A newspaper vendor who died on the fringes of a protest against world leaders in London was illegally killed, an inquest jury ruled Tuesday, potentially reopening a case which has crystallised concerns over how British police manage violent demonstrations.
Ian Tomlinson was shoved to the ground by Police Constable Simon Harwood as he tried to find his way out of the cordon thrown up to contain protests in central London on April 1, 2009. He collapsed and died moments afterward, and, even though he wasn't a protester, his case became a cause celebre for those who alleged that police brutalized demonstrators. His and other cases also forced a re-evaluation of police tactics; a report published in the months following the demonstration said that police were too heavily focused on tackling violence rather than allowing peaceful protest.
Tomlinson was a 47-year-old alcoholic, and a government forensic pathologist, Dr. Freddy Patel, initially labeled his death a heart attack.
But police were put on the defensive when the Guardian newspaper published video showing Tomlinson, being shoved to the ground by a riot gear-clad Harwood. The video, shot by a New York fund manager, showed Tomlinson with his hands in his pockets before he is pushed from behind and topples over.
Two other forensic pathologists disputed the government's finding, concluding that Tomlinson died as a result of internal bleeding - which could have happened when he was knocked over.
British officials initially ruled out pursuing a case against Harwood, saying that the conflicting accounts of how Tomlinson died meant that a successful prosecution was unlikely. But the inquest - which in Britain is held when someone dies under violent or unexplained circumstances – has discredited Patel's report, meaning that the charges could eventually be brought.
Britain's Crown Prosecution Service said it would now review the case.
British police tactics have also come under the spotlight elsewhere. Many students who participated in the sometimes violent protests against last year's tuition fees hike say officers used excessive force to contain the demonstrations. Attacks on the ruling Conservative Party's office building and on the car carrying Prince Charles through London have, however, led others to wonder whether police were acting robustly enough.
More recently, anti-monarchists accused officers of heavy handedness in their policing of protests against the royal wedding.
AP