Police officer faces ruling over Tomlinson death
Updated on 22 July 2010
The family of Ian Tomlinson, who died after being hit with a police baton during the G20 demonstrations, will find out today if the officer will be named and charged, writes Channel 4 News home affairs correspondent Simon Israel.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will announce today whether the police officer who allegedly struck and pushed Ian Tomlinson at the G20 protests in London should be charged. Channel 4 News captured video footage of the incident at the time.
The CPS has confirmed to Channel 4 News that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Keir Starmer, will make a statement relating to the investigation into Mr Tomlinson's death.
It is 15 months since Mr Tomlinson, a 47-year-old newspaper seller, died after getting caught up in the G20 protests while on his way home from work. He was struck with a baton and then pushed to the ground by a Metropolitan police officer.
Video footage of the incident was captured by a passer-by and a Channel 4 News cameraman.
Mr Tomlinson was at first thought to have died of a heart attack, but a second post mortem concluded that he had died as the result of an abdominal haemorrhage.
The conclusions of an Independent Police Complaints Commission investigation into Mr Tomlinson's death were passed to the DPP last August and there has been criticism of the length of time it has taken the CPS to reach a decision on whether to charge the officer involved.
If the CPS decides to prosecute the officer, potential charges include assault or manslaughter.
A family's long wait for answers
The family of Ian Tomlinson, who died after being hit with a police baton during the G20 demonstrations, have waited 15 months for a decision on whether the officer will face charges, writes Channel 4 News home affairs correspondent Simon Israel.
Today they will meet the Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer to learn what that decision is. The DPP's options are limited.
The legal deadline for a common assault charge has long since passed. That leaves the possibility of manslaughter which at the extreme end carries a life sentence, or misconduct in public office which also carries, potentially, a lengthy sentence, or of course both.
Since those pictures of the 47-year-old news vendor being hit and shoved to the ground were transmitted all over the world, there have been many questions asked about why the process has taken so long.
One difficulty has been the issue about what exactly was the action which caused Mr Tomlinson to die and the second was how the case was treated by the authorities in the initial days after he collapsed and died in the midst of the G20 protests. Conflicting pathologists conclusions have not helped.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission's inquiry necessitated various follow ups, and in all this time Mr Tomlinson's family have waited and waited and waited. Now the decision is imminent it will be interesting to see if the officer who hit him, will be named if charged.
Up until now his identity has only been defined by the Territorial Support Group (TSG) unit he was in on the fateful day. It maybe that the issue of publically naming him may be delayed until his first appearance in court.
In an interview for Channel 4 News on the anniversary of Mr Tomlinson's death in April, his stepson Paul said it been a difficult year.
"It's been up and down," he said. "We still haven't had any decisions. And today just feels like exactly a year ago, having to start again. It's hard."
"A year on we're still grieving and no decision's been made yet."
Mr Tomlinson's widow, Julia, told Channel 4 News in April it was the "not knowing" which had made life especially difficult. She said: "We still haven't had any answers and we still don't know where we stand in this and what is going to happen."
Mrs Tomlinson said many promises had been made and not kept. "Decisions were going to be made before Christmas, decisions were going to be made before April 1st, but still nothing," she added.
A member of the Metropolitan Police's territorial support group has been suspended and questioned on suspicion of manslaughter over Mr Tomlinson's death.
