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Police officer shot dead in Croydon police custody centre, 25th Sept 2020

Don‘t think that’s a comprehensive list, this one reckons about 10-15 per year:



Article references this site which lists all of them:


tbh quite a few involve road accidents to/from work, heart attacks after work and so on which don’t really distinguish them from other occupations.
Some potential candidates for Darwin Awards in that roll of honour. One of my favourites is John Gammon, died of sunstroke a few days after he was assaulted making an arrest in 1904. I've been chuckling to myself for the last five minutes about that one.

Or Reuben Dickinson, died after falling off a ladder while cleaning the station windows in 1906.

E2A: George Leefe - stabbed in the face by an umbrella which was thrown at him :D

The majority of cops that die in service (not of illness) are killed in RTCs either at work or on the way too and from work. Normally merits a mention in the local paper, perhaps the local telly in the regions on a slow news day.

The reason for so many odd ‘on the way to work’ deaths and ‘as a result of injuries received ’ deaths on the roll of honour is that it used to make a massive difference to the pensions of widows- and it was just widows then - and children how the officer died and if it was duty related The difference between poverty and extreme penury back in the day. Decent Chiefs would try to write deaths up to get past the Watch Comities who decided on pensions. Even today a cop’s journey to and from work, whilst unpaid, is considered on duty time. Although not for the purposes of the Working Time Directive.

There is still a difference in dependents’ pension depending on if an officer is deliberately killed or dies in an accident or of natural causes.
 
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I'm guessing the presumption is the public generally don't have access to guns. I don't know what the protocol for admitting people into stations is, but last time I had to go, I could just walk in a station without a search.

No doubt though this will fuel the debate about coppers being able to routinely carry firearms, which would obviously be a terrible idea.

You can be arrested by appointment. No search whatsoever, not booked in by “sarge”, and not searched. I suppose you’d have to be pretty daft to turn up at the station with anything on you that would get you arrested. I wonder if that might change in future.

Edit to add: and be taken through the custody area to an interview room.
 
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Looks like the killer will not be charged, and avoid court.




Earlier today at Northampton Crown Court, Louis De Zoysa was found guilty of the murder of Sergeant Matiu Ratana. He will be sentenced on 27 July 2023:



 
Full life term for the right wing homophobe who unsuccessfully tried to blame autism for his crime and so cause problems for others living with similar conditions.


Good riddance, let’s forget him and remember the good work for young people In Croydon being done in the name of the man he murdered.

 
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Full life term for the right wing homophobe who unsuccessfully tried to blame autism for his crime and so cause problems for others living with similar conditions.


Good riddance, let’s forget him and remember the good work for young people In Croydon being done in the name of the man he murdered.

I spotted one of the Ratana shirts in Marseille

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From the Guardian story two posts up:

De Zoysa received a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the neck during the incident, and a subsequent blood clot has left him with brain damage and physical disability.

His lawyer, Imran Khan KC, said communication problems caused by his injuries meant it “may never be possible to know exactly what was going through his mind” at the time of the shooting.

“The precise motive for why he shot Sgt Ratana may never be known,” he said. “We may never know why he had a loaded revolver on him. There was no evidence he went out to shoot a police officer, or anyone in particular.”


Did the judge determine that this disabled, brain-damaged 26-year-old is too dangerous to ever be released, or is the whole life tariff punishment for killing a popular cop?
 
From the Guardian story two posts up:

De Zoysa received a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the neck during the incident, and a subsequent blood clot has left him with brain damage and physical disability.

His lawyer, Imran Khan KC, said communication problems caused by his injuries meant it “may never be possible to know exactly what was going through his mind” at the time of the shooting.

“The precise motive for why he shot Sgt Ratana may never be known,” he said. “We may never know why he had a loaded revolver on him. There was no evidence he went out to shoot a police officer, or anyone in particular.”


Did the judge determine that this disabled, brain-damaged 26-year-old is too dangerous to ever be released, or is the whole life tariff punishment for killing a popular cop?


Well , I suspect if the former the Mr Kahn , who is pretty good, will have launched the appeal already and we will see it tested in court over the next few months.

And as a poor little disabled myself, fuck you for suggesting we don’t have the agency to form the mens rea to commit a crime. The 1970s called and asked for their patronising paternalism back…
 
Well , I suspect if the former the Mr Kahn , who is pretty good, will have launched the appeal already and we will see it tested in court over the next few months.

And as a poor little disabled myself, fuck you for suggesting we don’t have the agency to form the mens rea to commit a crime. The 1970s called and asked for their patronising paternalism back…

Apologies if you felt I was insinuating that you are not capable of murder. I'm sure De Zoysa could still be dangerous even though his self-inflicted injury has left him unable to walk or talk, but he doesn't seem to fit the profile of many others sentenced to whole-life tariffs and I'm not sure why he was deemed to be beyond rehabilitation.
 
From the Guardian story two posts up:

De Zoysa received a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the neck during the incident, and a subsequent blood clot has left him with brain damage and physical disability.

