Just over 6 momths after the shooting of the innocent Jean Charles de Menezes, none of the Policemen involved have been arrested and charged with anything, despite the Independnent Police Complaints Commission's report having been passed to the Department for Public Prosecutions.
However, astonishingly, The Guardian reports that
ITN journalist arrested over leak from Stockwell shooting inquiry
Vikram Dodd
Wednesday January 25, 2006
The GuardianA television journalist who revealed police blunders leading up to the shooting dead of Jean Charles de Menezes, has been arrested on suspicion of theft by detectives investigating the leaking of statements from the official inquiry to the broadcaster, the Guardian has learned.
ITV News revealed in August that Mr de Menezes, who was killed after being mistaken for a terrorist, was being held down when shot by firearms officers after it was passed documents from the Independent Police Complaints Commission's investigation into the shooting.
Surely this is a case of "shoot the messenger" who brings the bad news ?
Copies of documents are believed to have been obtained by the journalist, who is a news producer.
The story was hailed as one of the biggest scoops in the history of British television news and ITV has entered it for the Royal Television Society awards.
The leak from the IPCC's investigation included witness statements and photographs that undermined early accounts by the Metropolitan police of why Mr de Menezes was shot in a train carriage at Stockwell tube station on July 22 last year. The leak is being investigated by Leicestershire police who arrested the journalist in October and raided his home.
An ITV News insider said police seemed to be looking for evidence that money was paid for the statements. The source said no money was paid as ITV News did not have large sums of money available to offer for scoops, and if the IPCC source who leaked the documents had been motivated by money then they would have gone to a tabloid newspaper.
A 43-year-old IPCC employee was also arrested and has now resigned from the commission. Leicestershire police said that a 30-year-old woman was also arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to steal. All three people who have been arrested remain on police bail.
David Mannion, ITV News's editor in chief, told the Guardian: "We absolutely stand by the story, the way we covered it and the way we got the story; it was to our usual high editorial standards."
How can any of the Metropolitan Police and others directly or indirectly invilved in the shooting at Stockwell Tube station, seriously expect to get sympathetic reporting of their individual roles in the shooting and the subsequent mishandling of public relations, when they are seen to be quicker to arrest a journalist than any of the culprits ?
Who has decided that such an arrest is proportionate or in the public interestt, bearing in mind the the fundamental human rights of freedom of expression, and a supposedly free press here in the UK ?
In what way was the reporting of the police and other organisations blunders, which did not name any specific individuals, apart from those senior officers who gave misleading public statements, somehow not in the public interest ?
Absolutely outrageous. Once again this pathetic excuse for a govt , is covering up the truth, and gagging people.
How many more things does this govt have to lie about before people wake up.
We dont live in a democracy anymore, this is now a fascist dictatorship.
Forest Gate Shooting
I risk being totally wrong, but it�s so frustrating having no where to blog on the Forest Gate shooting.
Initial reaction is "Oh no, not again" followed by the assumption that the police statement will be significantly less than the truth, and the mainstream media will do a lot of �blame the victims� spinning, thus to repay previous favours. Let's hope ITN and Channel 4 are on the case when we really need them. Even the most absurd story is worth running. �One brother shot the other.� Does that sound likely? Give me a break. And never forget, �There were dirty socks on the bedroom floor�. Wow, now that really is incriminating. They�ll be inventing steam next. The Metropolitan Police Service are starting to look like Keystone Kops meet the Godfather. Imagine they paid a lot for that so-called �intelligence�, otherwise they wouldn�t have taken it so seriously.
Just shows that following the unlawful killing/murder of Jean Charles de Menezes by the Metropolitan Police Service (and still no officer/s charged), relations between public and police have gone into a black hole. Respect for the police is a single-figure percentage.
I honestly feel far safer from the police in Japan, Myanmar, Laos, China and even Thailand where the US maintain secret prisons, than I do (or did) in the UK. Hey, in UK you�re looking a three-to-five for carrying a Swiss Army pocket-knife. When you're more afraid of the police than the criminals it's time to emigrate. My "English gentleman" (aka English idiot) act gives me a measure of protection that simply would not work in UK. Asian police are susceptible to flattery and a chance to show off their English. �I say, you chaps are really doing a splendid job, don�t you know. Keep up the good work, what�. Keep in mind cops are bone lazy, so will pick you up when you arrive at the airport. So if you do have to slip back to UK, try a local airport or even Dover.
Paranoia: It keeps you alive and it keeps you free.
i have a complaint against the police, i have meen stalked by an ex boyfriend for seven years, the harrassment has taken the form of verbal and physical bullying, i have been to the police to nottinghill and kensington police station notifying them of this, they ignored my complaint, on one occassion i called the police, iwas put through to the same police officer, i asked to speak to someone in a higher position than him he refused, he then put down the phone i called about five times the same thing happened this policeman refused to give me his name, he told me if i called again i would be arrested, now because the police were not going to help i have had defend myself, in febuary 2007 my flat was broken into, on three occassions, i found a listening device attached to my phone socket, i took the device to kensington police station, they refused log it as a complaint, they did not even take down my ex-boyfriends name when i gave it to them, i called BT today 25/09/2007 to complain about my line being tapped they told me i had to notify the police, but when i went to kensington police station i was told it was not a police matter that itv was a matter for BT, i think thatthe police has ac tap on my telephone, i am the victim here not him, the only reason i can see as to why i am not taken seriously is because i am black and he is white.