• Most Popular
  • Most Shared

Head of London police says will not quit

LONDON
Thu Nov 1, 2007 11:45am EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - The chief of London's police force, Ian Blair, said on Thursday he would not resign after his force was found guilty of putting the public at risk over the killing of an innocent Brazilian.

World

Electrician Jean Charles de Menezes, 27, was gunned down after boarding an underground train in south London on July 22, 2005, by officers wrongly identified him as one of a group of men who tried to attack the city's transport system a day earlier.

Home Secretary (Interior Minister) Jacqui Smith said she continued to have full confidence in Blair's leadership of the police force, but the opposition Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties have both said that he should resign.

Blair said he would have quit had the court concluded that there were "systemic failures in the Metropolitan Police Service," but he would not resign over "the events as the judge described, of a single day in extraordinary circumstances."

He also said the force would probably not appeal the conviction.



More from Reuters

An an exit sign is pictured in New York City October 14, 2006.  REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
Interview:

No stimulus exit in sight

The man who predicted the fallout from the property bubble says it's still too early to talk about exiting easy money policies. In fact, more stimulus is on the way.  Full Article 

A long-range, improved Sejil 2 missile is test-fired in the desert at an unknown location in Iran in this Iranian military handout distributed by Fars news agency on December 16, 2009.

Iran tests upgraded missile

Hardline rulers send uncompromising signals to foes at home and abroad, testing a missile that could reach Israel and warning of legal action against opposition leaders.  Full Article | Video