Met Police apologise to gay man for not investigating homophobic abuse against him
A gay man has won a lengthy court battle against the Metropolitan Police after it failed to investigate his claims of homophobic abuse by a neighbour.
David Cary alleged that the force discriminated against him on the grounds of his sexuality because it did not properly examine his complaint in 2007.
The case was due to be heard in the Court of Appeal but Scotland Yard has now agreed to compensate Mr Cary and apologised to him ahead of a decision on Monday, admitting it could have handled his complaint “more professionally and sympathetically”.
Mr Cary, 54, accused the Met of having "tolerated” homophobic abuse due to its failure to investigate the allegations, according to the BBC.
He said: “I felt belittled and treated like a second-class citizen. I felt they prolonged the case in the hope of wearing me down.
"Without the best legal representation and campaigning support that I had, they might have managed it.”
Complaint: Police failed to investigate claims of homophobic abuse (Rex)
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Mr Cary complained to police in February 2007 that a neighbour had used homophobic terms as he cycled home, but he said officers decided to take no further action after initially investigating.
He complained about their report, which the Met dismissed, and after two appeals to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) were rejected he began legal action against both organisations in 2010.
The IPCC settled the case in 2012, but Scotland Yard only apologised on Monday.
The Met said: "This case has taken a number of years to reach a resolution, due to a number of applications and appeals lodged by Mr Cary.
"The Metropolitan Police Service is pleased that this case was finally able to reach a settlement and we have apologised to Mr Cary. The way the organisation deals with homophobic crime and our internal practices and policies have changed dramatically since 2013.
"We look forward to the learning that Mr Cary can provide to ensure the positive changes we have made are long-lasting.”
Top pic: Rex
