The head of Britain’s biggest police force warned yesterday that crushing ‘good officers’ makes the streets less safe after a police marksman was cleared of murder.
Sir Mark Rowley said the ‘system holding police to account is broken’ after firearms officer Martyn Blake was put on trial for murder because he shot motorist Chris Kaba to save other officers from being run over.
Sergeant Blake, 40, was cleared in just three hours yesterday leaving the Crown Prosecution Service facing questions about why the landmark case was brought after jurors wholeheartedly rejected accusations he shot the 24-year-old ‘without justification’.
In an extraordinary case which has profound implications for national security, hundreds of firearms officers around the country downed their weapons in protest when the officer was charged as colleagues argued that he was just trying to save them.
Last night the Met Commissioner praised his officer’s bravery, while Tory leadership contender Robert Jenrick described Mr Blake as a ‘hero’ saying his prosecution had ‘endangered the public’.
The fatal shooting on September 5, 2022, happened after armed police started tailing the vehicle Mr Kaba was driving because the Audi Q8 had been linked to a shooting the night before in Brixton, south London.
When police boxed in the vehicle in a residential street in Streatham, Mr Kaba used the car as a ‘battering ram’ reversing into a police car before accelerating into parked cars in a desperate bid to escape. Ready to run over anyone standing in his way, Mr Kaba revved back and forth in the high-powered Audi almost dragging the ten officers surrounding him under the wheels.
Mr Blake finally ended the rampage by firing a single fatal shot through the windscreen killing the driver.
Former justice secretary Mr Jenrick said: ‘Martyn Blake was a hero who found himself fearing for his life and the life of his colleagues.
‘His prosecution was wrong and endangered the public. We must back our brave police officers, and not drag them through the courts for making split-second decisions.’
Former home secretary Dame Priti Patel, said: ‘This…case has had a huge reputational impact on his career and on the force at large.
‘There are important questions for the CPS to answer over the evidence base they had and their reasons for pursuing it.’
The Met Commissioner said last night: ‘We have been clear that the system holding police to account is broken.
‘The more we crush the spirit of good officers, the less they can fight crime. That risks London becoming less safe.’
During the three week trial, a succession of officers claimed they would have shot Mr Kaba if Mr Blake had not acted.
Despite his acquittal, Mr Blake faces the prospect of a disciplinary hearing brought by the Independent Office for Police Conduct. His suspension by the Met was lifted last night but it could be months before the watchdog makes the decision whether to proceed with a misconduct hearing.
Separately, Mr Kaba’s parents Prosper Kaba and Helen Lumuanganu are set to launch a civil claim which may include considering the grounds for appeal.
Members of Mr Kaba’s family rocked back and forth as the verdict was delivered. They said: ‘The not guilty verdict leaves us with the deep pain of injustice.’
Frank Ferguson, of the CPS, said: ‘This has been a complex case and the decision to prosecute was made after in-depth consideration of the available evidence.
‘We recognise firearms officers operate under enormous pressure, but it is our responsibility to put cases before a jury that meet our test for prosecution.’
It comes after more than 200 protesters gathered outside the Old Bailey with Mr Kaba’s family on Monday evening.
A banner was held that said ‘We Keep Each Other Safe’, as well as placards saying ‘Justice for Chris Kaba’, and chants of ‘Say his name – Chris Kaba’ and ‘No justice – no peace’ were heard outside the court.
Mr Kaba’s family said the verdict was a failure ‘for all those affected by police violence’, adding that ‘no family should endure the unimaginable grief we have faced’.
In a statement issued by campaign group Inquest, Mr Kaba’s family said they would ‘continue fighting for Chris, for justice, and for real change’.
Some protesters bore signs including ‘ashamed to be white’ and ‘born 1999, lynched 2022’ in reference to the death of Kaba.
Breaking down in tears, Sheeda Queen, a cousin of Mr Kaba, told the crowd the speed of Martyn Blake’s acquittal was ‘shameful’.
She said: ‘My family can’t be here. On the first day, when we started the trial, we watched footage of Chris being killed. We carried on watching it because it was part of the evidence.
‘My auntie started shaking.. crying uncontrollably. My auntie and uncle both got health conditions because of this trauma.’
