“The events of that day stay with one; I think about it quite often,” she said. “It was a traumatic period. It was an awful time for so many people, obviously and most of all Jean Charles’s family, the people who were there when it happened, the firearms officers, the surveillance officers,” said Dick, the first woman to be appointed as commissioner of the Metropolitan police.
She added: “I was very conscious it was a hundred million times worse for other people than it was for me, but I was very high profile, quite rightly held to account.”
She was, of course, never once 'held to account'. In fact, the IPCC were
specifically instructed not to hold her to account.
In a highly unusual move, the judge, Mr Justice Henriques, allowed the jury to insert a rider, or caveat, into the verdict stating that Cressida Dick, the commander in charge of the operation on the day, should not be held personally culpable for the events.
And that scuppered any chance of anyone
else being held to account.
The IPCC said it had considered whether Dick was responsible for planning or management failures that led to the force's conviction, but found the jury's rider "unequivocal".
A spokesman said: "The IPCC cannot foresee any circumstances in which new evidence might emerge which would cause any disciplinary tribunal to disregard the jury's rider.
"The responsibilities of DAC Dick and Silver, Trojan 84 and Trojan 80 were intertwined. The IPCC cannot see how any disciplinary tribunal could conclude that although no personal blame is attached to DAC Dick, it could attach to the other three officers."
Her breathtaking arrogance isn't confined just to that, either.
During the interview, Dick, the first openly gay person to head the Met, said her sexuality was probably the “least interesting” aspect of her and that she was conscious of the fact she may make people view the force in a more progressive light.
Oh, they view the force in a very different light than they used to, you can be sure of that!
She needs arresting and feeding to her victims.
ReplyDeleteWhen she was first appointed I was fairly optimistic that she might be different to the long list of PC senior officers that I'd endured during my career. I thought because she already had a huge pension from previous service she wouldn't be trapped in slavishly following the governments agenda of destroying the police.
ReplyDeleteShe made a reasonable start but has now reverted back to type. Then I remembered who appointed her...Theresa May, the worst HS in the history who seems to have a unreasonable hatred of the police.
The issue with the Brazilian visa over-stayer is a stick to hit her with and has to be viewed in the context of what was happening at the time. It was a tough call.
Jaded
Rather than just being the useless person in charge who had ultimate operational responsibility for killing de Menenzes (isn't that what "Gold Commander" implies?), she could have personally beaten de M to death with a metal club, had him barbecued and served for lunch in the canteen at Scotland Yard. It wouldn't have made any difference. Dick would still have been appointed Met Commissioner. Despite (maybe because of) the ID and other cock-ups, she's as formally guilty of de M's death as General Dyer was of the massacre at Amritsar: the difference being that her guilt was down to crass incompeternce (hers and the rest of the shower from the Met) whereas Dyer knew what he was doing and, moreover, took responsibility for it.
ReplyDeleteJust to speculate for a moment concerning what she would have had to do to prevent her appointment as Commissioner. I guess that suggesting out loud a connection between "ordinary" Islam and Islam-inspired terrorist incidents in London and elsewhere or, less "controversially", trying to stop Roma defaecating in public at Marble Arch (and elsewhere) could have derailed her seemingly irresistable rise to supreme power at the Met. However, in reality, and short of exhibiting symptoms of rampant transphobia, she's untouchable.
You know the other person who self flagellates themselves with guilt every day at the outrageous assassination of Jean-Charles de Menezes?
ReplyDeleteThat's right, Jean-Charles de Menezes... except that he can't because hes dead... executed by the Metropolitan Police
W C Jaded was overlooked...but as far as rapid promotion for alimentary termini is concerned, she could have done the job just as badly as Cressida Strapon.
ReplyDeleteHe's back. Just couldn't resist could you Melvin?.
ReplyDeleteAnybody missed him? How long before he flounces off again upset that us mere plebs dared to disagree with him? I'll give it a month.
Jaded
"She needs arresting and feeding to her victims."
ReplyDelete*stifles VERY off-colour remark*
"When she was first appointed I was fairly optimistic that she might be different..."
If she was different, she wouldn't have been appointed in the first place...
"Rather than just being the useless person in charge who had ultimate operational responsibility for killing de Menenzes (isn't that what "Gold Commander" implies?)..."
You'd think so. But clearly it doesn't!
Yet David Duckenfield finds himself in the dock years later. Funny old world, innit?