A police officer who hit a vulnerable teenage girl with a baton “at least 30 times” was fired.
metropolitan police Officer Benjamin Kemp, based in Northeast Command, was dismissed without notice following a disciplinary hearing held by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC Fund).
During the hearing, the panel heard from a 17-year-old girl, who has a learning disability, fled from a group on an escorted walk in Newham after being in distress on May 8 2019.
She was near a main road and the police were called by a concerned member of the public, and she also reported a passing police car.
After telling the police that she was a vulnerable child with mental health issues, she agreed to get into the police car, but got out.
The IOPC Fund said PC Kemp tried to handcuff her, but if that failed, he then used a CS spray – a stunner – within three feet of her face.
“Within seconds, he started using his baton and then hit it several times,” he said.
When another police unit arrived, the girl was immediately gunned down by an officer from that vehicle, and then repeatedly beaten with the baton by PC Kemp, handcuffed and placed in a police van. .
In total, she has been hit at least 30 times, the IOPC Fund said.
An investigation followed after a complaint was lodged by NHS workers and the east London teenager’s mother.
The watchdog said the girl was black, but there was no indication that racial discrimination played a role in the case.
The IOPC Fund’s regional director, Sal Naseem, said the force used by the police “would be shocking to most people”.
He added: “The disciplinary panel also found that PC Kemp behaved in a way that lacked self-control and ignored the vulnerable status of the teenager, who seemed very scared.
“This officer’s miscommunication started the incident badly and once he started using the baton he couldn’t change …
More information about this article Read More
Source: news.sky.com
This notice was published: 2021-04-30 18:10:00
