Disciplinary hearing for PC Mark Alston (officer who struck Alfie Meadows on the head with his batton) at anti-fees protest outside Parliament on Dec 9 2010 just getting started now at City of London Police station.
For context, see press release about the hearing defendtherighttoprotest.org/justice-for-al…
Some more context: a piece Alfie Meadows has written about the hearing and his long wait for justice theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
Appropriate authority barrister: No dispute that PC Alston was one of the police officers using his baton on that evening. Alfie Meadows left the protest with a very serious head injury. IOPC investigation which followed took a very long time.
No dispute in case about the fact that Alston used his baton and hit protesters and that Alfie was hit and suffered a serious injury. Question is whether Alston used baton in an unreasonable and dangerous manner and whether Alfie was hit by Alston's baton and caused head injury
Footage of protest now being played. Protesters chanting "No ifs no buts no education cuts". Important to remember children and young people were out their defending the right to a public education when they were hire charged, kettled and batoned by police.
Images of police filming protesters and trying to make space for themselves and the police move in on them with riot shields and batons. Protestors visibly crushed in Parliament Square struggling.
Footage of officers reaching over metal barriers hitting protesters hands and bodies with their batons. There is no space for protesters to move back. They are trapped in a kettle and unable to move away as officers baton them relentlessly. Terrifying to watch these scenes again.
Footage of police on horseback after having charged protesters now being played.
More footage of police horses charging at protesters and very young people cowering and screaming as they are batoned and trampled by police on horseback.
These young people were the first to get out there and protest the Tory-Lib Dem austerity policies which were just beginning to be rolled out and which have not on destroyed HE but led to widespread suffering, job losses, sickness and death across the country over a decade.
Footage now being shown of protesters trying to protect themseves against police batons with metal fences.
Some more context from the day: "I’m gonna kill this little lot,” and “[I] clouted a few, just to get a bit of justice back," were just some of the disturbing comments made by PC Ott. “Red Bull’s kicked in…. I’ll fucking let some people have it as well" independent.co.uk/voices/comment…
Some more context: theguardian.com/politics/2015/…
Incredible that evidence is being presented from 37 police witnesses and not a scrap of evidence has been gathered from a protester. It's Alfie's word against 37 police officers.
Officers will give evidence defending their use of batons as they tried to hit the hands and fingers of protesters trapped behind metal fences. Incredible. These young people were trapped in a kettle with nowhere to go and they're trying to such baton use is defensible.
Alfie Meadows says he was hit by an officer with a baton and that he saw officers using their batons in a way that was dangerous and uncontrolled. Barrister points out this is not what officers are trained to do. Alfie says he knew it was a baton that struck him.
He felt the sharp strike to his head. He reached up and felt blood on his head. He knew he needed to get help.
He took months to recover from his injury. In spite of what happened to him, Alfie was charged with violent disorder and unanimously acquitted in March 2013.
Family and friends of Alfie who have provided evidence make clear he knew he had been hit by police.
Back after a short break. AA barrister now outlining evidence to given by Alfie's mother and tutors. He told them he'd been hit by police.
Medical evidence: head injury and fracture. Over 100 staples in head and a large scar. A very serious injury. Took months and months to recover from it.
More footage being shown. Footage of protesters being kettled in the dark in Parliament Sq. Officers with long riot shields and batons out. Students trying to protect themselves behind metal fencing as police officers pushing the fencing against them and tighten the containment
Footage from behind the police lines showing them battering protesters with riot shields. Panicked protesters with their hands up.
Officers with their batons out reaching around the fencing to hit protesters. Protesters can be seen putting their arms around each other to protect vulnerable young people present.
Police about move back but there is nowhere to go. Protesters panicked as they are crushed and hit with batons.
Protesters chanting shame on you. This is collective and preemptive punishment and for what? Protesting. Daring to demand education for all.
Incredible that the AA barrister is happy to show irrelevant footage on behalf of the defence from a variety of locations including events which took place after Alfie was hit. Evidence of property damage is irrelevant to the q of whether PC Alston used his baton dangerously.
Now seeing footage of the moment Alfie was struck. PC Alston is clearly identifiable on the footage.
Adjourning for an hour now. Back at 2pm.
Back now. Footage to be played of the moment Alfie was struck.
PC Mark Alston can clearly be seen raising his baton and striking downwards over and over again at kettled protesters in front of him.
We can see PC Alston with his baton raised in the air about to come down. A protester is visible with their hand on their own head protecting themselves. Clear shot of Alfie Meadows with this arm up trying to protect his head. His back is to PC Alston and his hand to his head.
Alfie clearly trying to protect himself and putting his hand on his head because he's been hit. Clearly a strike from PC Alston to Alfie's head.
Several strikes from PC Alston visible. At least 3 strikes visible in footage after he's hit Alfie.
There are several strikes from PC Alston after he's struck Alfie suggesting he's using his baton dangerously. His body angle suggests the baton comes down several times. Baton coming down and forwards in the direction of Alfie and others. Baton strikes are very quick.
Point is PC Alston on camera using his baton dangerously. The two allegations against PC Alston are that he used "his baton in a violent, uncontrolled and dangerous manner when he used it to deliver a number of downward strikes at head height towards a group of demonstrators”
and that “whilst using his baton to strike at demonstrators … hit [me] on the head, causing a serious head injury”. Alston has always denied any wrongdoing.
Really disturbing to see footage of trapped protesters with their hands up in surrender as batons rain down on their heads.
