PRESS RELEASE – FOLLOWING OUR LEGAL SUBMISSIONS TO SHEKU BAYOH PUBLIC INQUIRY & THAT OF SENIOR COUNSEL TO INQUIRY
PRESS RELEASE – 27TH JUNE 2023
SHEKU BAYOH DEATH IN POLICE CUSTODY
PUBLIC INQUIRY
LEGAL SUBMISSIONS FOCUSING ON EVENTS LEADING UP TO AND INCLUDING THE DEATH OF MR BAYOH AND THE CAUSE OF DEATH
Tuesday 27th June at 10.00am
Capital House, Festival Square, Edinburgh, EH3 9SU
The Public Inquiry re-commenced this morning over 8 years after Sheku Bayoh died in police custody. The Inquiry over the course of one year has heard 59 days of evidence. In addition, hundreds of documents have been published on the website including extensive statements taken by the Inquiry team. Today, Lord Bracadale, the Inquiry Chair is hearing oral submissions from core participants on that evidence. The submissions will be focused on the events leading up to and including the death of Mr Bayoh and the cause of death.
Statement by Aamer Anwar Solicitor on behalf of families of Sheku Bayoh following submissions by our Senior Counsel Dr Claire Mitchell KC.
“When in October 2019 the Lord Advocate advised the Bayoh family that no police officer would face charges for the death of Sheku Bayoh, his family felt betrayed, believing there had been a failure to hold the police to account, a flawed investigation was riddled with institutional racism, incompetence, and the arrogance of unchecked power.
The living reality for the Bayoh family is that five days of protest for George Floyd in the United States delivered more than five years of waiting for the Scottish criminal justice system to act.
From the very day Sheku died, his family stated that the Sheku they knew and loved, acted out of character, and if he broke the law then the police had a right to act: – but Sheku’s family fundamentally believed that any force used had to be reasonable, legitimate, and proportionate. Under no circumstances did he deserve to die.
Within minutes of Sheku’s death, the misinformation began, Police ‘sources’ painted an image of a large black man, with stereotypical characteristics of extraordinary strength and dangerousness, wielding a machete to criminalise and negate Sheku’s right to life.
Sheku was experiencing a mental health crisis and should have been dealt with as a medical emergency. Sheku Bayoh was sprayed with CS spray within 6 seconds of the first police van arriving.
Sheku Bayoh was sprayed three times, hit with a baton. Sheku was brought to the ground in less than 45 seconds of the first police contact, never to get up again.
Sheku was not 6ft plus, he was 5ft 10 inches and he weighed 12 stones 10 pounds. The first two officers who dealt with him were however 17 and 25 stones and both 6ft 4 inches tall.
Sheku Bayoh who suffered multiple injuries, was pronounced dead in that hospital an hour and a half after first contact with the police.
In contrast, none of the police officers suffered physical harm requiring significant medical attention that day.
The incident has been described as a violent confrontation, yet it was the officers who initially offered violence to Sheku Bayoh.
On arrival at the scene, he walked with his hands outstretched in front of him, a non-violent, non-threatening gesture.
He did not say anything which might suggest he would offer violence. He did not have a knife in his possession. Police Officers escalated events beyond that which was necessary.
We heard from mental health crisis experts that if Sheku Bayoh was treated in a calm and considered manner, the outcome could have been completely different –
It has been suggested that Mr Bayoh repeatedly stamped on a female police officer, for the families no credible evidence has been presented to prove this, rather the absence of forensic evidence and medical evidence supports the proposition that this stamp did not happen, and officers have lied about this.
Mr Bayoh was battened to the head and brought to the ground. Thereafter the police carried out a method of restraint that they have been trained to understand is dangerous and carries with it a foreseeable risk to life; it is well recognised that the method of restraint used can produce a life-threatening positional asphyxia.
Whilst he was on the ground Sheku was restrained and forced face-down on to the ground where he was hand-cuffed and leg restraints were applied to both his knees and ankles.
Six officers were involved in restraining Sheku and, during the time he was face down on the ground, six officers lay on top of Sheku, crossing over him from both sides and covering the whole of his body.
The first two officers Paton and Walker involved in restraining Sheku Bayoh had a combined weight of 42 stones i.e., 266.7KG.
The combined weight of 6 officers involved in the initial restraint of Sheku Bayoh was 546.7 KG, which is 86 Stones 2 lbs which is over half a tonne body weight on Sheku Bayoh.
One officer used a baton to hold Sheku down by pushing it on his body, and other officers used their body weight to restrain Sheku by placing themselves on his upper back, shoulders and neck area and by using their knees to hold him down.
Sheku was positioned lying on the ground face – his breathing becoming restricted and stopping.
Mr Bayoh died in hospital covered with a number of injuries including petechial haemorrhages to his eyes and a fractured rib.
The issue of race flows through the river of this Inquiry. We cannot address the woeful lack of training available and the attitudes of police officers – whether conscious or unconscious in their biases.
At the start of this Inquiry Senior Counsel for the Chief Constable made an opening statement on behalf of Sir Iain Livingstone QPM- in which it was stated “sending a very clear and strong and clear message that if you hold racist, misogynist or discriminatory views you are unwelcome in policing…. The Chief Constable declares that upholding the core values of the Police Service of Scotland demands that it be anti-racist.”
This statement was welcomed by the families of Sheku Bayoh as they hoped it would shine a light on the actions of Police Scotland on 3rd May 2015 and in the days, weeks, months and years that followed.
