Prosecutors have concluded there is “no realistic prospect of conviction” for 21 people arrested on the day of the King’s Coronation to prevent a breach of the peace.
The Metropolitan Police said they will face no further action in a statement on Thursday.
Members of anti-monarchy campaign group Republic were arrested in order to prevent a breach of the peace and on suspicion of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance in The Mall and Whitehall on the morning of the Coronation on May 6.
Chief executive Graham Smith and five other accused of going equipped to lock on – a tactic some protesters use to make themselves more difficult to move on – because they had luggage straps to secure their placards.
Mr Smith, who was held for more than 14 hours, confirmed last month he is taking legal action and has applied for a judicial review of the decision to detain him.
Officers from the Met referred cases to the Crown Prosecution Service in August 2023.
Mr Smith told reporters he was “pleased the others are not being charged”, adding: “The Met needs to learn a lesson about not over-policing protests and make sure protesters are allowed to go ahead peacefully.
“There needs to be action taken against the police. They can’t be allowed to simply shrug it off and move on.”
Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said: “In the hours before the Coronation, we had intelligence that indicated activists were plotting to target the procession.
“We had real concerns that such efforts would not only disrupt a once in a lifetime event of enormous national significance, but that they could also compromise the security and safety of participants and the wider public.
“Officers were briefed on these concerns and we needed to be proactive in managing this risk and prevent any activity that could put public safety or the security of the event at risk.”
He added that “three of those who were arrested on the day which did not lead to charge, were found near the Coronation route in the early hours of the day of the event in possession of glue, a banner from a known activist group, Allen keys and other paraphernalia that could have been used to commit criminal damage or other disruption”.
Mr Smith had discussed the planned demonstration for four months with senior Met staff, but says he was physically prevented from calling the group’s designated liaison officer when he was stopped and arrested on the day of the coronation.
The group were detained after new legislation came into effect days before the event that created new offences of locking on or going equipped to lock on under the Public Order Act.
On May 8 they were told no further action would be taken.
Mr Smith wants the Met to admit the arrests were unlawful and is seeking damages and costs.
The force came under criticism for heavy-handedness over arrests around the coronation, which also saw the detention of three workers on Westminster council safety scheme Night Stars because they had kits containing rape alarms.
Royal fan Alice Chambers was held for several hours after being arrested while standing alongside protesters on The Mall.
