PC Facing Manslaughter Charge Over G20 Death

G20 policeman PC Simon Harwood is to be prosecuted for the alleged manslaughter of newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson.

The announcement reverses a decision taken by prosecutors last summer.

It follows a review of the case three weeks after an inquest jury heard new medical evidence and agreed that 47-year-old Mr Tomlinson had been unlawfully killed.

PC Harwood pushed Mr Tomlinson to the ground as he walked away from police lines during violent demonstrations at the G20 economic leaders meeting in London in 2009.

Homeless Mr Tomlinson had been trying to get home through the protest when the officer hit him with a baton and then pushed him to the ground.

He was helped up, walked a few hundred yards, then collapsed and died.
Mr Tomlinson's stepson Paul said: "We should have been here two years ago but we are here now and we are more than happy."

Scotland Yard Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said the case was "a very, very serious matter for all concerned."

PC Harwood will appear before magistrates in Westminster next month and is likely to face trial this year.

He could be jailed for life if convicted.