Accountability for Deaths Attributable to the Gross Negligent Act or Omission of a Police Force: The Impact of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007

Abstract

This article discusses the potential impact of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 (CMCHA) in the context of the Act's application to a police force for deaths caused by a gross negligent act or omission of a police officer(s). The article will consider the accountability of a police force as an organisational body, prior and subsequent to the CMCHA. Although legislative innovation is, in part, welcomed in relation to a police force's accountability for deaths in police custody, the focus of the article argues that, all in all, the accountability of a police force is not extended significantly by the CMCHA.