Two Metropolitan Police officers who allegedly bundled a black schoolboy to the ground before handcuffing him were motived by race, a gross misconduct hearing will hear.
Mobile footage of asthmatic De-Shaun Joseph, 14, being restrained face down went viral on social media following the stop-and-search near Blackhorse Lane tram stop in Croydon, south London, on June 23, 2022.
PCs Benjamin Morgan and McCorley Clewes were responding to a knifepoint street robbery of a 13-year-old boy in the area. They mistakenly believed De-Shaun was involved.
But Morgan and Clewes’ actions in detaining the teenager failed to make “reasonable adjustments” on the basis of his age, or to adopt a child-centred approach, according to a notice of the five-day hearing due to start on September 23.
It alleges: “The officers’ actions were influenced by the suspect’s ethnicity.”
The use of handcuffs was excessive and there were no meaningful efforts to seek De-Shaun’s cooperation, it said.
Morgan and Clewes were then allegedly dishonest in telling members of the public who intervened that De-Shaun had been “kicking out and attempted to leave, when they knew that that was not true”.
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His mother Janet Joseph was then falsely told no-one knelt on him, and Clewes showed a lack of respect and courtesy towards her, the disciplinary panel will be told.
Morgan also completed a “use of force” form with incorrect details and information, it is claimed.
Mrs Joseph made an official complaint to the Independent Office for Police Conduct which launched an investigation at the time.
Morgan and Clewes are accused of breaching professional standards to a level which, if proven, could lead to dismissal without notice.
IOPC director Mel Palmer said: “Mobile phone footage of part of this incident was shared to social media and widely viewed on mainstream news outlets, which led to public concern.
“It was important that we investigated the full circumstances surrounding this incident to determine what occurred.
“We have now decided that two officers have cases to answer for gross misconduct and should face a hearing where a police disciplinary panel will decide whether the gross misconduct allegations are proven.”
In August 2022, Mrs Joseph told ITV News she had feared her son would be the next George Floyd, a reference to the black man murdered by US police in May 2020.
She pushed for a De-Shaun Joseph Justice Bill to urgently change the law to treat adults and children differently.
She told the broadcaster: “It’s every parent’s worst nightmare.
“It’s the same old story – every black boy fits the description.
“There’s no excuse for what they did to my son and the excessive force they used on a 14-year-old black boy.”
Then-Superintendent Andy Brittain said at the time: “We do not underestimate the impact stop-and-search has on communities and individuals; we know that to maintain public confidence in its use, stop-and-search must be used in a fair, effective and professional manner.
“We are now far more accountable than ever before and the use of stop-and-search powers are subject to scrutiny both internally and externally, through community monitoring groups.”
