Team GB's Bianca Williams and fellow athlete Ricardo dos Santos were travelling home with their baby son when they were pulled over by police in west London in July 2020
Thursday 26 October 2023 06:11, UK
Two Metropolitan Police officers have been found guilty of gross misconduct over the stop and search of Black athletes Bianca Williams and Ricardo dos Santos.
Olympic sprinter Santos, 28, and his partner and Team GB athlete Williams, 29, made a complaint to the police watchdog, believing they were racially profiled during a "disturbing" stop and search as they drove to their home in west London on July 4 2020.
PC Jonathan Clapham and PC Sam Franks have been found guilty of gross misconduct over the search.
Police followed them as they travelled home from training in their Mercedes with their baby son, who was then three months old.
The couple were handcuffed and searched on suspicion of having drugs and weapons after they were pulled over outside their property, but nothing was found.
Acting Police Sergeant Rachel Simpson, PC Allan Casey, PC Jonathan Clapham, PC Michael Bond and PC Sam Franks had all denied the accusations against them, including allegations they breached police standards over equality and diversity during the stop and search.
The three other officers, Sergeant Simpson, PC Bond and PC Casey had the gross misconduct allegations against them not proven but will all be subject to the reflective practice review process.
The Independent Office For Police Conduct (IOPC) brought the case against the five officers and said the detention of Mr Dos Santos and Ms Williams was "because they were Black" and was "excessive, unreasonable and unjustified".
Karon Monaghan KC, for the IOPC, told the panel at the start of the hearing there is "institutional discrimination" in the Met Police.
The IOPC's case relied on wider documents and reports that indicated Black people are "much more likely" to be stopped and searched in London more generally, and that Black people are "routinely treated" with "more suspicion and hostility" by police officers and "stereotyped as criminal".
Mr Dos Santos accused the officers of detaining him for "DWB - driving while Black" and told the panel he had been "afraid" for the safety of his partner and his son during the encounter with the officers.
Ms Williams cried as she watched footage of her partner being pulled from the driver's seat and handcuffed.
She denied suggestions her partner could have acted differently to avoid police attention, insisting that "he can't change the colour of his skin".
All five officers gave evidence over the course of the misconduct hearing.
The panel heard how the officers followed Mr Dos Santos because of the "appalling" and "suspicious" nature of his driving and were doing their duty when they conducted the stop and search.
IOPC director Steve Noonan said: "I want to acknowledge Bianca and Ricardo who, having spoken out about their experience, showed considerable patience and determination while they waited for the outcome of their complaint.
"The stop and search in which they were both handcuffed, in front of their infant child, was clearly highly distressing for them and also caused widespread community concern about the use of stop and search powers by police.
"These officers have now been publicly held accountable for their actions. We, at the Independent Office for Police Conduct, decided the officers had a case to answer for their actions and that they should face these misconduct proceedings.
"But only a police misconduct panel, led by an independently and legally qualified chair, could decide whether or not the case was proven. That panel has now decided that officers PC Jonathan Clapham and PC Sam Franks be dismissed without notice for breaching the police standard of professional behaviour relating to honesty and integrity for claiming they could smell cannabis on Ricardo.
"We are acutely aware that Bianca and Ricardo's interaction with police and their feeling of being treated less favourably by officers because of their race, is reflective of the experiences of many Black people across London and throughout England and Wales.
"We know that Black people are almost nine times more likely to be stopped and searched by police than White people, and nearly nine times more likely to be searched for drugs - despite a lower find rate of drugs for Black people than White people. The officers in this case claimed they smelled cannabis in the athletes' car despite no drugs being found in the search.
"It's figures like these and cases like Bianca and Ricardo's which emphasise why Black people report having low trust and confidence in policing.
"The Casey review highlighted widespread cultural issues and discriminatory conduct or attitudes in the Met. It's clear that the Met and policing as a whole need to work hard to restore the trust and confidence of Black people. We acknowledge that the Met's Commissioner has accepted systemic and cultural failings in his force and has put plans in place to attempt to rebuild trust with Londoners.
"We would encourage anyone who feels they have been mistreated or discriminated against by the police to exercise your right to complain. It is only by speaking up, that you can make your voice heard."