His lawyer, Imran Khan KC, said communication problems caused by his injuries meant it “may never be possible to know exactly what was going through his mind” at the time of the shooting.

“The precise motive for why he shot Sgt Ratana may never be known,” he said. “We may never know why he had a loaded revolver on him. There was no evidence he went out to shoot a police officer, or anyone in particular.”


Did the judge determine that this disabled, brain-damaged 26-year-old is too dangerous to ever be released, or is the whole life tariff punishment for killing a popular cop?
Nope statutory guidance is that the starting point for murder of an emergency worker (not just a Plod) is 30 years, if the judge decided to extend that to whole life then it's the judge's decision.
 
Nope statutory guidance is that the starting point for murder of an emergency worker (not just a Plod) is 30 years, if the judge decided to extend that to whole life then it's the judge's decision.
Didn't the 'Harpers Law' amendment bring in a new starting point of whole life sentence for the murder of an emergency worker? Harper was an off-duty police officer killed in Chorlton, South Manchester.
 
Didn't the 'Harpers Law' amendment bring in a new starting point of whole life sentence for the murder of an emergency worker? Harper was an off-duty police officer killed in Chorlton, South Manchester.


Andrew Harper was an on-duty copper in Berkshire who tried to stop 3 youths stealing a quad bike and was dragged behind their car to his death.
 
Harpers law intoduced mandatory life sentences for manslaughter of an emergency worker not murder. The big thing about the Harper case is they were found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter (1 got 16 years and the other 2 got 13 years). They appealed against the severity and the Attorney General appealed against the leniency but they all lost.
 
Did the judge determine that this disabled, brain-damaged 26-year-old is too dangerous to ever be released, or is the whole life tariff punishment for killing a popular cop?

You can determine what the trial and sentencing judge, Mr Justice Johnson, himself determined either by listening to his sentencing remarks





or by reading them here.

It is understood that Louis de Zoysa intends to appeal against both his conviction for murder and the whole life sentence he received as a consequence.
 
You can determine what the trial and sentencing judge, Mr Justice Johnson, himself determined either by listening to his sentencing remarks





or by reading them here.

It is understood that Louis de Zoysa intends to appeal against both his conviction for murder and the whole life sentence he received as a consequence.


Didn't know the law had changed in 2015 to make a whole life order the starting point for sentencing in murders of police or prison officers in the course of their duties - the judge could apparently still have chosen a minimum-term sentence but he decided aggravating factors outweighed mitigating factors including autism, injuries, and age.

A whole life can only be imposed on an offender who is over the age of 21. You were not substantially over that age, and you were still within the age bracket where neurological development can impact on maturity. You were, however, close to the top end of that age bracket. Your age is a mitigating factor.
 
Apologies if you felt I was insinuating that you are not capable of murder. I'm sure De Zoysa could still be dangerous even though his self-inflicted injury has left him unable to walk or talk, but he doesn't seem to fit the profile of many others sentenced to whole-life tariffs and I'm not sure why he was deemed to be beyond rehabilitation.
Yep, guilty of murder certainly and certainly has agency (from the reporting), but as to any continuing risk to the public, I'd have thought that would be pretty low. Particularly after spending a few years in the prison system whilst wheelchair bound and with communication difficulties.
 
Yep, guilty of murder certainly and certainly has agency (from the reporting), but as to any continuing risk to the public, I'd have thought that would be pretty low. Particularly after spending a few years in the prison system whilst wheelchair bound and with communication difficulties.

He might have a chance at release on compassionate grounds or whatever if he stays out of trouble for the next 30 years - maybe sooner, depending on the severity of his brain damage, doesn't seem entirely clear whether he fully understood the court proceedings
 
He might have a chance at release on compassionate grounds or whatever if he stays out of trouble for the next 30 years - maybe sooner, depending on the severity of his brain damage, doesn't seem entirely clear whether he fully understood the court proceedings
Sounds like he's a fucking horrible bloke and it was a pretty straightforward conviction. But keeping him in a prison hospital wing for several decades just seems pointless.
 
"produced a weapon during a search" is what the BBC said in the OP.

So it was a custody Sargent and the bloke had been arrested on charges relating to suspicion of possession of ammunition or something like that. Seems bloody odd if he wasn't searched at the time of arrest. The arresting officers must feel absolutely terrified. That's going to haunt them forever.

Also seems the perp was on the terror radar

Did the police search and find this ammunition and somehow fail to notice a gun? This is all a bit weird. Very sad, but weird.

They’ve f*cked up big time, & they know it.

A report based on the evidence given today at the inquest into the death of Sgt Matt Ratana:

Police officer who missed gun while arresting killer of Matt Ratana admits ignoring training
 
A report based on the evidence given today at the inquest into the death of Sgt Matt Ratana:

Police officer who missed gun while arresting killer of Matt Ratana admits ignoring training

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Failed by his own colleagues:

Matt Ratana: Cop shot by prisoner hiding gun 'could still be alive' as partner sues Metropolitan Police
 
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