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UK: Police officer jailed

01 January 1991

UK: Police officer jailed
artdoc June=1993

A Manchester police officer has been jailed for 12 months after
being found guilty of assaulting and wrongfully imprisoning
Rastafarian, Leslie Calder.
Mr. Calder had been standing in the queue in a fish and chip
shop when Andrew Garbett and another police officer entered the
shop. When the Rastafarian bought the last piece of fish, Garbett
swore and prevented him from leaving the shop. Once outside, he
proceeded to attack Leslie Calder, knocking him to the ground,
and forcibly handcuffing him (Manchester Evening News 30.4.93).

Asian police officer wins damages

PC Joginder Singh Prem has won 25,000 damages from
Nottinghamshire Constabulary for racial discrimination and
victimisation after it was shown that he was turned down for
promotion to sergeant five times, despite passing the sergeants
and inspectors exams. PC Prem says that officers called him a
`turban headed git' (Guardian 5.5.93).

Death in custody

An inquest has ruled that a 31-year old black prisoner who died
in a Manchester police cell, covered in bruises from head to
foot, was unlawfully killed. Leon Patterson, who died on 27
November 1992, had been naked and delirious for 24 hours. He had
suffered a series of seizures and vomiting fits, covering the
walls of his cell with blood. It seems that he had been denied
medical treatment because police officers believed that he was
feigning sickness.
The inquest jury said that the precise cause of death was
impossible to ascertain, but reached its verdict on the basis
that Patterson was the victim of `reckless' lack of care. A
report on the case has been forwarded to the Director of Public
Prosecutions and an inquiry by the Police Complaints Authority
is underway (Observer 2.5.93).

IRR European Race Audit no 4 1993. Contact: Liz Fekete, Institute
of Race Relations, 2-6 Leeke Street, London WC1X 9HS. Tel: ++ 071
837 0041