Police spied on sister of paratrooper who died in police custody

[John]

The bottom line is that Christopher Alder was the unfortunate victim of circumstances which resulted in a blow to his head outside a nightclub which in turn led to his death. I agree the police behaved despicably but then that is nothing new.

[Nicholas]

The police were correct to remove him from the hospital after he refused medical treatment and refused to leave.  Our hard worked NHS personnel have enough to do without pandering to difficult patients.

"In 2002, five Humberside Police officers went on trial accused of manslaughter and misconduct in public office but they were cleared of all charges on the orders of the judge.
Four years later, an Independent Police Complaints Commission report said four of the officers present in the custody suite when Mr Alder died were guilty of the "most serious neglect of duty".
Humberside Police Chief Constable Tim Hollis apologised at the time "for our failure to treat Christopher with sufficient compassion and to the desired standard that night", although the Police Federation said the officers involved "strongly disputed" the report's conclusions
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-15837490

[Nicholas]

its worth thinking about why the suspect needed to be restrained in the first place...the police have a tough job dealing with powerfully strong people resisting arrest and needing restraint

Now you've had time to think - WHY was Chrisripher Alder arrested in the first place?

[Nicholas]

Yes, I agree Davel, I don't think the initial arrest was racially motivated. He had sustained a head injury which may have caused him to become violent,delirious etc. and that behaviour could have impacted his cause of death. 

A head injury can cause very placid people to become very aggressive and violent.  As this was in a hospital,there is zero tolerance of such behaviour due to staff being punched ,kicked, stabbed,bitten! while trying to treat someone. However, a knowledgeable consultant on call should have recognised this!

The treatment of this man was abominable ,disgusting beyond belief and for them to be protected is a vile miscarriage of justice. Shameful.

"Authorities also admitted to “the lack of an effective independent investigation,” and went on to acknowledge that racism played a part in Mr Alder’s treatment in police custody.

[Nicholas]

Tye bottom line is that Christopher Alder was the unfortunate victim of circumstances which resulted in a blow to his head outside a nightclub which in turn led to his death. I agree the police behaved despicably but then that is nothing new.

In your opinion!

"The initial investigation into his death was carried out by a neighbouring police force rather than an independent body. Blood samples, officers’ clothing and Mr Alder’s clothing were all destroyed without being tested.

Corinna Ferguson, the legal officer for Liberty whuch took Janet Alder’s case to the European Court of Human Rights, told Channel 4 News that the apology was a “symbolic victory”, and would provide a “catalyst for better responses in the future.”

She said that although the government has implemented reforms since Mr Alder’s death, more needs to be done.

“There needs to be more accountability in these situations and in future the IPCC must take much stronger action when human rights are breached in such a way.

“The offence of misconduct in public office is completely inadequate in these circumstances – as demonstrated by the fact that these officers were somehow cleared of it. Sadly admissions and apologies will matter little if such tragic cases keep occurring

https://www.channel4.com/news/government-to-apologise-over-alder-cell-death

[Nicholas]

The bottom line is that Christopher Alder was the unfortunate victim of circumstances which resulted in a blow to his head outside a nightclub which in turn led to his death. I agree the police behaved despicably but then that is nothing new.

To what "circumstances" do you refer?

Racism?
Spying?
Body mix up which was used for police training purposes?

And why did the police arrest Christopher's friend Jason Paul for his murder?

What about this?

"As part of their investigation into Mr Alder’s death, Humberside Police obtained social service records dating back to the births of all the Alder children – Christopher, Richard, Emmanuel, Stephen, and Janet, who were brought up in care. A 2006 report by the Independent Police Complaints Commission said the records “did not seem to have any relevance” to the case. The report also questioned the need for six officers to search Mr Alder’s one-bedroom flat, which was sealed off for two weeks, photographed, and a map drawn of where items were found. The report said this was “more in keeping with what might be expected if Mr Alder were a suspect rather than a victim”.

Read more at: https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/exclusive-police-tried-to-smear-cell-death-victim-christopher-alder-1-5795554

Mr Alder’s sister Janet, 51, also claimed she was followed by police and her phone was tapped, although the IPCC found no evidence of this. She said she did not speak out at the time because she did not think her fears would be taken seriously.

“I couldn’t say anything to the public because people would think I was crazy and just dealing with grief, and then we see it in the IPCC report. Once again they are blaming the victims.

"They tried to blame Christopher, they tried to blame Jason Paul (initially arrested on suspicion of Mr Alder’s murder), and they attempted to smear my family by getting records from when we were born. What has that got to do with Christopher dying on the custody-suite floor?”

[Nicholas]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/humber/4656112.stm

"A nightclubber was falsely charged with assault after a former soldier died in police custody, a court has ruled.
Humberside Police officers wanted to "deflect potential criticism" over the death of Falklands veteran Christopher Alder, Sheffield County Court heard.

Mr Alder choked to death at a Hull police station on 1 April 1998.

Jason Paul was awarded £30,500 damages after a jury heard he tried to stop a fight between Mr Alder and another man on the night the ex-paratrooper died.

