Trouble flared in the Mountpottinger Road area of the city following a Loyalist band parade.
In line with a protocol between the PSNI and the Police Ombudsman's Office that all discharges of police firearms in Northern Ireland should be investigated, the Chief Constable asked the Police Ombudsman to investigate the discharge of a baton round during rioting in East Belfast on 2 June 2002.
Trouble had flared in the Mountpottinger Road area of the city at around 4.30pm, following a Loyalist band parade. The situation steadily deteriorated and at 6.50pm police in the area requested permission to use baton rounds. Military support was also drafted in.
By 7.10pm police had received reports that petrol bombs were being prepared and of large crowds in Cluan Place and Clandeboye Gardens stoning each other.
By 7.30pm, the police commander in the area noted that security forces were having difficulty controlling the situation, with ongoing rioting at Cluan Place/Clandeboye Gardens and rival crowds totalling up to 500 people gathering at the nearby Mountpottinger Road/Albertbridge Road junction.
Hand-to-hand fighting broke out between these groups, and one officer noted that a heavy and sustained barrage of stones, boulders and other missiles from the Loyalist side was being directed at police, army and Nationalists. He ordered his unit to engage the rioters to allow police and army personnel to establish a defensive sterile zone between the rival factions.
During this action an officer in a stationary Land Rover discharged one baton round at an identified rioter, who he had seen throwing large pieces of masonry at the Nationalist crowd. The round struck the man on the upper right thigh from a distance of some 20-25 metres, after which he made off towards Castlereagh Street.
The officer who authorised the discharge of the baton round stated: "I assessed the dynamics of the crowd, the weight of numbers, still several hundred on each side, the positioning of the factions and the situation of the isolated TSG vehicles trying to act as a buffer between the rioting factions. I anticipated widespread casualties amongst police and army, as well as the potential for casualties amongst rival factions unless action was taken to protect security force personnel and keep the rioters apart."
By 7.44pm the two sides had been separated and police units stayed in the area until the trouble abated in the early hours of the following morning.
During the Police Ombudsman's investigation of the incident, investigators secured statements from a number of officers involved in the operation, including senior officers and the officer who discharged the baton round. This officer's training records were also examined, along with other police documentation relating to the evening's events.
Enquiries at the Accident and Emergency departments of local hospitals did not identify anyone reporting with injuries sustained as a result of the baton round discharge.
There was no available CCTV footage of the baton round discharge. No public complaints were received in respect of the baton round discharge.
Outcome of investigation:
Having assessed the evidence, the Police Ombudsman, Mrs Nuala O'Loan, concluded: "There is little doubt that police and military personnel were faced with serious disorder from Loyalist and Nationalist groups, who were intent on perpetrating extreme violence on each other and towards security forces.
"Taking into account all the circumstances and evidence in this case it would appear that the use of force was proportionate and justified, in accordance with legislation, guidelines and force instructions and necessary to prevent serious injury.
"The officer who discharged the baton round was fully trained in their use and deployment. Its use had the desired effect in that the rioter who was struck left the scene and discontinued rioting."
Mrs O'Loan noted that her investigators had received full co-operation from the PSNI during their investigation.
However, the Police Ombudsman noted that a warning had not been issued prior to the discharge and that an assistant had not been assigned to the officer who discharged the baton round. These issues had been addressed in previous recommendations by the Police Ombudsman and no further recommendations were made.
No recommendations for disciplinary action were made against any officer.