Mother welcomes Menezes verdict
- 00:01:51
- ITN
Mother welcomes Menezes verdict
The family of Jean Charles de Menezes has branded his inquest a "whitewash" after jurors rejected police claims he was lawfully killed. The jury instead returned an open verdict after coroner Sir Michael Wright previously ruled they could not decide the innocent Brazilian was unlawfully killed. Police marksmen shot the 27-year-old seven times at Stockwell Tube station in south London on July 22, 2005 after mistaking him for failed suicide bomber Hussain Osman. In a devastating blow for the Metropolitan Police, the jury dismissed much of their version of events, including a firearms officer's claim that he shouted "armed police" before opening fire. But jurors accepted police claims that Mr de Menezes stood up in the carriage before he was grabbed in a bear-hug and gunned down. Sir Paul Stephenson, the force's acting commissioner, later said the Met accepts "full responsibility" for what happened and that officers made a "most terrible mistake". He said the death was a tragedy, and offered his condolences to the dead man's family. As the jury returned its verdict, Mr de Menezes's family released a statement saying: "After three months of evidence, 100 witnesses and millions of pounds, the coroner, Sir Michael Wright, has presided over a complete whitewash. "He has failed on every count of the purpose of an inquest investigation." The family withdrew their legal team after losing a High Court battle to change the verdicts available to the jury. An appeal to introduce unlawful killing as an option was adjourned - but fresh attempts to overturn the verdict are reportedly already under way. Proceedings were delayed by half a day as chaotic scenes erupted in and outside court just before the jurors retired to consider their verdict. Three of Mr de Menezes's cousins stood up in the courtroom and revealed T-shirts displaying the message: "Your legal right to decide - unlawful killing verdict." In a new interview, Mr de Menezes' mother Maria Otone de Menezes said: "Justice has not been done yet" and called for the resignation of Cressida Dick, the senior policewoman who led the operation that ended in her son's death. Mrs de Menezes, 63, said: "Police officers made a lot of mistakes. There were a lot of failures on their part. However, the one who was in command was, in my opinion, the one who made the biggest mistake because she was supposed to be in command of something and whatever she did, she did it wrong."
ITN | December 12, 2008
