Inquest described as a farce after actions of officer ruled as a justified use of force

A retired chief inspector of the Metropolitan police and the family of Rashan Charles have branded an inquest a farce after the jury found that his death, after being chased and restrained by police in north-east London, was an accident.



The inquest at St Pancras coroner’s court found the actions of a police officer who restrained Charles, 20, and brought him to the ground was a justified use of force in its narrative verdict.

A “golf ball-sized” package, later found to contain a mixture of caffeine and paracetamol, was removed from his throat by paramedics who attended the scene.



A jury of three women and seven men returned a narrative verdict on Wednesday, finding Charles died of a cardiac arrest and upper airway obstruction by a foreign body during a period of restraint.



Reading their conclusions, the coroner Mary Hassell said: “Rashan’s death was an accident, which occurred by virtue of deliberate human actions on the part of Rashan, the police officer who chased him and a civilian bystander, which unexpectedly and inadvertently led to the death of Rashan.”

The jury also found that the officer involved in the incident did not follow prescribed Metropolitan police protocols in the face of a medical emergency involving a suspect not breathing or suspected of swallowing drugs, and that the officer did not use the override function on his radio when it was busy to summon an ambulance.



However, the jury said that these actions on the part of the police officer known as BX47 did not affect the outcome for Charles, adding: “Rashan’s life was not salvageable at a point prior to which the medical emergency was readily identifiable.”

Charles’ great-uncle Rod Charles, 54, a retired Metropolitan police chief inspector, branded the process “a farce”.



He said the family were not surprised by the jury’s conclusions and that they believed the jury had been given “selective evidence”.



“The process has been a farce. It has not been helpful to us,” he said. “I can’t agree with the jury that there was justified use of force. The whole case pivots on the use of force. This is not about the family against the police service, it is about the family dealing with individual police actions. There can only be further tragedies if we don’t deal with situations like this differently in the future.

“Unless there are changes it will damage police and community relations for generations. This is not a process that has given us accountability but we must pursue that. While I am still breathing I will continue to fight for justice.”



Deborah Coles, director of Inquest, said: “It is difficult to reconcile the harrowing footage of Rashan’s death, and the outcome of this inquest. The coroner and lawyers representing the police were keen to highlight the context of gangs, drugs and violence in Hackney, in order to deflect attention away from the conduct of the police.



“Yet Rashan was completely unknown to these officers. This death occurred in the context of a systemic pattern of disproportionate use of force against young black men, and their experience of over-policing and criminalisation in Hackney.”

Charles died on 22 July last year.

Soon after his death, CCTV footage of the incident showing a police officer pursuing Charles was circulated widely. After initially struggling with the officer in a Hackney convenience store, Charles was seen to become lifeless.

The incident sparked protests in the area and an investigation by the watchdog now known as the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).



The Metropolitan police officers involved in the detention were granted anonymity at an inquest at St Pancras coroner’s court, where they were known as BX47 and BX48 as they gave evidence from behind a huge black curtain.



The Met police constable who detained Charles, known only as BX47, has been on restricted duties, the force said.



The officer may still face disciplinary action, the police watchdog said after the inquest verdict.

The IOPC completed its investigation into the death just before the inquest hearing started. It had referred the matter to prosecutors for potential criminal charges over the alleged use of excessive force, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided there was no criminal case to answer.

Jonathan Green of the IOPC said: “Following the jury’s determination today we will now provide the Metropolitan police with our view on whether or not misconduct proceedings for any officer should follow. My thoughts remain with Rashan’s family and all of those affected by his death.”

Following the death the Met has suspended the use of mouth searches on suspects.



During the inquest, the jury heard the incident began when police became suspicious about a hired vehicle in Hackney being driven first in one direction and then another. Charles, who was in the back seat, jumped out, and BX47 gave chase on foot into the convenience store on Kingsland Road.

BX47 used a “seatbelt” armlock to bring Charles to the ground before a member of the public, referred to as witness one, helped hold him still so the officer could handcuff him. BX47 told Charles nine times to “spit it out”, in reference to what he suspected was a package of drugs in Charles’s mouth. The package, analysed after the man’s death, was found to contain a mixture of caffeine and paracetamol.

The officer told the court his primary concern was for Charles’s safety, although he admitted he did not follow police procedure, which is to call an ambulance as soon as it is thought someone has something in their mouth they may swallow.

He also said that although he conducted breathing checks on Charles, they were not for the full 10 seconds recommended in police safety manuals. The officer confirmed he did not assess the condition of Charles’s skin as per safety guidance in such situations.

When asked by Jude Bunting, the counsel for Charles’s family, if he had forgotten his safety training, the officer replied: “At that point, there was a lot going on – I was monitoring him and thinking what to do next.”

Police safety experts who gave evidence said that while he had not done everything by the book, the officer had not breached his duty of care towards Charles.

The Met’s deputy assistant commissioner Richard Martin, responsible for professionalism, said: “The death of anyone after involvement with police is a matter of deep regret and our thoughts and sympathies remain with all those affected.”

He added: “The MPS must now take time to consider the detail of the narrative and any recommendations the coroner may make in her subsequent report. If there is learning to take forward for the Met as a whole we will take action where we need to.