Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Proof: Police Assaulted Ian Tomlinson before he died

The Guardian has damning video footage of the last moments of Ian Tomlinson. Nothing could be clearer.

Ian is shown walking away from a police line calmly and with his hands in his pockets. He is making his way home with his head down, tired from the day.

A police officer attacks him from behind in a completely unprovoked action. There are no protesters near the officer at the time and Mr Tomlinson has not been caught up in any "heat of battle" that might justify a mistake.

Two protesters rush to his aid. The police stare at him. Is the officer who attacks him reprimanded? Not a bit of it, the senior officer on the scene is relaxed about the casual violence under his direct command.

No bottles. No bricks. No protesters between the injured man and the police.

The police caused his injuries and he died not long after. Whether or not it was a heart attack the press verdict of "natural causes" now comes with a very large caveat - a heart attack after an assault is murder.

No comments: