Civil liberties, justice, crime

Justice for Azelle and Jean

Anthony Long, the police officer who fatally shot Azelle Rodney in 2005, is on trial for murder. Prosecutors have told the jury that Long had no lawful reason for shooting Azelle. The court has also heard that Long opened fire less than one-tenth of a second after unmarked police cars boxed in the car Rodney was traveling in. Long fired eight shots in total, hitting Azelle in the arm, body, twice around his right ear and then after a pause, twice through the top of his head. Prosecutors argue that Long “opened fire extremely quickly ... he cannot have taken any time to observe anything...

Orgreave: no time limit on truth

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has announced it will not mount a formal investigation into the policing of the so called "Battle of Orgreave" and its aftermath during the 1984-85 Miners Strike. The IPCC's own initial investigation found evidence of police brutality, officers fabricating evidence and committing perjury. The IPCC's argument for not continuing the investigation — that its too long ago and they don’t have the resources to investigate Orgreave and the Miner's Strike whilst its conducting two other major investigations into South Yorkshire Police over...

A government for the rich

The Tories are committed to cutting public spending by £30 billion over the next four years. This will mean annual cuts twice the size of any year’s cuts over the past five years. Although they have not identified all their cuts it is already clear to some degree where the axe will fall. Policies include debarring unemployed under-21s from claiming Housing Benefit and cutting the annual benefits cap — the maximum payable to any claimant, whatever their circumstances — from £26,000 to £23,000. Jobseekers Allowance for 18-21 year-olds will be replaced by a six-month Youth Allowance, after which...

Baltimore: the violence of capitalism

“This city has looked like it had a riot since I was born,” Baltimore resident Vashti Presco said. “It wasn’t rebuilt after 1968, even though other cities had worse riots. That drugstore is probably never going to get rebuilt.” Protests in Baltimore since the killing by police of Freddie Gray have been labelled as riots in the media. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has condemned those involved as “criminals” and “thugs”. President Obama condemned the protesters’ violence. All are ignoring the many peaceful protests and erasing the brutal violence inflicted on the black community in Baltimore by...

Killed for “failing to obey”

The US National Guard was called into Baltimore on Monday 27 April to put down riots which followed the funeral of Freddie Gray, a young black man who died last week of injuries sustained during a violent arrest by police. Freddie suffered a broken neck which left his spine “80% severed” and his voicebox crushed. He lapsed into a coma and died a week later. Freddie was chased and arrested for “catching an officer’s eye” and running away. Mobile phone footage of Freddie's arrest shows him being dragged into a police van while yelling in pain, one of his legs appearing limp. Police chiefs have...

Reclaim Brixton!

Two thousand people gathered in Brixton on Saturday 25 April under the banner of Reclaim Brixton. The day included a short lived occupation of the Town Hall, several marches and speeches and music in Windrush Square. Reclaim Brixton brings together a number of new and existing campaigns together. Demands of the protest included: • Refurbishment not regeneration of council estates — no evictions of Lambeth residents • Stop racist policing, stop police violence, no more stop and search • No cuts to local services — save Lambeth Libraries • Private rent cap, new property development to be used...

Police complaints should be disbanded

At the end of March the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) cleared all police officers involved in the shooting of Mark Duggan of any wrong doing. This comes as no surprise. The IPCC have little credibility and their involvement in the Duggan case has been questionable from the get go. The IPCC told the media Duggan had shot at police first, a claim that was later disproven by ballistics and witnesses. And under a Freedom of Information request obtained by the Institute of Race Relations it has now been shown that the IPCC actually with-held information from the media about one...

Killer cops are charged

­Michael Slager, the cop who killed unarmed black man, Walter Scott, on 5 April in North Charleston, South Carolina, has been charged with murder. The murder charge was brought only after an eye witness handed over to police mobile phone footage of the event showing Walter being shot eight times in the back as he ran away from Slager. The witness also said there was a struggle in which Slager used his taser on Walter before Walter got away and ran. Police spokespeople has originally reported that Walter had taken Slager’s taser and used it against him. The video shows Slager picking up the...

Police cleared in Duggan verdict

On the 25th of march 2015, the Independent Police Complaints Commission cleared all officers involved in the shooting of Mark Duggan of any wrong doing. This comes as no surprise. The IPCC’S involvement in the Duggan case has been questionable from the get go. The IPCC told the media Duggan had shot at police first, a claim that was later disproven by ballistics and witnesses. They also claimed Duggan was a known gangster despite the fact he had only ever been convicted of manor crimes such as cannabis possession and handling stolen goods. What is perhaps surprising about this latest report is...

Cops shoot two more

19 year old Tony Robinson was shot dead by a police officer in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday 9 March. Tony, a biracial man, was unarmed. Police had been called to an incident involving an “African-American man” jumping in and out of traffic and a reported assault. The lone responding officer broke into an apartment and shot Tony after what the police say was a scuffle. Protests against the killing continued overnight on Monday. Slogans on demonstrations highlighted stark inequality in Madison. The city prides itself on being a good place to live. However, a report released in 2013 showed that...

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