Stephen Lawrence case: Theresa May orders inquiry into police spies

[LeftishBrit]

The home secretary has ordered a public inquiry into the undercover infiltration of political groups after an independent inquiry confirmed that Scotland Yard had spied on the family of Stephen Lawrence.

...The police spy – known only as N81 – gathered personal details about Doreen and Neville, the parents of the murdered teenager, as well as intelligence that Ellison said could be seen as giving the Met a "secret advantage" over the family during the inquiry.

N81 worked in the Met's controversial undercover Special Demonstration Squad (SDS), along with Peter Francis. Last summer, the Guardian revealed that Francis had also spied on the Lawrence family, at a time when they were seeking to bring the racist killers of their son to justice.

In a speech on Thursday in the House of Lords during which she fought back tears, Lady Lawrence, said: "It's been 21 years of struggle and no family should have to do that. It's the job of the justice system and the police service to give service to the whole community not just to one section. That is what I have been campaigning about for the last 21 years. We weren't asking for anything special, just for something that we should have had just like any other citizen of this country."

(Much more at link):

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/mar/06/stephen-lawrence-theresa-may-inquiry-police