29 February 2008
R (D) v Metropolitan Police Commissioner [2008] All ER (D) 197 (Feb)
The decision of a police sergeant to charge two young offenders with criminal damage, although done by mistakenly increasing the gravity score indicated in Home Office guidance on the giving of final warnings, was not one with which the court would interfere.
He had been entitled to decide that giving final warnings would not be in the public interest. Attempts to stifle the way in which police officers deal with matters are to be deprecated.
