Rob Hay, President of the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents

A cowardice of leadership – that inexplicably led to a police firearms officer being tried for murder – must be addressed and never be allowed to happen again.

That’s the strong message from Rob Hay, President of the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents following the acquittal of Metropolitan Police Sgt Martyn Blake for the murder of Chris Kaba.

Rob said the “ramifications of the prosecution and outcome are being felt UK-wide” and took aim at the Crown Prosecution Service and the Independent Office for Police Conduct South of the Border for their shocking decision making in the case.  

He described Sgt Blake’s case as a “politically-motivated show-trial.”

Rob said: “I represent the senior operational leaders in policing in Scotland, including those who command armed policing operations and lead the authorised firearms officers who volunteer to respond to the most critical and dynamic incidents that threaten the public’s safety.

“I know my members – and officers across the country – have been following the trial with professional interest and more than a little anxiety and concern.

“It is abundantly clear that justice has been done by the jury delivering a not guilty verdict.

“But the question remains how on earth did the CPS arrive at the view that there was sufficient evidence to try Sgt Blake with murder in the first place?”

Rob added: “Body cam footage of the incident clearly illustrates the jeopardy the officers’ faced, performing the stop on the vehicle. An Audi Q8 is a performance vehicle, with a kerb-side weight of over 2,100kg and could travel at over 25 MPH while accelerating hard in first gear.

“The impact on a human body of being struck by such a vehicle in these circumstances would be catastrophic and likely fatal. It is just over six years since PC Andrew Harper of Thames Valley Police was dragged to his death by a driver fleeing justice.  

“And there have been many similar incidents where police officers have been deliberately and seriously harmed by drivers who refuse to comply with lawful instructions and use their vehicle as a lethal weapon.

“The prosecution simply had no evidence to suggest anything other than Sgt Blake, acting in an honestly held belief of a lethal risk to the lives of his colleagues, reacted exactly as he had been trained to, in a manner that was necessary and proportionate in the dynamic circumstances.

“As a result of the evidence, it took the jury a mere three hours to reach their decision. This evidence was available to the CPS throughout, the woeful weakness of the prosecution case apparent, so why did the prosecution happen?

“Frank Ferguson, Head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division provided a statement so template in nature, it could have been written by AI. Mr Ferguson says, “…it is our responsibility to put cases before a jury that meet our test for prosecution, and we are satisfied that test was met in this case…”.

“I can theorise a far simpler explanation… cowardice. A craven cowardice of leadership… the IOPC and the CPS were quite happy to abrogate their responsibility onto a jury of Martyn Blake’s peers.

“Whatever transpired thereafter would be off their conscience and have no impact on their ‘corporate reputation’. If decisions about prosecutions are decided, not on the weight of evidence, but on the extant nature of community relations at any given time, this should worry us all.

“That’s not how the law is supposed to work. Such decisions should be taken “without fear or favour”.”

Rob concluded: “As we found out after the trial, Chris Kaba was a violent and dangerous man, who posed an ongoing risk to the public. Somehow a narrative has been allowed to take root that police officers are in some way more of a threat to the community than the criminals who terrorise and target children to join organised gangs. This must also stop.

“Kaba’s death is inherently tragic, but the fact remains that Kaba was an ongoing, grave risk to the public, not just from his own violent actions, but in the propensity of such gang-type offending to draw others in, perpetuating a cycle of misery and violence.

“The same commentators – and some politicians – who decry policing for not effectively tackling this offending, offer nothing but a wall of silence when men like Kaba bring violence and tragedy to their neighbourhoods.

“What of Martyn Blake and the men and women like him, who volunteer for a difficult and dangerous job?

“Our authorised firearms officers are amongst the most highly trained in the world with rigorous selection, training, re-training and ongoing assessments. They are absolutely necessary to protect the public and critical national assets.  

“They are now left questioning if volunteering to carry a firearm is worth it, if the stress upon them, their families, the threats to their lives and a broader lack of appreciation and support from the public are too great a burden.

“This should worry us all.

“Those volunteers do not deserve politically-motivated show-trials; they do deserve our deep gratitude.”