7 December 201016 December 2022 4WardEverUK

IPCC publish deaths in police custody study

all credits: Independent Advisory Panel on Deaths in Custody
published: December 2010

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) have published a major study of 333 deaths in police custody between 1998/99 and 2008/09. The study shows a fall in the number of deaths over an 11 year period and makes a series of recommendations for police forces and health service providers to prevent future tragedies.

In the first year of the study (1998/99) 49 people died in police custody in England and Wales, but by the last year (2008/09) this had fallen to 15. The long term study gathered information about all deaths in custody between 1998/99 and 2008/09, including personal characteristics of those who died, medical factors and the circumstances of their arrest, to identity themes.

7 December 201016 December 2022 4WardEverUK

Custody deaths since 1998: 333; convicted: none

original source: The Guardian
published: 3rd December 2010

A total of 333 people have died in or following police custody over the past 11 years, but no officer has ever been successfully prosecuted, according to a watchdog’s report. Prosecutions were recommended against 13 officers based on “relatively strong evidence of misconduct or neglect”, but none resulted in a guilty verdict.

Calling for further research, the Independent Police Complaints Commission said juries were unwilling to convict police officers. Len Jackson, IPCC interim chair, said: “It is clear to us there is some real difficulty in this area.”

The IPCC had a responsibility to investigate and present a file to the CPS “if we feel there are any matters potentially of a criminal nature”, he said. But then it was up to the criminal justice system.

10 November 201016 December 2022 4WardEverUK

Arsema Dawit murder: IPCC finds Met police failings over teenager killed by ex

originally published by: The Guardian
published: 19th October 2010

The Independent Police Complaints Commission has identified “collective and organisational failings” in the Metropolitan police’s treatment of a teenager who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend after telling them she feared for her life.

Arsema Dawit, 15, was stabbed to death close to her home near Waterloo station by Thomas Nugusse on 2 June 2008. The couple met at church and dated, but after Dawit ended the relationship Nugusse became obsessed and threatened to kill her.

Nugusse, who was 22 at the time, confessed to Dawit’s murder in a 999 call. After his arrest, he twice tried to kill himself, leaving him brain-damaged and unable to enter a plea. He was convicted in May last year.