The Police Ombudsman launched an investigation following the discharge of two baton rounds during serious rioting in the Short Strand area of Belfast on 12 May 2002.
The rounds were fired as police came under sustained attack as they tried to separate rival factions of Nationalist and Loyalist rioters in the Madrid Street/ Thistle Court/ Bryson Street area. Officers came under live fire, and bricks, bottles, acid bombs and blast bombs were thrown during the disturbances. Suspect improvised devices were also located by police, one among their lines at Madrid Street.
Nine officers suffered injuries ranging from cuts and bruising to concussion and fractures. A police Land Rover was also set alight and destroyed.
The trouble began shortly before 1am. A single police Land Rover went to the area in response to reports that crowds were gathering there. The driver drove up and down the street between the factions in an attempt to keep them apart until additional resources arrived.
When an additional three police units arrived they deployed in streets around the area and used a combination of rapid foot advances and Land Rovers to keep the rival factions apart. At this stage it was estimated that about the crowd of Nationalists numbered 200, and Loyalists about 100.
Police lines came under a sustained attack from the Nationalist side, during which an officer was struck by a number of missiles and rendered unconscious. He was removed to safety by his colleagues.
Another officer was knocked unconscious when rioters, armed with a variety of weapons including hammers, golf clubs, timber and hurley sticks, engaged the police in hand-to-hand fighting.
Fearing that police lines were about to be overpowered by the crowd, a senior officer instructed officers to deploy their baton guns and engage identified rioters. A subsequent public order warning that baton guns would be used was jeered by the crowd.
One baton round was fired at 1.02am, striking a man who police had identified as having thrown a number of bricks at their lines. The man made off through the crowd after being struck in the groin area.
Another round was discharged at 1.15am as police lines came under direct attack from the crowd, which had moved forward and was pulling at police shields. One man who police had identified as having thrown a series of missiles, was struck on the lower leg by the discharged baton.
Permission to use baton guns was withdrawn at 1.59am as the crowd became more subdued, and police units returned to base shortly before 5am.
During their investigation, Police Ombudsman investigators analysed police command and control logs, radio transmissions and baton round reports. They were also provided with statements as well as police CCTV video footage. Additional amateur footage, apparently taken from a bedroom window overlooking the trouble, was also provided to investigators via a local community centre.
Police training records were also inspected and this confirmed that the baton gunners who used their weapons on the night in question were up-to-date in their training.
Outcome of investigation:
After examining the available evidence, the Police Ombudsman, Mrs Nuala O'Loan, concluded that the use of force had been justified and reasonable.
She stated that due to the "sustained and vicious" nature of the attack, it was clear that "the intention of the rioters was to engage with police in an attempt to seriously injure or kill police officers."
"It is clear that police were faced with a situation where serious and premeditated violence was taking place," said Mrs O'Loan.
"The use of baton rounds is designed to provide a less lethal option when dealing with threats of serious violence. Given the organised nature of the violence and the range of weaponry that was being used to attack police, there is little doubt that there was potential for the loss of life, particularly on the part of police officers. The use of baton rounds was therefore necessary due to the serious disorder and the potential for serious injury."
Police had also exhausted a variety of other tactics before resorting to the use of baton guns, said Mrs O'Loan. These included the deployment of officers without baton guns, the use of Land Rovers, and warnings about the use of baton guns.
The Police Ombudsman, however, noted a number of other matters in her conclusions. These included that the first baton round had been discharged up to eight minutes prior to authorisation being granted by the police Silver Commander, as is normally required. However, she stated that police Force Orders allowed officers to use baton guns prior to Silver Command authorisation if urgent action was necessary in circumstances where there was an immediate risk to life.
"There was an immediate threat posed to police officers that necessitated [the baton gunners] intervention and indeed two officers had already been rendered unconscious," said Mrs O'Loan. "His action is viewed by the Police Ombudsman as being consistent with all requirements, given the context in which he was operating."
She also noted that one of the officers who had been rendered unconscious during the rioting had resumed duties as a baton gunner, and indeed fired a baton round, after regaining consciousness.
While acknowledging that the officer had displayed "enormous fortitude", Mrs O'Loan stated that it was "of real concern that the officer was then allowed to continue as a baton gunner when he may well have been disorientated and have underlying medical effects."
Recommendations made to PSNI as a result of the Police Ombudsman's investigation:
- The Police Ombudsman re-emphasised the need for accurate record-keeping in relation to the issuing and return of baton rounds. One of the two baton gunners had recorded on the firearm register that he had been issued with "one box" of ammunition. Mrs O'Loan stated that the exact number of rounds issued should instead be recorded.
- She urged that Silver Command Officers should be reminded of the requirement to notify her office, via the formal call-out procedure, when baton rounds are discharged. She accepted that the failure to do so on this occasion had been "a genuine oversight due to the rapid and spontaneous manner in which this incident erupted and the level of police resources available at the time."
- She recommended that baton gunners should be removed from such duties if they are rendered unconscious, suffer a head injury or other injury that is "more than trivial", unless wholly exceptional situations prevail and retention on duty can be justified. She said this issue should also be addressed through training.