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Riot police officer will be charged for London G20 assault
Sergeant Delroy Smellie has been charged with assault after a video emerged of a woman being hit with a baton during the G20 summit protests in London.
A police officer who allegedly struck a woman during the G20 protests in London a woman is to be charged with assault, the Crown Prosecution Service said today.
A CPS spokeswoman said Sergeant Delroy Smellie would be charged with assault of Nicola Fisher and he will appear at Westminster magistrates court on 16 November. He faces up to six months in prison if found guilty.
Smellie, a member of the Metropolitan police’s territorial support group, was suspended from duty two months ago after footage emerged of him near the Bank of England, apparently hitting Fisher, 35, with the back of his arm.
He was also shown appearing to strike her on her legs with a baton as she attended a vigil for the newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson, who had died the previous day. She said the incident left her with severe bruising.
A CPS spokeswoman said: "The Crown Prosecution Service has decided that there is sufficient evidence to charge Police Sergeant Delroy (Tony) Smellie with the offence of assault by beating of Nicola Fisher on 2 April, 2009 at a demonstration in the City of London.
“The CPS reviewed a file of evidence provided by the Independent Police Complaints Commission following their investigation into Ms Fisher’s allegation. A summons has been served on Sgt Smellie.”
The CPS said there was not sufficient evidence to charge him for a second assault, against another female protester.
Fisher gave evidence to the home affairs select committee last month, which has hosted one of two parliamentary inquiries into policing of the G20 protests. There has been five independent IPCC investigations following the G20 protests in April.
Prosecutors have also been asked to consider whether the Met officer who attacked Tomlinson should be charged with manslaughter. A CPS spokeswoman said that case remained under review and a decision would not be taken for a few months.
“We have been asked to look at whether the officer involved should be charged with any offence, and no decision has currently been taken,” she said.
Tomlinson was attempting to find a route home from work through the protests when he was struck by police near the Bank of England. Video footage revealed that he had his hands in his pockets and was walking away from lines of police.
Three of the independent IPCC investigations into the G20 protests relate to alleged assaults on women. The commission has received 282 complaints about the police at the G20 event, 135 relate to the use of force and 79 relate to police tactics.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/sep/28/g20-police-officer-assault