A long time ago I posted about the G20 protest which I attended to photograph the events as they unfolded.
I was (un)lucky enough to be at the place where Ian Tomlinson was pushed to the ground by PC Simon Harwood and I photographed the first shots of him lying on the floor before I ran off to get medical help.

The picture I took when I returned to him was the main one used by The Sun the next day.

The case is now coming to a close and I’ve just read today that the jury concluded that "Mr Tomlinson had been unlawfully killed and that PC Harwood had used "excessive and unreasonable force"".

My G20 Stock Images

Is Simon Harwood the evil face of the Police force as the Media and protest groups would have us believe?
Doubtful. Most police that I know just want to help and protect the public.
I guess there are exceptions to any rule, but only his friends and family know his true character.

Should he pay for his actions on the 1st April 2009?
Two regular guys go to a pub on a Friday night and during the night a scuffle breaks out.
One of the guys gets caught up in the fight and hits someone who falls, smacks their head on the ground and doesn’t get up.
The guy will go to court and, even though it was an accident, he will be tried and charged for manslaughter.

Pretty much what happened at the G20. An action that was the catalyst for an unfortunate death.

Time will tell on the final result, but I’m hoping that justice will run it’s course.
What’s good for the goose and all that 😉

What is unusual is that, for the first time, the misconduct hearing of a police officer will be held in public. It looks like they’re offering the lamb up for public slaughter in order to appease the image of the police force (look – we’re reprimanding our own).

On a positive note – the ‘blood money’ I received for my picture in the sun which I gave to the Guide Dogs for the Blind has matured and Otis (the black lab I helped sponsor) is now with his new owner 🙂