No charges for de Menezes officers

No officers will face criminal charges for the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes almost one year ago. However, the Metropolitan force faces prosecution under health and safety laws.

Senior CPS reviewing lawyer Stephen O`Doherty said the two officers who fired the fatal shots could not be prosecuted for murder or any related offences because they had “genuinely believed” he was a suicide bomber, and there was “insufficient evidence” to prosecute any individual.

He said: “The two officers who fired the fatal shots did so because they thought that Mr de Menezes had been identified to them as a suicide bomber and that, if they did not shoot him, he would blow up the train, killing many people.”

He added that there had been “insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction against any individual police officer”.

But, the CPS said the office of Metropolitan Police Commissioner would be prosecuted under sections three and 33 of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act for “failing to provide for the health, safety and welfare” of Mr Menezes.

According to the BBC, an Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) report (not yet in the public domain), handed to the CPS in January is said to be “highly critical of the surveillance operation and police control room staff.

“It is said to conclude that a series of organisational failings and communication difficulties had resulted in two experienced marksmen shooting dead an innocent man,” reported the BBC.

Commenting on the CPS decision, a spokesperson for the Met Police said in a statement: “We acknowledge and support today`s decision by the CPS not to charge any officer with criminal offences for their part in the events.

“However, we are concerned and clearly disappointed at today`s decision to prosecute the Metropolitan Police Service for breaches of health and safety. Despite the uncertainty this prosecution will create we will not shrink from our key role of protecting public safety. Officers involved in tackling terrorism operate in one of the most challenging environments within the MPS and they deserve our full support.”

ACPO President Ken Jones said: “The interim review of the existing tactics, supported by the IPCC, was examined by the ACPO Police Use of Firearms Committee. The revised tactics remain in place today. We now look ahead to the findings of the IPCC, which we hope will allow us to further improve, learn lessons and develop those tactics.”

Jan Berry, Chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “This tragedy took place at an unprecedented time for British policing and in the wake of a new and unrivalled terrorist threat.

The burden of responsibility on the police service to avert further attacks was tremendous, and on that fateful day that burden was passed onto a few individual officers who will have to live with the consequences of their actions for ever more.

“I echo the views of my colleagues in the Metropolitan Police Federation that any internal disciplinary matters that may arise as a result of the IPCC investigation are dealt with in an open and transparent way and as quickly as possible.”