A firearms officer acted lawfully in shooting dead Jermaine Baker, an unarmed man who was trying to spring a prisoner from custody, an inquiry concluded, but criticised the Metropolitan police for 24 failings.
In what was described as a “loud wake-up to a [soon to be] newly appointed commissioner”, the inquiry criticised a lack of police meeting notes as “indicative of a widespread and arrogant attitude towards compliance and formality and of a failure to appreciate the importance of accountability and maintaining an audit trail”.
It also concluded that police chiefs were “obsessive” about achieving “the demise” or “emasculation” of the Tottenham Turks gang through the operation that saw Baker shot, an ambition dismissed as “delusional”.
But the inquiry, by Clement Goldstone QC, a retired judge, found that Baker, 28, did not die as a result of such failures.
Baker was part of a criminal gang planning an ambush on a prison van to release Izzet Eren, a member of the Tottenham Turks, in December 2015. They were unaware armed officers were waiting for them outside Wood Green crown court in north London.
Baker was struck by a single shot from a Met marksman fired at point-blank range, which passed through his raised wrist and neck.
An imitation Uzi gun was found in the rear footwell of his car, and intelligence that the gang only had a fake gun was not passed on to the armed officers. The inquiry found neither Baker nor two other men in the car had any weapon at the time.
The firearms officer, known as W80, faces a gross misconduct hearing over his decision to open fire. The supreme court in October will hear a case sparked by the shooting about the law of self-defence, relied upon by the officer to justify his shooting.
After the publication of the inquiry on Tuesday, Baker’s mother, Margaret Smith, said her son was shot while surrendering. Smith vowed to seek a judicial review.
W80 said he fired because Baker failed to comply with his repeated shouted order to place his hands on the dashboard. In the melee, an audio probe in the car where Baker was seated did not pick up the words W80 insisted he said.
The law on self-defence means an officer needs to have a reasonable and honest belief that opening fire was necessary in order to defend themselves or others.
Smith said her son raising his arms shows he was complying with orders. “We know Jermaine was unarmed and complied with the instructions [he was given by other armed officers]. Jermaine was surrendering. Jermaine could not have done more to save his life.”
She accused the Met of being intent on a violent clash, saying: “Jermaine was dead before he got into the car … It was unjustified to take his life. Jermaine should have gone to prison like the rest of the men in that car.”
W80 said he acted in self-defence, believing Baker was reaching for a firearm in a bag slung over his chest when he moved his hands upwards. He was around 50cm away from Baker at the time.
The inquiry concluded W80 was entitled to believe the criminals he had been sent to face may have been armed and may have tried to fight and escape.
Goldstone said: “W80 may have been tragically wrong in his belief but I am unable to conclude that it was not honestly held, nor is my conclusion negated by the errors in his account to the inquiry.”
Baker was part of a group of men who were trying to help Eren escape from a prison van as he travelled to court from Wormwood Scrubs prison to be sentenced after being caught with a loaded pistol and Scorpion machine gun.
The inquiry found 24 errors in the way the Met planned and conducted the armed operation. The inquiry report said: “While I am satisfied that the MPS [Metropolitan police Service] failed to plan and conduct the operation … in such a way as to minimise to the greatest extent possible recourse to the use of lethal force, I do not conclude that Mr Baker died as a result of these failures.”
The shooting was investigated by the police watchdog, now called the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which arrested W80 for “homicide offences”. The Crown Prosecution Service decided against bringing charges.
Officers involved in the Met operation refused to answer oral questions from investigators, which the IOPC said slowed its inquiry down and which Goldstone also criticised.
The Met said it had learned lessons, adding: “We are always open to improving our capability to tackle the threat of firearms. We will now take time to carefully study the inquiry’s recommendations before responding in more detail.”
