By Daniel De Simone
BBC News
The mother of Stephen Lawrence says she is “bitterly disappointed” that four retired detectives who ran a failed investigation into her son’s murder will not face criminal charges.
Baroness Doreen Lawrence said her “hope has been in vain” and the Crown Prosecution Service announcement was a “disgrace”.
She said she would now seek a review of the CPS decision.
Stephen was 18 when he was killed in a racist attack in south London in 1993.
The initial Met Police investigation failed to bring anyone to justice. Two of the murderers were eventually jailed in 2012.
In a statement, Baroness Lawrence said “not a single police officer has been disciplined or will be charged” over the investigation, adding: “In my opinion the police have, yet again, got away ‘scot free'”.
She said: “After 30 years in which there have been countless police investigations, a police complaint and a public inquiry I thought there might be some hope of holding those police officers who failed me and my son to account.”
Baroness Lawrence said the decision had caused her “immense distress”.
Announcing its decision, the CPS said it understood it “may be deeply disappointing” to Stephen’s family.
Image source, PA Media
Baroness Lawrence said the CPS decision had caused her “immense distress”
Nick Price, head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said the service has offered to meet with close family members “to explain our decision in detail”.
The officers had been investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), but the CPS chose not to pursue a criminal prosecution after considering a file of evidence for nearly three years.
The retired officers investigated were:
- Detective Superintendent Ian Crampton, who was senior investigating officer (SIO) for the first four days of the murder investigation
- Detective Superintendent Brian Weeden, who took over as SIO from Mr Crampton and was in charge for 14 months
- Detective Inspector Benjamin Bullock, who acted as deputy SIO under Mr Crampton and Mr Weeden
- Detective Chief Superintendent William Ilsley, who oversaw the team responsible for the first murder investigation
In 1999 a public inquiry led by Sir William Macpherson said the first Lawrence murder investigation was “marred by a combination of professional incompetence, institutional racism and a failure of leadership by senior officers”.
The Macpherson report was highly critical of Mr Crampton, Mr Weeden and Mr Ilsley for the decision not to make quick arrests – arrests did not take place for two weeks despite police receiving information implicating four of the prime suspects within 24 hours of the stabbing.
In 1997 an investigation by the police watchdog had also been critical, but only Mr Bullock was still serving in the Met and therefore available for a disciplinary process.
The IOPC investigation which led to the referral to the CPS first started in 2014 and looked into allegations of corruption against another officer – John Davidson – who worked on the first Stephen Lawrence murder investigation.
The investigation, which was carried out by the National Crime Agency (NCA) on behalf of the IOPC, followed an official review by barrister Mark Ellison KC, which said there were outstanding lines of inquiry into allegations that Mr Davidson was in a corrupt relationship with the father of David Norris, one of Stephen’s killers.
The claims were made by Mr Davidson’s former colleague, Neil Putnam, a corrupt officer turned super-grass.
Mr Putnam, who did not work on the Lawrence murder inquiry, alleged that Mr Davidson had admitted the corrupt relationship to him. Davidson denied the claims.
John Davidson was told in 2019 that he was no longer under investigation because there was no evidence of corruption on his part in relation to the Stephen Lawrence case.
The NCA then investigated Mr Putnam and passed a file to the CPS to consider whether he should be charged with perjury. The CPS has decided he will not be charged.
The IOPC investigation ended up focusing on the four senior officers from the first murder investigation, and their handling of the early part of the case.
In 2020, the IOPC passed a file of evidence to the CPS, which was asked to consider whether they may have committed the criminal offence of misconduct in public office.
The criminal offence of misconduct in public office is committed when the office holder acts – or fails to act – in a way that constitutes a breach of the duties of that office.
Last week a BBC investigation identified a sixth suspect in the murder and exposed a series of police failings in relation to him.
New evidence about the murder of Stephen Lawrence, uncovered by BBC investigative reporter, Daniel De Simone.
