The prosecution of six protesters who showed their support at the vigil for Sarah Everard has been dropped.
There were hundreds of supporters who attended the planned event at Clapham Common in March 2021 after news broke about Ms Everard being kidnapped, raped and murdered by Wayne Couzens, a Met Police officer.
During the event, the Met police accused six people of breaking COVID-19 social distancing rules.
“Our legal test for a prosecution was not met” shared a Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) spokesperson.
One of the six being prosecuted said the decision to drop her case was a “victory”.
And has also decided to take legal actions against the Met for the way they policed the vigil and herself.
Pippa Woodrow, her barrister shared the feelings saying she was “delighted” the “ordeal” was over.
The Met was under scrutiny and criticised for the way they handled the unofficial vigil on March 13 2021, after a planned rule-abiding event was cancelled due to the organisers being threatened with £10,000 fines.
Footage has been shared of women being handcuffed on the ground and then taken away by officers.
The event took place in London while lockdown rules were still strict with household mixing apart from support bubbles and two people meeting outside was banned.
A total of nine fixed penalty notices were issued by the Met at the vigil, two of them were paid and another dropped with no further action.
The remaining six were due to stand trial in November this year and several had already been convicted without them knowing due to a new fast-track system but after appealing, they have secured full hearings.
Since then the CPS has shared that the six prosecutions have been discontinued.
“We have a duty to keep cases under continuous review and we concluded that our legal test for a prosecution was not met.”
Louisa Rolfe Met Police Assistant Commissioner shared, “We know how important it was for people to remember Sarah Everard and voice their anger.
“Officers took very seriously their duty to safeguard the public during the pandemic and to balance this with the rights of individuals.
“The decision to pursue a prosecution in these circumstances is entirely a matter for the CPS.”
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