The City of London Police's last high profile investigation was into the death of Roberto Calvi, God's Banker, discovered hanging under Blackfriars bridge in the 1980s. They insisted it was suicide until they conceded it was murder in the face of overwhelming evidence. But it took them some years.
It doesn't inspire confidence in their abilities, let alone their impartiality in investigating some of their own officers' involvement in the death of Mr Tomlinson, caught up in Gordon Brown's G20 demonstration and the counter demonstration, as he tried to go home from work. The Police Complaints Commission should take over as a matter of urgency, at the very least, although a truly independent inquiry is really what should be instituted at once.
The Evening Standard reports that Mr Tomlinson was attacked not once but twice by police on his journey home, stating it is not clear if the same officer was involved both times. As the most important categorisations for New Labour in contexts of social conflict are gender and ethnicity perhaps we could be told the gender and ethnicity, if the name is to be with held, of the officer who landed Mr Tomlinson on the ground in the video we have seen so far.
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5 comments:
I was a City Police riot cop for three years (five years total service) I expect the City Police were involved in varios IRA and one Al Qaeda atrocity since Calvi.
My comment to another blogger on this very subject is below:
Hello, SC (here from Blue Eyes)
Conjecture. Why not ?
I think that, off camera, he’d argued with the officers. It seems that Tomlinson has a CRO as reports state that he was living in a bail hostel. He may well not have been pro police.
The innitial coroner’s report stating ‘natural causes’ (if the papers are to be believed) discounts any external physical trauma - ergo any serious beating with batons as claimed by witnesses.
The video shows him sauntering with hands in pockets - I get the impression that he was doing so defiantly. This is a typical protest tactic. If he was at the rear of a crowd being ushered away then I gather that he must have been at the front of it at some point.
I feel that the ‘offending’ officer should be arrested. There is a prima facie case for assault and the unfortunate passing or Mr Tomlinson necessitates the most serious investigation.
I have a suspicion that the ‘offending’ officer is a woman. The face masks worn are new to me - is this now normal on shield serials ?
I don’t feel that this is a case of sustained and intentional police brutality but more of an impetuous act undertaken in an instant. That said the officer will/should pay dearly for what is an utterly stupid and unecessary act.
And finally …
I’ve been on shield serials myself with some hot heads. But rarely was anything done without some sort of preamble. The ‘offending’ officer seemed pretty angry about something. I wonder what caused such a loss of control.
Too much guess work here ??? Why ever not ? That’s what anony blogging is about, nay ???
I believe Mr Tomlinson was staying at the St Mungo's hostel, though that is no evidence that he was on bail. What is a CRO E-K?
Criminal Records Office.
"No trace CRO."
"It seems that Tomlinson has a CRO as reports state that he was living in a bail hostel. He may well not have been pro police."
I've got a criminal record- at least until the appeal, if not longer (and getting it has not nurtured pro-police feelings in my bosom). I hope that it wouldn't be taken into account if I were attacked.
I don't suppose that there will be a truly independent inquiry. Would that your blog were advisor to the government!
Concerned citizens are trying to find out the identity of these apparently unaccountable officers.
http://fitwatch.blogspot.com/2009/04/identity-of-fit-officers-implicated-in.html
http://bristle.wordpress.com/2009/04/11/if-the-police-officers-who-witnessed-the-assault-on-ian-tomlinson-will-not-come-forward-voluntarily-then-we-ourselves-must-drag-them-into-the-public-arena/
http://bristle.wordpress.com/2009/04/11/notes-on-the-police-witnesses-to-ian-tomlinsons-deadly-assault/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/twothumbsfresh/sets/72157616642969354/
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