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Four police officers involved in the original Stephen Lawrence murder investigation will not face criminal charges over their handling of the case, prosecutors say.
Mr Lawrence, 18, was stabbed to death in 1993 by a group of white, racist youths as he waited at a bus stop with a friend in Eltham, London.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has decided the four ex-officers, who were senior members of the investigation team, will not face charges of misconduct in public office over their handling of the initial six weeks of the murder investigation.
The early investigation was widely criticised, and it took nearly 20 years for two of the killers to be brought to justice, while three suspects were never prosecuted. Gary Dobson and David Norris were finally jailed for life in 2012 after a trial hingeing on tiny traces of forensic evidence.
Six years after his murder, the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry found not only institutional racism in the Metropolitan Police, but also institutional corruption and incompetence.
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In 1998, the Metropolitan Police apologised for how they handled the murder, and wide-ranging changes have since been made to the force.
The CPS acknowledged on Thursday that Mr Lawrence’s family would find the decision “deeply disappointing” and offered to meet them to explain in detail.
Nick Price, head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, announced that no charges would be brought against four former officers who investigated the murder in its early days.
“Following a referral by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in 2021, the CPS has carefully considered criminal charges against four officers involved in the early stages of the investigation into Stephen’s murder in 1993,” he said.
David Norris, Jamie Acourt and Luke Knight, leave the Stephen Lawrence Murder Inquiry
(PA)
“Charges of misconduct in public office were considered concerning the four officers’ management of the initial six weeks of the murder investigation.
“Having meticulously reviewed substantial amounts of available evidence and material in this complex case, we have decided that no criminal charges will be brought against the four suspects.
“Furthermore, no criminal charges will be brought in relation to a further investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA) into allegations of perjury by a suspect who alleged corruption in the initial murder investigation as it also did not meet our legal test for prosecution.”
Ten days ago, Mr Lawrence’s mother, Baroness Doreen Lawrence, called for officers to be sacked after a new murder suspect was identified as Matthew White.
Two witnesses said White, who died in 2021, had confessed to being present during the attack. Police did not speak to one of the witnesses, his stepfather, until 20 years after the murder because officers had previously misidentified him.
The three other remaining suspects are brothers Neil and Jamie Acourt, who have since served jail time for drug dealing, and Luke Knight, who has remained free.
The police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct, said it was satisfied that the National Crime Agency, which investigated the actions of the four ex-officers, had “explored every possible avenue”.
Mr Price added: “We understand this may be deeply disappointing for Stephen’s family and friends, and the CPS has offered to meet with close family members to explain our decision in detail.”
The decision is also subject to the Victim’s Right of Review scheme, which provides a victim or their families in some classes of case with a specifically designed process to exercise the right to review certain CPS decisions not to start a prosecution or to stop a prosecution.
Baroness Lawrence
(PA Archive)
Baroness Lawrence has campaigned relentlessly for her son’s killers to be brought to justice and for the Metropolitan Police to be held accountable.
IOPC watchdog director Sarah Green said: “Our thoughts remain with Stephen’s family and friends and all of those who remain deeply affected by his racist murder.
“It was his brutal murder and its legacy, the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry report written by Sir William Macpherson, which ultimately led to the establishment of our own organisation.
“So it was important that we follow all possible lines of enquiry in order to determine whether corruption played a part in the well-documented failings of the original investigation into Stephen’s murder and the attack on Duwayne Brooks.
“A vast amount of documentation, information and intelligence spanning 27 years, some of which was not available to the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, was gathered and analysed.”
Ms Green said that more than 150 people were interviewed, including serving and former police officers and staff, relevant witnesses and others such as journalists with in-depth knowledge of the original murder investigation.
“At its peak, 50 NCA investigators and support workers were solely dedicated to uncovering whether corruption played a role in the first investigation into Stephen’s murder. This has been an exhaustive investigation and we are satisfied that the NCA has explored every possible avenue.
“We appreciate this has been a very long process for all of those affected and we have ensured that all interested parties have been updated throughout our investigation.
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“We remain committed to bringing to light those events from many years ago relating to Stephen’s racist murder and we will publish the reports from all the IOPC investigations which followed the Ellison Review as soon as we can.
“Although the CPS has decided there is insufficient evidence to charge the four former officers, it has offered the victims right to review of its decision so it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.”
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