Family of man killed by police criticise 'unacceptable' delay in charging decision

The family of a man who was killed by police last year say the wait to hear whether the officer involved will face criminal charges is agonising.

Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of Chris Kaba‘s death in Streatham Hill, southeast London.

He was shot dead after the car he was driving was followed by an unmarked police car with no lights or sirens.

He turned into Kirkstall Gardens, a narrow residential street, where he was blocked by a marked police car. The two vehicles collided and a marksman fired one shot through the windscreen, hitting Mr Kaba in the head.

It later emerged that the Audi the 24-year-old was driving, which did not belong to him, had been linked by police to a firearms incident the previous day.

Mr Kaba, a construction worker, was months away from becoming a father when he died.

His family has accused the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of a lack of urgency in deciding charges in the case.

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Prosecutors have had the file of evidence, put together by watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), since March.

In a statement, Mr Kaba’s family said: “We demand a charging decision without further delay. Throughout the last year, there has been a lack of urgency.

“Our family, alongside the community who have supported us over the past year, have been consistent in our call for accountability.

“We believe that it was possible within six months of Chris being killed both for the IOPC to complete a well-resourced and effective criminal investigation and for the CPS to provide us with a charging decision.”

His family are holding a protest outside New Scotland Yard on Saturday to demand answers.

Deborah Coles, director of the charity Inquest which supports bereaved families, said: “It is simply unacceptable we do not yet have a charging decision.

“This exacerbates the family’s trauma and grieving process.”

Meanwhile, lawyer Daniel Machover from Hickman and Rose – who represent the family – said he was “appalled” by the CPS’s delay in making a decision on charges.

“In what other comparable suspected homicide case involving firearms discharged by a civilian does the CPS consider it appropriate to take so long to make a charging decision?”

The CPS said it does not provide timescales for charging decisions.

A spokeswoman said: “We are carefully considering the file of evidence to determine whether criminal charges should be brought in relation to the fatal shooting of Chris Kaba.

“As always, we will make that decision independently, based on the evidence and in line with our legal test.”

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According to Inquest, there have been 1,869 deaths in or following police custody in England and Wales since 1990.

There has only been one conviction of a police officer in that time – West Mercia Police Constable Benjamin Monk who was jailed in 2021 for the manslaughter of former footballer Dalian Atkinson.

Mr Atkinson was tasered to the ground and kicked in the head in 2016.

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