Amid chants of ‘shame’, she added: ‘We had some hope, just a little, that maybe Chris’s case would be the first.
‘Are we surprised though? So shameful that we are not surprised the verdict came back guilty in a couple of hours.’
Protestors beat drums to the chant of ‘no justice, no peace’ as police officers watched the crowd nervously.
Temi Mwale of the Justice for Chris Kaba Campaign, said: ‘That’s what this country likes, racism,’, adding: ‘It is a falsehood to believe that we should justify these institutions, the policing… as the only thing that can keep us safe.’
Labour MP for Clapham and Brixton Hill Bell Ribeiro-Addy, who is supporting the family, said the trial showed that ‘nobody is above the law’ and called for ‘urgent efforts’ to rebuild trust between police and communities.
‘We’ve got to respect the process and the verdict but (the family) rightfully have questions,’ Ms Ribeiro-Addy, who attended the protest on Monday, told the PA news agency.
‘I support the right to protest. I support the right people have to ask questions. It’s important we hold our officers to account. We have a system of policing with consent in this country.’
The Crown Prosecution Service and the watchdog that investigated the shooting sought to defend the decision to bring criminal charges against Mr Blake, saying the decision was made after an in-depth consideration of the evidence and that it was right to put the case before a jury.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said she would work with forces ‘to strengthen confidence for the future’, while the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners said it would ‘reflect on the wider implications’ of the case.
The original decision to charge Mr Blake in September last year sparked outrage among his colleagues, with dozens of armed officers downing tools in apparent protest and the army being put on standby to plug the gap.
On Monday, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley again criticised the systems used to hold police officers who take lethal shots to account.
‘No police officer is above the law, but we have been clear that the system holding police to account is broken,’ he said.
‘I worry about the lack of support officers face for doing their best, but most of all, I worry for the public.
‘The more we crush the spirit of good officers, the less they can fight crime that risks London becoming less safe.’
David Spencer, the head of crime and justice at Policy Exchange and a former senior Met police officer, said it spoke volumes that the jury took just three hours to return its verdict.
He said: ‘Police firearms officers in England and Wales were deployed on 17,589 operations for the year to March 2024 – they intentionally discharged their firearms only twice.
‘This case, like the massive fall in stop and search, shows the systems for holding officers to account are preventing police officers from doing their job – something that is to the detriment of the law-abiding majority of people in this country and benefits only the criminal minority.’
The Police Federation of England & Wales’s acting deputy national chair, Brian Booth, said the ‘ramifications of the NX121 case going to court has gone far wider than the boundary of the Metropolitan Police Service’ adding that officers across the other 42 forces are ‘rightly asking what protection they have when doing such a dangerous, complex and demanding job’.
He added: ‘The Government must now urgently implement the Accountability Review recommendations so that legal safeguards can be established to allow police officers to have the confidence to do their job, serving and protecting the public.’
Former Met marksman Tony Long, cleared of murder over the 2005 shooting of Azelle Rodney, said of Sgt Blake’s case: ‘There was not a shred of evidence . . . it was a flawed prosecution.’
He added to The Sun: ‘The case was weighed heavily against Martyn Blake.’
Temi Mwale, of the Justice for Chris Kaba campaign, added: ‘Within 12 seconds of the enforced stop, Martyn Blake shot Chris in the forehead. None of us want to live in a society where the police can kill with impunity.’
Following the verdict, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: ‘I respect the decision made by the jury today following a full examination of a large amount of evidence – including video from the incident.
‘In London, we police by consent. When anyone loses their life following contact with the police, it’s important that it is properly and thoroughly investigated, which is what’s happened in this case.
‘Firearms officers work under the most extraordinary pressure, carrying with them unique responsibilities and often putting themselves in harm’s way to protect others.
‘I understand the impact Chris Kaba’s death has had on London’s communities and the anger, pain and fear it has caused. I send my heartfelt sympathies to Chris Kaba’s family, friends and the wider community once again.
‘There’s clearly still a wider lack of trust in the police, particularly within the Black community, that needs to be addressed.
‘As Mayor, I will continue to work with the Government to support and hold the Metropolitan Police to account to ensure any lessons are learnt and the Met commands the trust of all Londoners as we build a safer London for everyone’.
