We secured a £4,000 settlement for a 56 year old black woman for assault and false imprisonment by members of the Territorial Support Group in Sydenham, South East London in 2016. She was arrested on suspicion that her dog, whom she was walking when approached by the police, was a banned breed. The dog belonged to her son, who had sadly passed away the year before, and she became upset when the officers tried to take it off her. She alleged that police then took her to the ground and discharged CS spray into her eyes.

She was charged with assaulting a police officer despite the officers being significantly younger than her, and possessing a dangerous dog. She also alleged racial abuse at the hands of the officers. She was acquitted of the assault charge. She pleaded on advice to the dangerous dogs charge as she was advised this was the quickest way to get her dog back, meaning we had to make a formal application to bring the claim in assault against the police to set aside the requirement that no claim could be bought in assault or false imprisonment where a conviction arose on the facts. We were granted permission to bring the claim on the basis that the force used was grossly disproportionate and the police settled the claim. Solicitor in the case was Bhaskar Banerjee