UK: Promotion for senior officer in Menezies slaying
01 August 2006
In September Commander Cressida Dick, the officer who supervised the Metropolitan police operation that ended with Brazilian Jean Charles de Menezes being shot dead as he sat on an underground train at Stockwell tune station, was selected for promotion. The Metropolitan Police Authority announced that Ms Dick is one of four police officers who will be promoted to the status of deputy assistant commissioner as soon as the positions become available. Jean Charles was shot seven times by undercover police officers as he travelled to work on 22 July last year, following a terrorist alert the previous day, (see Statewatch vol. 15 no 6). The killing was followed by police secrecy and leaks which "covered the true facts and lies and false scenarios...[were] allowed to hold good" (Birnberg Peirce & Partners press statement, 17.8.06). No charges were brought against any of the police officers involved in the fatally flawed operation after the Crown Prosecution Service ruled out any prosecutions; the Metropolitan police force only faces charges of breaching health and safety law.
Following the slaying of Jean Charles, Dick was interviewed under caution by the Independent Police Complaints Authority (IPCC) as the officer responsible for the tactical delivery of the operation. The IPCC's report has yet to be published, but leaks indicate that they examined Dick's key role in failures of communication and the ensuing confusion that contributed to the killing. It is possible that she will face disciplinary charges. Meanwhile, the highly unusual decision to prosecute the Metropolitan police under health and safety laws means that any inquest into Jean Charles' killing will have to wait until it has concluded. Therefore the inquest into Jean Charles' death is unlikely to take place until 2008 to prevent its outcome prejudicing the legal proceedings.
The Menezies family and their supporters have expressed their outrage and dismay at both the decision to delay the inquest and the promotion of the police officer who bears ultimate responsibility for Jean Charles' death. They challenged the rulings by protesting outside Southwark Crown Court on 7 September (Brazil's Independence Day) arguing that further delays would make a mockery of the judicial system. A spokesman said:
We have not even seen the beginning let alone the end of the legal process as to who is culpable and responsible for the death of an innocent man. How can the Metropolitan Police Authority give the green light to promote Cressida Dick, someone who is centrally involved in the court case.
Jean Charles de Menezes Family campaign: http://www.justice4jean.com
Jean Charles de menezes Family Campaign "Menezes Family to Challenge proposed Inquest Adjournment" undated; Birnberg Peirce & Partners "Press statement #2" 17.8.05; Metropolitan Police Authority "MPA appoints new Deputy Assistant Commissioners to the Metropolitan Police Service" 12.9.06; Independent 8 & 13.9.06.<