Mr Paul was arrested on suspicion of murder the next day when he reported to police voluntarily as a potential witness.

He was subsequently charged with GBH with intent before the Crown Prosecution Service accepted in June that he had nothing to do with the tragedy.

I was wrongly arrested on suspicion of murder and then charged for GBH with intent because the police needed a scapegoat 

The two-week civil hearing, which ended on Friday, was Mr Paul's second attempt at claiming false imprisonment and malicious prosecution against Humberside Police.

In 2003 a judge dismissed the case on the grounds there was no factual evidence of police deceit, but the Court of Appeal overturned his ruling and ordered another trial in March of the next year.

[John]

To what "circumstances" do you refer?

The fracas outside the nightclub of course.

[Nicholas]

The bottom line is that Christopher Alder was the unfortunate victim of circumstances which resulted in a blow to his head outside a nightclub which in turn led to his death. I agree the police behaved despicably but then that is nothing new.

But this case doesn't just involve the police

[Nicholas]

The fracas outside the nightclub of course.

What was Chrisptoher Alders cause of death?

"The Government has issued a landmark apology for serious failings relating to the death of a black former British Army soldier in police custody. Father-of-two Christopher Alder, 37, choked to death on the floor in a pool of his own blood, urine and excrement while four officers stood, watched, chatted and joked at Hull Police Station in April 1998. None of the officers faced any criminal or disciplinary penalty in relation to the incident.

"The cause of Mr Alder’s death and whether, for example, he had been assaulted by any of the officers was never definitively established.https://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/news/press-releases/government-issues-landmark-apology-over-christopher-alder’s-death-custody

"Why or where did Christopher sustain the additional injuries he suffered? Why was another of his teeth missing? Where was his belt? These concerns have never been investigated or addressed.

[Nicholas]

It will be interesting to see how this plays out.. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/feb/26/police-face-disciplinary-panel-over-claim-they-spied-on-janet-alder-sister-of-man-who-died-in-custody

Will officer one and officer two continue to be held to account for what their defence say was them 'following orders' or will the CPS eventually decide to change their original decision with regards all the other officers involved?

What about the other 12? https://www.theguardian.com/law/2015/nov/26/janet-alder-surveillance-sister-of-former-paratrooper-cps

33

Oh what a surprise...

https://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/news/christopher-alder-janet-police-spying-1281507

[Nicholas]

I agree the police behaved despicably but then that is nothing new.

And let's not forget the officers who watched on as Christoper Alder died on their custody suite floor were retired off early, with hefty added compensation payments, based on medical grounds

[Nicholas]

"The sister of a former paratrooper who died in police custody said she was “shattered” to discover she and her barrister had been subjects of an unauthorised police surveillance operation nearly 17 years ago. Janet Alder said she “couldn’t find words strong enough” to describe the fear she felt to find police were spying on her and Leslie Thomas QC, the only Afro-Caribbean barrister during the inquest into her brother Christopher’s death.

Ms Alder, whose brother was found to have been unlawfully killed by the inquest jury in 2000, said she was disgusted that while listening to “heartwrenching evidence and slurs on Christopher’s character and attempts on the side of Humberside Police to justify his inhumane treatment and debasement, decisions were being made to spy on me.”

Mr Alder choked to death while handcuffed on the floor of a police station in Hull in 1998 Ms Alder was speaking after a panel concluded there was no case to answer against two officers accused of gross misconduct over the unauthorised surveillance on July 28 2000.

The defence argued that the officers - who did not give evidence - would have been acting on the orders of more senior officers, and the spotlight should not have been on them in the first place.

Chairman Louisa Cieciora concluded: “The panel is not satisfied that any misconduct panel properly directed could find the allegations proven.”

But Ms Alder said many unanswered questions remained - as there had been about her brother’s death and how his body came to be discovered in a mortuary 11 years after supposedly being buried. “I always believed this would be a whitewash and I was proved right,” she said.

The hearing focussed on under two hours - and yet there had been two periods of authorised surveillance starting on July 3 2000 and ending in January 2001.

The first allowed observations outside the court, the second “public place surveillance,” including “mobile, foot and technical” in all areas covered by Humberside Police.

Despite this no evidence has been found of any surveillance other than on July 28 2000, something Ms Alder find impossible to believe, given her brother’s high-profile funeral was that November.

Detective Chief Superintendent Judi Heaton of Humberside Police said: “We know that this has been a distressing time for Ms Alder and her family. We do understand her frustration that the exact details around the case have not been able to be established.”

Read more at: https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/hearing-branded-a-whitewash-after-police-officers-cleared-of-spying-misconduct-claims-1-9042553

[Nicholas]

For anyone interested in this case, Janet Alder will at some point be speaking to Victoria Derbyshire, who has also been following the case https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05qqk5c

[Nicholas]

I think you'll find that belts and shoe laces are removed from arrested persons prior to being put into a cell.

Christopher was still wearing his belt when he died, as was proved from the CCTV footage - the sparkly buckle was identified so it was still attached to his trousers

The belt went missing - presumably destroyed by the police at the time

Now why would the police destroy items worn by Christopher Alder and then wrongly arrest and charge his friend for murder?