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Met pays five protesters £85,000 after illegal arrests
Justin Davenport30.04.09
Scotland Yard has paid £85,000 damages to five people for assault and wrongful arrest at a public protest - raising the possibility of a mass action by G20 protesters.
Police were forced to admit that the arrests of the five outside the Mexican embassy in 2006 were effectively illegal.
Solicitor Tony Murphy, who represents the five, said the Met had reached an out-of-court settlement with the group.
The force paid £85,000 damages plus costs, a total bill of more than £100,000, he said.
Mr Murphy, on Channel 4 News, said: "This case concerned five protesters, the G20 involved hundreds if not thousands."
If successful legal action is taken by G20 demonstrators, the force could face a bill of hundreds of thousands of pounds, he said.
The Met has argued that the G20 operation was the most difficult it ever faced. However, Mr Murphy said people at the protests had seen "systemic violence".
It comes as senior officers today face a grilling at City Hall by the Metropolitan Police Authority. A Met spokesman confirmed the Mexican embassy settlement.
Reader views (5)
The tax-payers will pay the bill though and we can't expect the criminals responsible ever to be brought to justice either!
- Derrick, A Once Great Land
In 5 years' time 2009 will have been "The Good Old Days".
That rather tells me that police stop-and-search and police violence at peaceful protests will increase.
- Reuben Camara, Morecambe UK
Having been the victim of wrongful arrest myself (not in this instance I hasten to add) I can't stress how awful it is, especially if the police decide to do the full monty on you - which involves holding you for up to 48 hours without a phone call (preventing you from attending work or contacting anyone to let them know where you are). In my instance, I was picked up off the street outside my flat wearing light summer clothes, driven overnight from London to Manchester, held for 2 days, and then released. I had no money and not even a coat on and was told it my problem how to get back to London. My flat had been turned over in my absence, my flatmate moved out, I lost my job, and I lost my flat. I wish the compensation culture would have been more widespread at that time. And before anyone wonders if I was a suspected terrorist, I was a 20 year old female and the charge was related to a tiny amount of cannabis.
David, the police have a 'certain look' they particularly don't like. If you want to be wrongfully assaulted / arrested just peacefully demonstrate on something like an ecological issue wearing a tie die T-shirt and sandals and preferably have piercings, tattoos, or long hair (worse yet locks) you will soon be identified as a 'serious threat' and dealt with in the harshest possible terms.
- Real, London
were do the police get the money to pay the £85,000? US the tax payer
- John D Rooney, lincoln england
I am losing out here ,can anybody direct me to the next demo please.??
- David., Chertsey.UK.
