Police who arrested an innocent Black teenager for the attempted murder of his mother , moments after she had attempted to take her own life, will now have to pay up to £130,000 in compensation.
A jury concluded that the officers discriminated against the 16-year-old due to his race.
Daryl McLune, a diligent student with “great grades” and no prior police contact, was arrested and held for 23 hours in July 2021.
He had returned to his south London home to find paramedics attending to his mother, Annette McLune, following her suicide attempt. Just 26 minutes later, he was handcuffed and taken into custody on suspicion of her attempted murder.
Harrowing bodycam footage, presented in court, captured the teenager collapsing to the ground, repeatedly crying “I wasn't even here” as he was arrested.
He subsequently sued the Metropolitan Police.
Daryl McLune outside Central London County Court (Champion News)
His legal team argued that racially biased officers were too quick to “jump to the conclusion” that he was a suspect, resulting in the “premature criminalisation” of what was, in reality, a “child in crisis”.
They contended that, because he is Black, he was not afforded the compassion due to a grieving child, but was instead perceived as a suspect requiring arrest, cuffing, and control.
Now, after a seven-day trial in London, a jury has found that Mr McLune was racially discriminated against because, in deciding he needed to be arrested, police treated him “less favourably than they would have treated a non-Black boy”.
His race had also played a part in the decision to authorise his detention for 23 hours, the jury found, in a rare example of a civil court case being decided by a panel of jurors.
The decision, as well as findings of false imprisonment and a breach of his human rights, means the Met is now liable to make a compensation payout, with Mr McLune claiming £130,000.
Branding it an “inherently serious case”, Mr McLune's barrister Frederick Powell told the court that the “racially motivated intervention” by police on what was in fact a “personal tragedy” had caused an “exceptional level of humiliation, distress and insult to Daryl’s dignity”.
“He was trying to come back to help his mum and he ended up being publicly humiliated and cuffed in the street, before being dragged to a police station and kept overnight,” said his barrister.
“They failed to see the child who was standing in front of them. The police didn't cause the first tragedy that befell Daryl that afternoon, but they did create the second tragedy.
“In the single most vulnerable moment of his life, they transformed a terrified boy into an attempted murder suspect. That is an injustice that still scars him.”
Central London County Court heard that Annette McLune survived, but suffered “catastrophic” injuries after her suicide attempt, having earlier spoken of being in a “dark place” following struggles with a Covid infection.
Police had been called to Bembridge House, in Iron Mill Road, by Mr McLune's father, Travayne McLune, after he found blood in their home and his wife missing, said Mr McLune's barrister in opening.
She had sustained serious injuries which ultimately put her in hospital for a year, the court heard.
Police initially quizzed Mr McLune's dad at the scene, while paramedics worked to save Annette's life, before Mr McLune himself appeared, having cycled round from his grandmother's.
Only 26 minutes later, he was slapped in cuffs in the street, with officers telling him that he was under arrest on suspicion of the attempted murder of his mum.
The family lived at Bembridge House, in Iron Mill Road, at the time of Annette McLune’s suicide attempt (Supplied by Champion News)
Police bodycam footage played to the jury showed the moment Mr McLune was arrested, collapsing while questioning why he was being held when he had not even been there.
He was later released from custody and less than a week later was informed that no further action would be taken, following the discovery of a suicide note in the flat.
In opening the case, Mr Powell told the jury: “We are here to seek accountability for what happened to Daryl when he was a 16-year-old boy.”
Accusing the police of jumping to a conclusion too quickly about Mr McLune, he claimed the arrest was driven by their perception of him as a Black teenager.
“The scene had to be made safe, she had to be treated and the police were entitled to investigate what had happened to her,” he told the jury.
“The issue is whether in the midst of that uncertainty, the police acted lawfully in moving from investigating a grave incident to arresting Daryl, a black boy who had just arrived at the scene in distress, on suspicion of attempting to murder his own mother.
“You will need to consider whether...his race played a part consciously or unconsciously in how quickly and how harshly he was treated.
“Our case is that when you hear the evidence the picture will be clear. We say this was not a case of car…
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