In May of this year 2023, the Chief Constable of Police Scotland went one step further, in that he accepted that Police Scotland was institutionally racist- this declaration was welcomed by the families of Sheku Bayoh as something that the black, Asian and minority ethnic communities had in fact known for decades.
In the case of Sheku Bayoh it is submitted that a combination of overt and covert racism of police officers combined with institutional racism and unconscious bias, was a thread that weaved through the moments that Sheku Bayoh met his death until the Lord Advocate made a decision not to prosecute.
Whilst the Chief Constable’s statement is welcomed, the response of those representing the rank and file exposes a wide chasm of opinion in the police force in Scotland in relation to race.
Speaking about the impact the comments would have on police morale, David Threadgold Chair of the Scottish Police Federation said: “The use of the phrase ‘institutionally racist’ is one that has deeply offended and upset them and they do not recognise themselves in that way.”
Today the Chief Constable’s Senior Counsel Maria McGuire KC this morning reiterated the statement on institutional racism after offering an apology to the family of Sheku Bayoh:- “Any omission to recognise this in the face of the facts would wholly undermine the aims of Police Scotland to be anti-racist. Such a refusal would lack credibility, arrogant, defensive, semantic or ill-informed…denial of the existence of institutional racism only obstructs progress and serves no legitimate purpose.”
This can only be seen as A ROBUST signal to the Scottish Police federation who remain in childlike denial of institutional racism.
It is noted that in his opening statement at the start of the Inquiry Senior counsel for PCs Kayleigh Good, Alan Smith, and Ashley Tomlinson submitted “ that race did not Influence their actions In any way….” That view is reflected in the evidence of all the officers have given before this hearing.
However, several significant race issues arose not only in relation to the actions of the police officers but also more broadly in relation to racism within the police force.
- The use of possible racial profiling or racial assumptions in considering this may be a terrorist incident;
- The fact that language was used that is common to racial bias and unconscious racism– the perceptions of black men as being larger, more aggressive, such as “he was the most muscular man I have ever seen” and “he was massive and is the biggest male that I have seen.”
- The fact that officers either did not know, or did not understand, the use of offensive language; like “coloured” – language which was described 20 years ago by the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry. This Report came out in February 1999 – almost quarter of a century ago.
- The fact that we heard officer after officer say what could be described as a colourblind approach, an approach which is outdated and wholly fails to take into account unconscious racial bias – a matter which Police Scotland does not understand. If the officers were to be believed there was a lack of knowledge of black men dying in police custody being a particular issue.
- Even though racist comments about “ISIS” were made and caught on CCTV
- Despite the acknowledgement of Senior officers about the evidence of WhatsApp groups which had racist, sexist, and homophobic language, where every police officer said if they saw racism, they would call it out and /or report it yet none of the officers involved in such groups appear to do so.
In submissions, we say that some officers have not provided credible and reliable information to this Inquiry.
We say that reflects the experience of the families of Sheku Bayoh who say they were lied to, and not told the truth by officers about the death of their loved one by officers when they were spoken to after he died.
In Scotland, as society begins to wake up to an institutionally racist police force and racial injustice, the families hope that this Inquiry will be robust in in analysis and searching out and recognising the existence of racism as a factor in the death of Sheku Bayoh.
Sadly, Sheku is not by any means the first black man to die in police custody, but his families still hope his name does not fade from memory and that one day the name of Sheku Bayoh leaves us a legacy that his sons Isaac and Tyler can be proud of.”
ANGELA GRAHAME KC- SENIOR COUNSEL TO THE SHEKU BAYOH INQUIRY STATED THE FOLLOWING IN SUBMISSIONS ON THE CAUSE OF DEATH:-
14:10 In relation to the most recent hearing on cause of
11 death there appears to be consensus amongst the medical
12 witnesses that Mr Bayoh’s sudden death was due to sudden
13 cardiac arrest contributed to by the drugs he consumed
14 and the restraint and struggle at Hayfield Road.
15 Dr Carey considered that although the death was
16 multi-fact yal, the most significant factor was the
17 restraint and struggle. He proposed an adjustment to
18 the wording of the cause of death certified by
19 Dr Shearer and Dr Bude dear, such that it would read:
20 “1(a) sudden death in a man intoxicated by MDMA
21 (Ecstasy) and Alpha PVP in association with struggling
22 and restraint.”
23 Dr Shearer and other doctors including Dr Crane
24 agreed with this proposed form of words.
25 There were factors mentioned in evidence that all
15: 1 medics were agreed had absolutely no bearing on
2 Mr Bayoh’s cause of death. These included minor ail
3 ments, blunt force injuries, infection, excited delirium
4 and heart disease. Factors which may have had a bearing
MARIA MCGUIRE KC- SENIOR COUNSEL FOR THE CHIEF CONSTABLE OF POLICE SCOTLAND
41:25 For these reasons the chief constable acknowledged,
42: 1 without reservation, that Police Scotland would come
2 within the definition of institutional racism set out by
3 Sir William Macpherson. This acknowledgement was
4 essential to ensure that Police Scotland appears to its
5 core value of anti-racism. Any omission to recognise
6 this in the face of the facts would wholly undermine the
7 aims of Police Scotland to be anti-racist. Such
8 a refusal would lack credibility, arrogant, defensive,
9 semantic or ill-informed (^punc) denial of the existence
10 of institutional racism only obstructs progress and
11 serves no legitimate purpose.
12 If a body does not acknowledge institutional racism,
13 how can it work towards becoming anti-racist?
