Jean Charles de Menezes Inquest

Thanks to the anonymous source who sent the following to us:

Good day to you wherever you are in the Met. On this occasion I am talking to you about the inquest into the death of Jean Charles de Menezes. You all know there are lots of other things going on, some difficult, some very successful but I wanted to get this particular message to you before the inquest starts on Monday 22nd September. After that, very little can be said before its conclusion in late November or early December.

There can be little doubt that this inquest will be the most testing tribunal the Met has faced since the Macpherson Inquiry. Something in the region of 65 serving or former officers have been called to give evidence. There will be intense media coverage.

As far as the organisation as a whole is concerned, I have asked Counsel to represent the Met's position as being this: -

• Jean Charles de Menezes was an entirely innocent man and the Metropolitan Police takes full responsibility for his death.

• Although it happened in the middle of perhaps the most testing operational challenge the Service has faced since the Second World War, this death has robbed a family of their son. We have to account for that and an inquest is the place to do so.

• Last year, the Met decided to plead not guilty at the Health and Safety trial because, on the contrary, we fundamentally believed that Health and Safety legislation was the wrong legal process for holding us to account. I am pleased to be able to say that the fact of that trial has led to lengthy discussions with the Health and Safety Executive and work continues to prepare national guidance which better balance police operational responsibilities with health and safety considerations.

• Our approach will be one of humility. On 22nd July 2005, we confidently believed that our systems of command, of surveillance and of firearms intervention were among the best in the world. However, they failed in response to a previously unforeseen circumstance, suicide bombers on the run.

• During the last two and a half years, many people in the Met have worked tirelessly to make improvements to many of our processes. For instance, many of you may be aware that we have upgraded our control room which deals with fast moving life threatening incidents and that we are creating a unified surveillance command. There are too many enhancements to list now but Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary has praised our response and our willingness to learn and to improve.

• We will be making these changes known to the Coroner but, of course, they are unlikely to feature in the evidence given before the inquest itself, which must be concerned only with the events that led up to Jean Charles' death.

• No one set out that day with any intent to let a young man die. The officers involved will be giving evidence of doing what they did with good intention. They have my support and should have yours.

Nevertheless, this will be a difficult couple of months and we must brace ourselves for criticism.

I am certain that the amount of work we have done in the aftermath of the tragedy and the professionalism of the colleagues giving evidence will take us through the turbulence that lies ahead and it is to be hoped that one of the legacies of Jean Charles is a Metropolitan Police Service even better equipped to deal with tragedy and danger.

Finally, I am acutely conscious of the fact that the inquest will come on top of some serious challenges around race, within and outside the organisation. I am immensely proud that, despite the past few weeks, you continue to deliver a first-class service to all Londoners. You should stay proud too.

Thank you very much.

Ian Blair
Commissioner

Labels: Leaks

This entry was posted on Friday, 19 September 2008 at 10:44.