AA barister: Police officers can only use reasonable force. Can only use the minimum amount of force necessary to achieve their aim. The allegation that he used it in a violent and dangerous manner is shown in the footage where he brings the baton up over his head and then down.
This is a very dangerous movement to make with a baton in particular - raising it above one's head and bringing it down. Suggestion is that the force Alston used was not reasonable and proportionate.
[apologies for typos, tweeting fast] Alfie says he turned away from the officer and is struck on the side of his head. He suffered excrutaring pain and tried to leave the protest.
Finally, panel will have to determine whether if the breaches are found to have taken place, whether they amount to misconduct or gross misconduct. If PC Alston deliberately tried to hit Alfie on the head this would be very serious rather than reckless (AA barrister).
5 minute recess.
First witness called: former officer - Inspector David McGinley: he was a Bronze 3.2 commander. In charge of 4 PSUs. PC Alston under his command. McGinley didn't know him. His officers were in reserve.
McGinley was there the whole day. He was involved in pushing protesters back towards Parliament Sq. Police wanted to contain all protesters in Parliament Sq so they could be managed.
His officers were in full riot gear. He didn't give specific orders about batons. The officers were carrying shields and batons together. He gave no directions to use batons. They only time he would do that is as a "show of strength": police officers use batons to distance crowds
As in just showing batons not using them. He would never instruct an officer to use a baton. He used his baton to strike protesters on legs and arms. He says he used his baton to distance protesters from himself, using it for his own personal protection.
He used baton on legs and arms. Be would never strike the head. They're trained not to do that. He uses it on legs and arms to incapacitate people - hit nerves in legs and arms to incapacitate person. Two areas they're trained to strike are legs and arms.
Would never strike to head because can create a significant risk to that person, potentially death.
He's clear that he would never and has never used his baton to strike anyone on the head. Only used it in that moment to free trapped officers. Can't recall using it after that.
Defence now asking McGinley questions: asking questions as to what the briefings given to officers contained. McGinley can't recall details but insists a balanced approach was adopted and communication with protesters was emphasised as important.
McGinley says the protest was expected to be just another normal protest with no anticipation of any issues.
Overall command structure. Gold command in operation suite, Silver in adjancet room and determines strategy and tactics, Bronze implements tactics. Messages are radioed to officers or telephoned. Met and City police working together - trained jointly.
Chief superintendent Johnson was Silver in command (infamous for having been responsible for overseeing policing at G20 protest where Ian Tomlinson was killed. Johnson infamously said that he considered there were no lessons to be learned following the events of that protest).
Defence placing a lot of emphasis on the fact that officers know they're being filmed by evidence gatherers.
Now defence barrister is raising the Millbank protest. McGinley says that he did not consider that officers were on a witchhunt against students following Millbank (on this, see: independent.co.uk/voices/comment… )
Officers provided evidence saying they saw a female protester in tears at the protest. Apparently an officer took her out of the kettle. I must say this is not what the footage we have seen shows. Protestors are the only ones protecting other protesters in the footage played.
Irritating to hear use of term "missiles" from defence. Unfortuante and misleading to describe plywood placards as missiles. Particularly grating as we successfully challenged this language in the trials of students charged with violent disorder and acquitted after the protests
Here's an example of a case in which we successfully challenged the narrative that police used constructing protesters as violent. Extremely frustrating hearing it being wheeled out again. We showed they lied again and again about what happened on the day theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
The statistics on acquittals of students charged with violent disorder after the protests are testament to how the narrative that protesters were violent was false: LDMG recorded 15 cases of Violent Disorder, 3 dropped, 7 pled not guilty which led to only 1 guilty verdict.
See here for these statistics: defendtherighttoprotest.org/where-do-we-go…
An important aside as we wait for the next witness. The hearing is being conducted under the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2008 because of the timing of events under consideration. The chair of the panel is a police officer rather than a legally qualified chair as post 2015 reform
Pc Matthew Timms is now giving evidence. He knows PC Alston and knew him "vaguely" at the time. He had a round shield and was using the shield to push protesters away. He says he's familiar with such policing events. It was a busy time, he says.
He says violence was being directed at them. He participated in a show of strength and used his baton numerous times. He says he used it in defence striking protesters in the legs and using jabs. Leg and arms Home Office approved use of baton - to create dead legs.
He admits to hitting people using a downward motion as the kettle became tighter. He said he was aiming at shoulders but he did hit people on the head.
Interesting that the question of why police were in such close proximity to protesters, why were protesters being kettles, why were such proximate tactics adopted against very young students and other protesters is not being addressed.
See here for reports about the dangerous way in which the student protests were policed and how injuries were inevitable because of choices made in terms of tactics used theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
And here: theguardian.com/uk/2010/dec/19…
Defence now asking about face coverings. Again, must we remind you, there is nothing unlawful about face coverings. See theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
Defence suggesting that officers engaged in public order situations do not have time to assess the situation but engage in repeated baton downward strikes. Timms mentioned his baton strikes in his notepad. Defence asks if he got into trouble for this. He says no.
This speaks to police impunity rather than anything else.
Hearing over for today. If anyone can come to support Alfie in the days to come, that would be fantastic. Details on how to attend the public hearing here. You have to register by 3pm on the day before you want to attend. Please come down if you can @righttoprotest @netpol 
If you'd like to attend email this address by 3pm the day before you want to attend: Hearings@cityoflondon.pnn.police.uk
