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| Police apologise to Mark Duggan's family for not telling them of his death | Police apologise to Mark Duggan's family for not telling them of his death |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Fresh failings over the police shooting of Mark Duggan, whose death triggered the worst riots in modern British history, were officially admitted on Wednesday when both police and investigators apologised for failing to officially tell his family that he had died. | Fresh failings over the police shooting of Mark Duggan, whose death triggered the worst riots in modern British history, were officially admitted on Wednesday when both police and investigators apologised for failing to officially tell his family that he had died. |
| The errors meant that Duggan's family only found out definitively that he was dead from television news reports a day after he was shot in Tottenham, north London, in August 2011. | The errors meant that Duggan's family only found out definitively that he was dead from television news reports a day after he was shot in Tottenham, north London, in August 2011. |
| The Metropolitan police force repeated an apology originally made in August, and was joined in saying sorry by the Independent Police Complaints Commission. | The Metropolitan police force repeated an apology originally made in August, and was joined in saying sorry by the Independent Police Complaints Commission. |
| For the IPCC, it is the second error it has admitted over its handling of events after the shooting, which saw riots first in Tottenham, then across London and England. | |
| Duggan's mother, Pam, said: "They let things really drag on. Because of all the confusion and misinformation I kept hoping that my son was still alive. That made things so much worse for all of us." | Duggan's mother, Pam, said: "They let things really drag on. Because of all the confusion and misinformation I kept hoping that my son was still alive. That made things so much worse for all of us." |
| Upholding the family's complaint, the IPCC commissioner, Rachel Cerfontyne, said: "This is a very sad case where a grieving family, suffering from shock, felt let down and badly treated by the police and IPCC. The Metropolitan police service has apologised to the family and I have told the family how sorry I am that the IPCC did not provide more support or visit them the day after Mark Duggan's death." | Upholding the family's complaint, the IPCC commissioner, Rachel Cerfontyne, said: "This is a very sad case where a grieving family, suffering from shock, felt let down and badly treated by the police and IPCC. The Metropolitan police service has apologised to the family and I have told the family how sorry I am that the IPCC did not provide more support or visit them the day after Mark Duggan's death." |
| Cerfontyne said a police family liaison officer had spoken to two members of Duggan's family at the scene and on the night of the shooting. | Cerfontyne said a police family liaison officer had spoken to two members of Duggan's family at the scene and on the night of the shooting. |
| The officer told the IPCC that he had told them with "99% certainty" that the dead man was Duggan. | The officer told the IPCC that he had told them with "99% certainty" that the dead man was Duggan. |
| He said the family members had asked the police not to go to the Duggan family home to formally notify his parents because it would be too much of a shock for them and had said they would do it themselves. | He said the family members had asked the police not to go to the Duggan family home to formally notify his parents because it would be too much of a shock for them and had said they would do it themselves. |
| But Cerfontyne said the two family members, who had introduced themselves as Duggan's sister and his partner, "are categorical that neither of them told the family liaison officers that the police should not visit Mr Duggan's parents to tell them the news of his death, nor did they say that they would inform his parents themselves". | But Cerfontyne said the two family members, who had introduced themselves as Duggan's sister and his partner, "are categorical that neither of them told the family liaison officers that the police should not visit Mr Duggan's parents to tell them the news of his death, nor did they say that they would inform his parents themselves". |
| In its full report, the IPCC dismisses claims from the Met, made in August as it tried to reclaim the streets from rioters, that it and also the IPCC both bore the responsibility to inform the family of the death. "The IPCC does not have the resources to inform next of kin of the death of a family member in a timely fashion. In the seven years of its existence there have only been two occasions where the circumstances allowed for a decision to be made about IPCC family liaison managers becoming involved in telling a family about the death of a family member." | In its full report, the IPCC dismisses claims from the Met, made in August as it tried to reclaim the streets from rioters, that it and also the IPCC both bore the responsibility to inform the family of the death. "The IPCC does not have the resources to inform next of kin of the death of a family member in a timely fashion. In the seven years of its existence there have only been two occasions where the circumstances allowed for a decision to be made about IPCC family liaison managers becoming involved in telling a family about the death of a family member." |
| Any police shooting must by law be investigated by the IPCC. | Any police shooting must by law be investigated by the IPCC. |
| For the Met, Commander Mak Chishty, said: "We recognise that it was the responsibility of the MPS to keep the family informed immediately following the shooting and up until it was handed over to the IPCC family liaison managers. | For the Met, Commander Mak Chishty, said: "We recognise that it was the responsibility of the MPS to keep the family informed immediately following the shooting and up until it was handed over to the IPCC family liaison managers. |
| "We acknowledge and apologise for the distress caused by not speaking directly to Mark Duggan's parents, Pamela Duggan and Bruno Hall." | "We acknowledge and apologise for the distress caused by not speaking directly to Mark Duggan's parents, Pamela Duggan and Bruno Hall." |
| Tottenham activist Stafford Scott, who resigned from a community panel set up to advise the IPCC, said blunders made after the shooting had triggered the worst riots in modern British history, which could have been avoided. | Tottenham activist Stafford Scott, who resigned from a community panel set up to advise the IPCC, said blunders made after the shooting had triggered the worst riots in modern British history, which could have been avoided. |
| Immediately after the shooting the IPCC said Duggan had fired at police, which turned out to be untrue. | Immediately after the shooting the IPCC said Duggan had fired at police, which turned out to be untrue. |
| Rioting broke out in Tottenham on Saturday 6 August after the family had gone to the local police station for answers. It spread the next day across the capital, and by the Monday to areas outside the capital and most of London's 32 boroughs. | |
| Scott said: "The failure to tell the family is why we went to the police station. The misinformation about the shootout is why we went there angry. That led to all the disturbances, and it is the community that suffered." | |
| An IPCC report into the shooting itself is still awaited. | An IPCC report into the shooting itself is still awaited. |
| A committee of MPs will investigate the IPCC's conduct. Labour MP Keith Vaz, the chair of the home affairs select committee, said: "Families deserve accurate up-to-date information when incidents such as this occur. The home affairs committee in its report into the August riots called for better communication between the police and the IPCC when dealing with families. We will be exploring this further when we hold our inquiry into the work of the IPCC later this year". | A committee of MPs will investigate the IPCC's conduct. Labour MP Keith Vaz, the chair of the home affairs select committee, said: "Families deserve accurate up-to-date information when incidents such as this occur. The home affairs committee in its report into the August riots called for better communication between the police and the IPCC when dealing with families. We will be exploring this further when we hold our inquiry into the work of the IPCC later this year". |
| Tottenham MP David Lammy said: "There were serious errors of judgment by both the IPCC and the Met in the days following Mark Duggan's death. | Tottenham MP David Lammy said: "There were serious errors of judgment by both the IPCC and the Met in the days following Mark Duggan's death. |
| "It is any family's worst nightmare to get a knock on the door telling them that their son or daughter has died. Mark Duggan's parents weren't even afforded that courtesy." | "It is any family's worst nightmare to get a knock on the door telling them that their son or daughter has died. Mark Duggan's parents weren't even afforded that courtesy." |