A Metropolitan Police officer, PC David Carrick, accused of sex offences against four women, is facing nine additional charges relating to four other alleged victims. Carrick now faces charges relating to 29 alleged offences, including 13 counts of rape, against eight women between 2009 and 2020.
He is due to appear at the St Albans court on 28 January for a mention hearing relating to those charges, with a provisional trial date in April.
Since the torture and murder of Sarah Everard there has been increasing attention to violence against women by police officers. Despite this the government is using outrage about violence against women and girls to argue for the expansion of police powers. Workers' Liberty is supporting the following motion to Labour Party Women’s Conference.
We note:
• The government is using public outrage about violence against women and girls to help its Police Bill — a law that will increase police powers, diminish collective freedoms and deepen inequality
• At least 15 serving or former police officers have killed women since 2009
• 2,000 police officers have been accused of sexual misconduct, including rape, over the past four years
• One woman a week reports domestic abuse by a police officer.
• 53% of women in prison report having experienced abuse as a child
Heavier policing and a more punitive criminal justice system are not solutions to society’s problems. We must attack poverty and inequality and expand social provision — starting by comprehensively reversing cuts to services, including refuges and rape crisis centres.
We will campaign to:
• Stop the Police Bill and commit Labour to repeal it if passed
• Tackle police violence and abuse of power; replace the Independent Office for Police Conduct with a genuinely independent body with representation from friends’ and families’ campaigns and the labour movement.
• Curb of police powers and role, including in terms of use of force, stop-and-search, and police presence in schools.
• Addressing drug-related problems through public-health policies instead of criminalisation
• Boost services so that mental-health crises are dealt with by mental health professionals
• Launch major prisoner release programme of those convicted for non-violent crimes, and reduce the use of prison sentences.
• Restore local government funding and expand VAWG services.
Labour Party women’s conference is on 19-20 March 2022, online.
(The deadline for motions and delegacies from constituencies is 11 February. The limit for motions is 250 words, and the text above is 247. If you want help submitting or to let us know you have: awl@workersliberty.org)
