London court hearing in Bristol Taser case criticised

Supporters of a race relations adviser who was allegedly Tasered by a police officer have expressed anger and bewilderment that court hearings are to be held far from the city where the incident happened.

Judah Adunbi, a former member of an independent advisory group to Avon and Somerset police, was allegedly shot by an officer with a stun gun in Bristol last year. A video of the incident was widely shared on social media and made headlines around the world.

PC Claire Boddie, of Avon and Somerset police, has denied common assault and her trial is due to be heard by the deputy senior district judge Tan Ikram next month in either Salisbury, which is 60 miles from Bristol, or Chippenham, 30 miles away. A case management hearing is to be held in London, 120 miles away.

Supporters of Adunbi say confidence in the legal system would be undermined if the case is not heard in Bristol.

Cleo Lake, a Green party councillor, said: “We’re getting the run around. It’s confusing, it’s not transparent, it’s bewildering really. It doesn’t give us any confidence as a community.”

On Monday about 30 supporters packed into a magistrates courtroom in Bristol for what was due to be a case management hearing.

Richard Shepherd, for the defence, initially asked to make an application in private. Ikram, who was presiding via video link from Westminster, agreed to have the court cleared, despite members of the media raising concerns. When the press and pubic were allowed back in, Ikram said no application had been made.

The judge said he did not know where the trial would be held. “I go where I’m told,” he said.

The case has so far been listed in courtrooms including Taunton, Somerset, and Southampton, Hampshire.

Desmond Brown, a spokesperson for the Justice 4 Judah campaign, said he was horrified by how the case was being handled. He said: “Moving the case to Westminster makes it hard for us to be there but we will go. This needs to be done in public. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Another supporter, Bianca Durrant, who won a racial discrimination case against Avon and Somerset police after being left to urinate on a cell floor in front of male officers, said: “How can we have faith in our system in Bristol if things aren’t done out front so we can all see what is going on? This is what causes people to lose faith in the whole system.”

In a further twist, Adunbi, 64, also known as Ras, has been charged with a racially aggravated public order offence after an alleged incident at a betting shop in Bristol on 29 March. He is due to appear before Bristol magistrates next month.

His solicitor, Tony Murphy, of Bhatt Murphy Solicitors, said he would be challenging the charge. “Ras Judah has a long history of challenging racism in all its forms and he shall be resisting this prosecution,” Murphy said.

Adunbi sat on Bristol’s independent advisory group, which forges links between the police and the community, and has worked with the Crown Prosecution Service’s local community involvement panel.