Sarah Everard vigil: Met Police charges six attendees
- Published
An unofficial vigil took place at Clapham Common in March 2021
Six people have been charged by the Met Police for allegedly breaking Covid-19 lockdown rules while attending a Sarah Everard vigil in south London.
Hundreds went to an unofficial event at Clapham Common in March 2021 after Ms Everard was kidnapped, raped and murdered by Met officer Wayne Couzens.
The vigil, on 13 March, saw clashes between police and some of those there.
The six are due before Westminster Magistrates' Court accused of gathering when London was in Tier 4 restrictions.
An official vigil had earlier been called off by the organisers, Reclaim These Streets.
Dania Al-Obeid, 27, from Stratford; Vivien Hohmann, 20, of Clapham; Ben Wheeler, 21, from Kennington and Kevin Godin-Prior, 68, of Manchester all face a charge of participating in a gathering of more than two people in a public outdoor place in a Tier 4 area.
They have been listed to be dealt with under a paper-based process not held in open court, at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.
Now Jade Spence, 33, from Lambeth, and Jenny Edmunds, 32, from Lewisham, are due at the same court on 15 June.
Appeal refused
Further charge details say they allegedly gathered on "Saturday 13 March, 2021 at Clapham Common bandstand without reasonable excuse and other than as permitted by the regulations," and that they allegedly "participated in a gathering in the Tier 4 area of London, taking place in a public outdoor space as defined in paragraph 4(4) of Schedule 3A to the regulations, namely Clapham Common bandstand and consisting of more than two people".
It comes a day after the Met Police was refused permission for a second time to appeal against a High Court ruling that said the force breached the rights of the organisers of the official vigil when it told them they faced £10,000 fines and prosecution if it went ahead.
At the High Court in March, Lord Justice Warby and Mr Justice Holgate found the Met's decisions in the run-up to the event were "not in accordance with the law".
Dismissing the appeal bid by the Met on Tuesday, Lord Justice Holroyde said in a court order he could see "no arguable basis on which it can be said that the [High] Court's decision was wrong".