The Met Police is defending its position against four women who tried to organise a vigil for Sarah Everard at Clapham Common last year.
The organisers claim police should have “facilitated peaceful protest rather than their consistent attempts to silence and threaten women”, but the force hit back and said policing protests was “highly complex”.
The rape and murder of the 33-year-old South London marketing executive by then-serving police officer Wayne Couzens left a whole nation horrified in March 2021.
READ MORE: Met Police taken to court for ‘silencing and threatening’ Sarah Everard vigil organisers
In the weeks after her tragic death, people across the country, including the group Reclaim These Streets, attempted to organise gatherings and vigils to remember Sarah and stand up for women’s safety.
One such event was organised in Clapham Common, where Sarah had been walking the night she got murdered.
But the Met Police told the organisers that they would each receive £10,000 fines if they went ahead with the plans.
Reclaim These Streets cancelled their event, but individuals came to pay their respects and protest anyway.
This week, the four organisers are locked in a legal battle with the police force, claiming that they were simply trying to exercise their right to protest.
Vigils were organised up and down the country for Sarah Everard in the weeks and months after her death
(Image: PA)
Anna Birley, one of the organisers of the proposed march, said before the hearing: “We are really pleased to be taking this important case forward.
“When we organised the vigil, we never imagined we would end up in the High Court – we believed then, as we believe now, that we have a very clearly defined right to protest, and that if there was ever a reasonable excuse for exercising this right, it was last March when a young woman was abducted, raped and killed by a then serving police officer.
“At its heart, this case is about the police accepting their responsibility under human rights law to facilitate peaceful protest – rather than their consistent attempts to silence and threaten women.
“Women were robbed of their chance to come together in solidarity to mourn Sarah and to stand up to the epidemic of violence against women and girls.
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A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: “We do not believe our approach was founded on an inaccurate interpretation of the regulations or that this constituted an unlawful interference with the claimants’ rights.
“Throughout the pandemic, officers worked to balance the need to safeguard the public at large from Covid, with the rights of individuals protected by the Human Rights Act 1998.
“Policing of public order events is highly complex and is one of the most scrutinised areas of law enforcement. We will comment further once the proceedings have concluded.”
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