Unbelievable!*
G20 police officer Delroy Smellie cleared of assault
BBC
March 31, 2010A Metropolitan Police officer accused of striking a woman with a metal baton at a G20 protest has been cleared.
Sgt Delroy Smellie denied common assault on Nicola Fisher, 36, of Brighton, during the protest in Exchange Square, London, in April 2009.
The officer told City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court he feared objects in her hand were weapons…
[Ian] Tomlinson, 47, died after he was pushed to the ground by a police officer during clashes on 1 April. He had been walking home from work and was not part of the demonstration.
Judge Wickham watched video footage of the incident and looked at numerous photographs before coming to a decision on the case, which was heard without a jury…
Prosecutors have spent some six months looking at the death of Ian Tomlinson. They are yet to decide whether to charge any officers over that incident.
Bonus Justice!
See also : Cops Are (Still) Tops! (March 25, 2010) | Ian Tomlinson & G20 @ The Age (April 23, 2009).
Smellie, from the Met’s territorial support group (TSG), a specialist public order unit, argued during his trial that he believed Fisher posed a threat to himself and fellow officers. He said he repeatedly struck Fisher, who was considerably smaller than him, after mistaking a carton of orange juice and digital camera she was carrying for weapons.
The district judge, Daphne Wickham, said there was no evidence that his use of the baton was not approved, correct or measured, adding that Smellie had a “mere seven seconds” to act, and other witnesses had feared for his safety.
Camera. That’s a paddlin’.
Orange juice. That’s a paddlin’.
reminds me of this piece by Monty Python: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VO0zEfrEle4 (especially 4:20 – 6:05)
the hours spent ranting and raving, intellectualizing and convincing yourselves that society is an oppressive, authoritarian monster, why does it come as a shock to you when something like this occurs. or maybe you aren’t shocked. maybe you’ve sneers on your faces, wagging your fingers saying, ‘i told you so’, while you congratulate each other for being so right about everything. if only everyone was filled with the insight that comes from self-righteousness, what a wonderful world we would live in. oh wait, since the far right is as self-righteous as the far left, that wouldn’t be so good now would it.
hey entdinglichung, how farken funny was that skit? jesus i wish they were still around.