Prosecutions still ‘hanging over heads' of Black Lives Matter supporters from Derry

Three individuals who attended a Black Lives Matter protest in Derry are living with the threat of prosecution hanging over their heads almost one year on.

Following the murder of black American man George Floyd on May 25, 2020, people around the world took to the streets in protest.

An ‘anti-racist’ rally was organised at Guildhall Square on June 6.

On the day local police officers issued 57 fines for breaches of the Coronavirus Health Protection Regulations.

Individuals were also told that they could face prosecution.

The Derry News has learned that nearly a year later, three people still await a decision from the Public Prosecution Service (PPS).

The PPS revealed that it has three files from the PSNI that relate to a Black Lives Matter protest in Guildhall Square.

Those files concern three individuals and are at an ‘advanced stage’ of consideration by a senior public prosecutor.

It is expected that decisions will issue within the next month once all available evidence has been ‘carefully considered’ and the Test for Prosecution applied.

A PPS spokesperson said: “Every case is considered individually in line with the facts and circumstances of the case and the timeframe for decision will vary according to this.

“All PPS decisions are taken independently, impartially and strictly in accordance with the PPS Code for Prosecutors.”

Three files have also been submitted to the PPS relating to Black Lives Matter events held in Belfast.

CONCERN

Human rights campaigner and founder of the North West Migrants Forum in Derry, Lilian Seenoi-Barr, is one of the individuals facing prosecution.

Speaking to the Derry News, Mrs Seenoi Barr said: “The PPS has not said whether I will be prosecuted and the PSNI keeps saying it does not have the power to cancel fines or withdraw prosecutions.

“How can they fine us if they didn’t understand the legislation.

“This is hanging over our heads for over a year, I’m very concerned as more time goes by.”

She said police officers called to her house around 7pm on June 5, the day before the protest, when legislation had not been passed to allow police to enforce Covid regulations around gatherings.

The original regulations were made on March 28 which restricted ‘gatherings’ to two people and breaches were subject to the enforcement powers.

On May 19 a third set of amendments were made to the Regulations and a new regulation was added allowing outdoor gatherings of up to six people.  

No amendment was made to the enforcement part of the regulations to cover this new provision.

However, an emergency procedure was used for a set of amendments made on June 5 which took effect at 11pm that same night.

The PPS previously found that prosecutions could not be brought against around 2,000 people, including members of Sinn Fein, who attended the Bobby Storey funeral on June 30.

That decision was taken, in part, due to a lack of clarity around Covid regulations and because of prior engagement between the PSNI and Sinn Féin prior to the funeral.

A police watchdog also found that Covid regulations were ‘both confusing and controversial’ at the time.

Mrs Seenoi Barr questioned why other events were accommodated while the PSNI warned of action that would be taken against BLM protestors before and during the BLM rally.

“We organised a peaceful protest, they had no reason to suggest it would be violent.

“I assured them that I had plans in place, people were going to be marshals, we had PPE for all those attending,” she added.

INDEPENDENT REVIEWS

Two separate reviews of policing during the pandemic criticised the PSNI approach to BLM rallies.

Conducting a review of the policing response to the Covid-19 pandemic, a Human Rights Advisor found that the PSNI approach at BLM protests was ‘not lawful’ and ‘damaged’ its reputation.

CCTV and body worn videos provided by the PSNI from June 6 reflect the ‘absence of any careful consideration of the right to protest’.

Protesters who raised their rights were told that the regulations were the law and that Article 2 - the right to life - trumped their rights to freedom of assembly and expression.

None of the police officers in the clips viewed appeared to consider the delicate balance required by the ECHR or the attempts by the protesters to obey the social distancing guidance and instead seemed to follow the approach dictated by senior officers in advance, the report added.

The Police Ombudsman, Marie Anderson, carried out a separate investigation after receiving 20 complaints about the policing of BLM rallies in Belfast and Derry.

She said that claims the police handling of ‘Black Lives Matter’ protests and a counter demonstration earlier this year amounted to unfairness and discrimination are justified.
Although she believed this was not intentional and not based on race or ethnicity.

She said confidence in policing among some within the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities in Northern Ireland had been ‘severely damaged’.

Yesterday it emerged that Ms Anderson will now look into 'allegations of inconsistencies' in how the PSNI dealt with a Black Lives Matter protest compared to the funeral of senior republican Bobby Storey.