted to the CPS 14 March 2006 IPCC recommendations submitted to MPS, MPA, HMIC and Home Office 17 July 2006 CPS announce decision to prosecute the Office of the Commissioner of the Metropolis for breach of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act 13 December 2006 High Court upholds Coroner’s decision to hold the Inquest after the trial 22 January 2007 Application by MPS to have Health and Safety charges dismissed rejected by court 16/19 February 2007 Provisional memoranda received by IPCC from MPS and MPA about whether any officer should face disciplinary charges 11 May 2007 IPCC decide to withdraw the Regulation 9 notices in respect of 10 frontline officers. A further member of the surveillance team should receive management advice in relation to the alteration made to the surveillance log. The decisions on discipline for 4 senior officers should wait until after the trial. 1 October 2007 Health and Safety trial begins 1 November 2007 Jury returns a 'guilty' verdict with a rider that the jury attach no personal culpability to DAC Dick, who led the operation OUTSTANDING Possibly late Spring Inquest 2008 Date to be determined Discipline decision for senior officers and any proceedings arising from this 4 Foreword A. This document is the report of the IPCC's investigation into the fatal shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes by officers of the Metropolitan Police Service at Stockwell Underground Station on 22 July 2005. B. The report is in three parts: • The main investigation report that was completed and submitted within six months by 19 January 2006. • The operational recommendations arising from the incident that were completed and submitted by 14 March 2006. • A short addendum to the main report that sets out the results of further enquiries requested by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) which was submitted in June 2006. C. The primary purpose of the report was to meet the statutory obligations of the IPCC following an investigation of this kind. These are to advise the CPS of any criminal offence that may have been committed and to provide it with the evidence necessary to come to its decision about any prosecution; to enable the 'responsible authorities' of the officers concerned, in this case the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA), to consider what action they may need to take in relation to discipline or other matters; in cases of exceptional gravity such as this, to inform the Home Secretary of the circumstances; and finally, to assist the Coroner in relation to any Inquest. D. The three parts of the report have been published as they were submitted to the CPS apart from some redactions that have been made for security purposes or to protect the privacy of civilian witnesses. In addition, footnotes have been used to include any significant new material that has become available since the original report was submitted or to provide clarification for the general reader. E. Any investigation report that suggests criminal offences may have been committed must be submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions for consideration by the CPS. This report therefore sets out the criminal offences that may have been committed. 'May' is a low threshold. The CPS then decided quite independently and separately from the IPCC whether and what charges should be brought. In addition to the report, the CPS was provided with all the evidence that informed the report. F. On 17 July 2006, the CPS published its decision that no individual should face criminal proceedings but the Office of the Commissioner of the Metropolis should face a criminal charge breaching the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act. The trial concluded on 1 November 2007 and the jury returned a 'guilty verdict' with a rider that no personal culpability attached to DAC (then Commander) Dick, the officer who led the operation. G. The IPCC is also responsible for deciding whether any officer should be required to face a disciplinary tribunal in connection with the incident. Once the CPS had made their decision, on 11 May 2007 the IPCC decided that no disciplinary action should be pursued against any of the frontline officers involved in the incident apart from one officer who received words of advice for the alteration of the surveillance log. No decision has yet been made on whether any of the four senior officers in command of the operation should face disciplinary charges. H. An Inquest into the death of Jean Charles de Menezes is still to take place. The investigation was also undertaken on behalf of the Coroner and we are grateful for his agreement to publication ahead of his Inquest. The Inquest will provide an important opportunity for Mr de Menezes’ family to have their own questions answered about the circumstances of his death. I. Detailed verbal briefings on the progress and conclusions of the investigation were given to members of Mr de Menezes’ family and their legal representatives on a regular basis. The legal representatives were specifically briefed on the contents of the investigation report on 6 March and 22 March 2006. IPCC personnel have offered to travel to Brazil and brief any member of Mr de Menezes’ family who resides there. This offer remains open. A copy of the report was made available to one member of Mr de Menezes’ family and their legal representatives before their judicial review of the Coroner's decision to delay the Inquest until after the trial. Now that the trial is concluded Mr de Menezes’ family will receive further copies of the report and the supporting evidence to help them prepare for the Inquest. J. The lawful, first, proper place to set out publicly the results of the IPCC investigation was therefore at the trial, in open court, in front of a jury. The evidence from the IPCC's 6 investigation was subject to detailed and exhaustive scrutiny. Much of the material in the report has therefore already been disclosed at the trial. K. However, the publication of the report does enable the IPCC's operational recommendations arising from the investigation to be made public for the first time. These recommendations were developed in consultation with Her Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary and submitted on 14 March 2006. Copies were sent to the Coroner, the Metropolitan Police Authority, the Metropolitan Police Service, the Home Office and the Association of Chief Police Officers. L. Much has happened since the conclusion of the IPCC investigation and the submission of its recommendations. The Association of Chief Police Officers published their review of the police response to the threat of suicide terrorism on 7 March 2006. It is now available on their website at http://www.acpo.police.uk/pressrelease.asp?PR_GUID={2C7C85EF-DB78-4E91-A416- BF26D468F468}. Police policies and procedures more generally have continued to develop in response to this and other incidents. M. The Health and Safety trial does not mark the end of the legal processes concerned with this incident. An Inquest still has to be held and at the appropriate time decisions have to be made on whether any of the senior officers involved in the incident should face a disciplinary tribunal. The trial and these other processes all provide opportunities to deepen understanding of what happened and develop the learning about what needs to happen to prevent similar incidents occurring in future. N. The recommendations published here therefore are not the final word on the subject. They lay a foundation on which further work has been and will be done by all of those concerned as knowledge and experience develops. O. The IPCC carried out two investigations following Mr de Menezes' death. The first investigation, known as Stockwell 1, to which this report relates, concerned the circumstances of the fatal shooting itself. The second investigation, known as Stockwell 2, concerned public statements made by the Metropolitan Police Service in the aftermath of Mr de Menezes death. The Stockwell 2 report was published on 2 August 2007. The recommendations sets out here do not relate to the Stockwell