Four women who founded RTS and planned the vigil filed a lawsuit against the troupe for its handling of the event, which was also aimed at protesting violence against women. Public opinion can be a clue to whether a particular event is widely considered vital. In this case, events had developed rapidly in a few days and had given little opportunity to form a firm opinion on public opinion. A quick YouGov poll conducted within 48 hours of the vigil found that 40% of people thought the Metropolitan Police should have organised the event as planned by organisers, with 43% taking the opposite view. But under Article 10 (freedom of expression) and Article 11 (freedom of assembly) of the ECHR (which come into force in UK law through the Human Rights Act 1998), the police can also legally restrict freedom of expression and assembly. According to Article 11(2), the legal review consists of determining whether police intervention is “prescribed by law and necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, for the prevention of criminal disorder or offences, for the protection of health or morals or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others”. Article 10(2) contains a similar provision. Reclaim These Streets (RTS) has proposed a socially distanced vigil for the 33-year-old, who was murdered by Met officer Wayne Couzens near her missing man in Clapham, south London, in March last year. The Metropolitan Police considered that the vigil could not take place within the framework of regulations on all levels. The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has requested ministerial support for this position.

We were told that the Home Secretary (represented by her private secretary) broadly agreed with the proposed approach and stated that she intended to make a public statement urging people not to attend the vigil but to show their respect in other ways. Organizers explained the vigil`s proposal, saying it would begin on Saturday, March 13, 2021 at 6 p.m. and last one hour. They provided details on safety considerations and efforts to make the event safer. Clapham Common was chosen because it was a large outdoor space. Organizers considered social distancing possible even with large crowds. After the cancellation, the organisers decided not to travel to Clapham Common the following day. Instead, they held a Haustürmahnwache for 9pm on Saturday and held another crowdfunding event. At the time of our interview, this had raised £525,000 to support women`s and girls` organisations in the UK.

The spontaneous vigil, which took place instead, led to the force being heavily criticized for its actions – although it was later released by the police station. The NPCC and some police chiefs (representing forces in their area) hold a conference call on Operation Talla every Friday, primarily to discuss the police response to the pandemic. At the meeting on Friday, March 12, 2021, the national position of the police on the vigils planned for the weekend of March 13 and 14, 2021 was discussed. Working with the Metropolitan Police, Lambeth Council and others, we collected approximately 700 documents, including statements, minutes of meetings, emails, police minutes and legal documents. Their suitability has been selectively verified and verified by our team of inspectors. We collected and reviewed many hours of body videos of officers at the events centre in Clapham Common, an audio recording of police radio communications and videos recorded by others at the scene. The emails from the RTS organizer caused a lot of activity on the morning of March 11, 2021. The South Central Metropolitan Police Headquarters (which includes Lambeth and Southwark) has taken note of the planned vigil. Officials contacted RTS and explained that they: There were loud chants, although the wording has changed. People who were closer to the bandstand were more confrontational with the police.

A small number of people expressed a firm belief that the presence of the police at the vigil had inflamed the situation. The Met was denied permission to appeal a second time against a Supreme Court ruling that the force violated the rights of organizers of the cancelled vigil. During the vigil on 13 March, there were clashes between the police and some of those present. The judges said Scotland Yard had “distorted the legal situation under Covid regulations” and made “errors of law”. The second is the limited time available for planning. Naturally, all parties wanted to wait for the High Court`s decision. The verdict was not announced until the evening of 12 March. This left less than 24 hours to plan the event. In any case, shortly after the verdict was announced, the RTS organizers naturally abandoned their proposal to hold a vigil.

“The look and feel of the police response tonight will be crucial – we are horrified, shocked, sad, but we also have a job to do. We must also be prepared for the fact that gatherings could be attractive to terrorists who have not had the opportunity so far. We must also be prepared for a number of people to show up who are “against the police” and we will blame for the fact that the vigils were cancelled by the organizers. We must be sensitive to this point of view, but also apply the law without fear or favour. Miss Everard`s vigil was far from the first gathering in London where the Metropolitan Police took enforcement action during the pandemic.