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CPS in race row
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RACE ROW: Black lawyers want to challenge what they describe as a culture of racism in the CPS
Black lawyers have brought up to eight racism claims against the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
According to two black senior crown prosecutors, their warnings to the CPS about racism, bullying and segregation fell on deaf ears.
The CPS, whose office is based in Lewisham, confirmed last week that they have received eight formal complaints.
Tyica Wiley, one of the senior black lawyers to have lodged a complaint against the CPS, said that she was pressurised into dropping a criminal damage charge against the Metropolitan Police after one of Stephen Lawrence’s closest friend had his car vandalised and that questions were raised by colleagues as to why so much money was spent on a “dead black boy”. The comments referred to the cost of the £10 million Stephen Lawrence memorial centre in Deptford.
“I considered the comments to be a complete and deliberate disregard of the feelings of black lawyers in the office” Wiley told an employment tribunal.
Fellow black prosecutor Aniere Ebuzoeme supported Wiley’s statements, saying: “The non-black super team felt that they had a licence from management to harass the black lawyers."
He said that managers “……effectively reinforced the divide on racial lines within the workplace.”
According to Ebuzoeme, this helped to make an "us and them culture based on racial dynamics".
The six other race claims belong to different CPS offices and are at various stages.
In response to the claims, a spokesperson for the CPS said:
"The CPS undertook a thorough and high-level investigation into the allegations of race discrimination made by two members of staff in London which found that the grievances were entirely unsubstantiated. There were two subsequent appeals which reached the same conclusion. We will be resisting these claims in court."
Published: 01 March 2010
Issue: 1412
