UK: Rising toll of deaths in police custody
01 September 1999
Two recently published government reports confirm the rising toll of deaths in police custody and that "a disproportionate number of people from black or other ethnic communities" were among those who died. However, neither of the reports addresses the issue of the police investigating crimes by other police officers, thereby missing an opportunity to propose measures on openness and accountability. The Police Complaints Authority's (PCA) "Annual Report 1998-99" recorded 65 deaths in police custody last year, an increase of 41% since 1995. The second report, "Inquiry into Crown Prosecution Service Decision-Making in Relation to Deaths in Custody and Related Matters" (the Butler report), severely criticises the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) over its "confused" decision-making processes and "inefficient" handling of deaths in police custody.
The PCA, which supervises police investigations into complaints against police officers from members of the public, published their 14th annual report in July. In the section on deaths in custody the report confirms that there were 65 deaths in 1998, representing the fourth successive annual increase. The report states that "a disproportionate number of people from black and ethnic communities died in police custody" and expressed "particular concern" over deaths following a struggle or restraint: "...of the nine people who died following a struggle three were black", the report says. Recommendations to stem the tide of deaths include "refresher training courses" on restraint techniques and "the introduction of CCTV to detention cells holding vulnerable detainees."
The Butler report, which was published in August, was set in motion two years ago following the controversial deaths of Richard O'Brien in April 1994 and Shiji Lapite (see Statewatch vol 5 nos 1 & 4; vol 6 nos 1, 4 & 6; vol 7 no 4 & 5) in December 1994, at Lambeth and Stoke Newington police stations. Relatives believed that the police had used excessive force in both cases and inquests into the deaths supported their claims by returning verdicts of unlawful killing. Nonetheless, the CPS refused to prosecute any of the officers involved in the arrests, which Butler attributed to a system that was "inefficient and fundamentally unsound".
The report has been described as a "missed opportunity" by solicitor Raju Bhatt who pointed out that it failed to "examine how allegations of criminal wrongdoing by police officers come to be considered within the CPS." Indeed, Butler's perceptive complaint on this point is only found in the Postscript and is not part of his inquiry. Here Butler comments on the "procedure under which it is the police who investigate and report to the CPS on a death in custody":
"In principle, however, I have always regarded this as a questionable procedure. Certainly, I am not alone in feeling uneasy about it. It is no part of my Inquiry to make a recommendation on the matter, and it would be wrong for me to do so. But I regard this issue to be of such importance that I feel I ought to mention it so that those in a position to do so might give it their consideration."
Butler's remarks, which reflect long-standing public criticism of the CPS over it lack of independence and accountability, were highlighted by Deborah Coles, of INQUEST, who commented:
"Judge Butler's concern about the fact that the CPS have to rely on the police to investigate the police adds further momentum to the campaign for independent investigations into deaths in custody...Deaths in state custody are a serious human rights issue and the Home Secretary must acknowledge the widespread distrust and anger about the current system that appears to protect police and prison officers. In order to restore public confidence that state officials are not above the law he must set up an inquiry into all the processes that follow deaths in police and prison custody."
Police Complaints Authority "The 1998-99 Annual Report" 1999 [