GUN cops will have their identities protected in future to avoid more being forced into hiding like Martyn Blake, the Home Secretary has announced.
Yvette Cooper has laid out a package of measures to better shield armed police following the fallout of the Chris Kaba murder trial.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has announced measures in the Commons today
Chris Kaba was killed by an armed police officer, who was cleared of murder
Gangsters have put a £10,000 bounty on Sgt Blake, who has now gone to ground with his family despite his acquittal.
Speaking in the Commons, Ms Cooper said there will be a “presumption of anonymity” for firearm officers being dragged through the courts unless there is a conviction.
She said: “When officers act in the most dangerous situations on behalf of the state, it is vital that those officers and their families are not put in further danger due to any subsequent legal proceedings.
“So we will therefore introduce a presumption of anonymity for firearms officers subject to criminal trial following a police shooting in the courts affecting national duties up to the point of conviction.”
She also vowed to raise the legal threshold for triggering police misconduct probes into line with CPS criminal charges.
Despite being found innocent, Sgt Blake could still be struck off because of a separate police watchdog investigation into Kaba’s killing.
A groundswell of MPs and campaigners have demanded the Independent Office of Police Conduct drop their probe.
Ms Cooper will also create a “national lessons learned database” to log deaths and serious injuries during police operations to inform future training.
A jury took less than three hours to acquit Blake over the shooting after saying he feared the 24-year-old would use his Audi car to kill officers during the incident in September 2022.
Sir Keir Starmer last night said it was essential that the legal rights in place allow the public to have confidence in police forces especially those impacted by police actions.
The PM said: “I do think it’s a serious point on the accountability review that the last government started but didn’t finish.
“We are going to pick that up and complete that accountability review because it is important that the public have confidence in the police including of course the armed police.
“But it’s also important that the police know that we have confidence in them doing a very difficult job so we will pick that up.”
The PM added that he understood the pressures of firearms cops from his time as a prosecutor especially the four years he spent in Northern Ireland.
Sir Keir added: “I do understand the pressure that firearms officers operate under having to make split second decisions in difficult, fast-moving circumstances.
“I obviously saw that for myself when I was prosecuting. I obviously saw it for myself literally in Northern Ireland when I was working there for four years.
“I was in the control room on a number of occasions when those decisions were being made by the senior command, to pass the decision down to the officer on the ground and saw for myself just how difficult that is.
“In this particular case, I’m not going to comment on the CPS decision.
TIMELINE OF THE PROBE
THIS is how events unfolded two years ago.
August 30, 2022: CCTV footage allegedly captured the moment Kaba opened fire on a rival in a nightclub in Hackney.
September 4, 2022: Kaba’s Audi Q8 was linked to a shotgun attack on a car containing two people outside a Brixton school.
September 5, 2022: A Tactical Firearms Commander is made aware of the sighting of the Audi Q8, driven by Chris Kaba, after ANPR camera flags up its alleged involvement in the previous shooting.
The commander declares a firearms incident and passes tactics to an armed response team. Armed officers pursue the car, which is forced to a stop at 10.07pm in Streatham Hill, South London.
As Mr Kaba revs the engine, an officer standing in front of the car fires a single shot through the windscreen.
September 6: Mr Kaba dies in hospital at 0.19am. The Metropolitan Police refers itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
September 7: Statement by Mr Kaba’s family’s calls for a murder investigation.
September 12: Met confirm Officer NX121 has been suspended from frontline duties
September 20, 2023: Officer charged with murder by the Crown Prosecution Service. Hundreds of colleagues reportedly turn in their weapons permits.
March 8, 2024: Judge lifts anonymity order, naming Martyn Blake as the officer.
October 21, 2024: Blake is cleared of murder, with jurors at the Old Bailey taking just three hours to reach a unanimous verdict.
Metropolitan Police firearms officer Martyn Blake, 40, was found not guilty of Kaba’s murder on Monday Credit: UkNewsinPictures