The naming of Matthew White as a sixth suspect in the murder of Stephen Lawrence raises disturbing new questions about the Met’s failings and its inability to secure proper justice over one of the capital’s most notorious killings.
The evidence revealed suggests White was both present at Stephen’s murder in April 1993 and resembled an unidentified fair-haired attacker described by eyewitnesses as taking part in the attack.
Other evidence and the knowledge that corruption, racism and incompetence marred the investigation into Stephen’s death from the start will convince most that White, who died in 2021, should have been put in the dock instead of being left to enjoy his liberty while Stephen’s family and friends continued to grieve. That’s shameful enough and today’s apology and admission of past failings by the Met will be no consolation.
But what makes a dire situation even worse is that the disclosures about the appalling failures of the past also provide a reminder of the challenges that the Met faces today in trying to root out racism within its ranks.
Racism has not disappeared and the conclusion by Baroness Casey in her report this year on the Met that it is still “institutionally racist” — as well as similarly misogynistic and homophobic — was just one of many reminders that bigoted attitudes remain in the force.
Other relatively recent disclosures about despicable conduct at Charing Cross police station — where racist messages were among the barrage of toxic Whatsapp content shared between some officers — further highlighted the problem.
So too did Stephen’s mother, Doreen, when she used a BBC interview earlier this year to claim that the Met has failed to progress in the 30 years since his murder. She commented: “I don’t know how many more inquiries and how many reviews you need to have to say the same thing — and still no changes, and still denials,” she said, adding that “within the black community, how we’re treated, how crime’s investigated — we’re never seen as a group of people that should have justice.”
At the same time questions continue about the fairness of stop and search, as well as the use of other tactics such as handcuffing and strip searching, and it’s clear that the Met still has a long way to go.
It’s too late now for Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to bring Matthew White to justice or to rectify the mistakes which allowed other of Stephen’s killers to escape conviction. But more than 30 years on, any further delay in properly addressing the problems that still blight his force would be inexcusable.
