Page 20 - Top Cover Issue 6

20 TOP COVER ISSUE 6

INQUEST TOUCHING UPON THE DEATH OF MARK DUGGAN
Question 4
How did the gun get to the grass area where it was later found?

8:2

The Jury, in a majority of 9:1, concluded that Mark Duggan
threw the firearm onto the grass.

Of the 9, 8 have concluded that it is more likely than not, that
Mark Duggan threw the firearm as soon as the minicab came
to a stop and prior to any officers being on the pavement.

1 concluded that Mark Duggan threw the firearm whilst on the
pavement and in the process of evading the police. INQUEST TOUCHING UPON THE DEATH OF MARK DUGGAN
Conclusions - lawful/unlawful killing and open conclusion
1 juror was not convinced of any supposition that Mark
Unlawful. You have to be sure that the act was unlawful – that is that it was not
Duggan threw the firearm from the vehicle or from the done in lawful self defence or defence of another or in order to prevent crime. It is
pavement because no witnesses gave evidence to this effect. not for V53 to prove that he did act lawfully – before you conclude that his act
was unlawful, you must be sure that it was unlawful.

Any person is entitled to use reasonable force to defend himself or another from
injury, attack or threat of attack. If V53 may have been defending himself or one
of his colleagues then go on to consider two matters:

1) Did V53 honestly believe or may he honestly have believed, even if that
belief is mistaken, that at the time he fired the fatal shot, that he needed to use
force to defend himself or another; if your answer is NO then he cannot have
been acting in lawful self defence and you can put that issue to one side; if
your answer is YES then go on to consider:
2) Was the force used – the fatal shot – reasonable in all the circumstances?
Obviously if someone is under attack from someone he genuinely believes is
INQUEST TOUCHING UPON THE DEATH OF MARK DUGGAN violent and armed – then that person cannot be expected to weigh up precisely
3 the amount of force needed to prevent that attack. But if he goes over top and
Only if you are sure that Mr Duggan was killed unlawfully will you come to this acts out of proportion to the threat then he would not be using reasonable force
and his action would be unlawful.
conclusion and record it as such.
Lawful killing. If you conclude that it was more likely than not that the fatal shot circumstances is to be decided by reference to the circumstances as V53 believed
The question whether the degree of force used by V53 was reasonable in the
which killed Mark Duggan was the use of lawful force – then you would return a
them to be – but the degree of force is not to be regarded as reasonable in the
conclusion of lawful killing. circumstances as V53 believed them to be if it was disproportionate in those
circumstances.
Open conclusion. An open conclusion should be recorded when there is

insufficient evidence to the necessary standard of proof for you to record any (Alternatively a police officer may use lawful force to prevent crime. Here two
other “substantive” conclusion as to how Mark Duggan came to his death.
points arise:
1) Did V53 shoot Mark Duggan in order to prevent crime; and
2) Was the force used reasonable or unreasonable in all the circumstances?)

You may record an open conclusion if:
1) You are not satisfied so that you are sure that Mark Duggan was unlawfully
2) You are not satisfied that it is more likely than not that Mark Duggan was 5
killed; and
killed lawfully.

4. Conclusion of the jury as to the death:

6