'Meaningful' apology needed from Scotland Yard over shooting of Cherry Groce during Brixton riots

 
Cherry Groce: shot by police
Jamie Grierson27 March 2014
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

The head of Scotland Yard should make a "full, public and meaningful" apology over the shooting of a mother in 1985 which triggered the Brixton riots, an MP has said.

Chuka Umunna, Labour MP for Streatham, said an apology offered to the family of Cherry Groce by the Metropolitan Police last week was "inadequate" and called for a full and proper statement from Met Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe.

Mr Umunna has also demanded that the Lord Chancellor, Justice Secretary Chris Grayling, takes action to ensure that legal aid support is given to the family during Mrs Groce's inquest after their request was rejected by the Legal Aid Agency.

Mrs Groce was paralysed below the waist when she was accidentally shot by police seeking her son, Michael, during an early morning raid on her home. She died in April 2011, having spent 26 years in a wheelchair.

Dozens of civilians and 10 police officers were injured in the unrest on the streets of Brixton, south London, following the shooting of Mrs Groce.

Days later, disorder broke out on the Broadwater Farm housing estate in Tottenham, north London, following the death of another black woman, Cynthia Jarrett, who collapsed with a stroke after police raided her home. Pc Keith Blakelock was stabbed to death during the subsequent rioting.

Mr Umunna said of Mrs Groce's shooting: "The apology that has been given so far is inadequate.

"A full and public apology, properly done, should be from the Met Commissioner himself and be displayed and promoted by the Metropolitan Police, including on their website.

"This will have to be a meaningful apology that acknowledges the police have failed both Cherry and her family at the time of her shooting and over the many long years following.

"Especially given the high level of scrutiny the Met Police is currently receiving concerning its treatment of the black community, I think it is in the interests not only of my constituents but of the police for the Commissioner to give a full and proper apology as part of rebuilding trust in the police."

He added: "The family should have every assistance to examine the circumstances that led to their mother's death.

"There is a clear public interest in this case.

"I have asked that the Lord Chancellor looks again at this decision, and that he takes action so that the family have the full legal aid support they require.

"As I said when writing to the Lord Chancellor, to deny the family legal aid seems to me a perverse decision and I disagree strongly with the decision to withhold support from them."

"Whilst it is true that we have come a long way from the dark days of the 1980s, there is still much more to do. Issues from decades past must be dealt with, wrongs atoned for, and the issues of today must be dealt with."

A spokesman for the Met last week said that, following Mrs Groce's death in April 2011, Commander Neil Basu met her son and offered condolences. He also took the opportunity to apologise for the shooting of Mrs Groce in 1985.

Mrs Groce's inquest is due to take place this summer and documents obtained by Channel 4 News reveal that a pathologist for the family and a pathologist for the police both concluded there is a causal link between the shooting and her death.

Inspector Douglas Lovelock, the marksman who shot her, stood trial in 1987 charged with inflicting unlawful and malicious grievous bodily harm, and was acquitted.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in