12 Nov KRW LAW Response to PONI Findings on Katie Simpson murder investigation
Todays Findings issued by PONI are a stepping stone on what’s still a long tortuous road to justice for the Simpson family. What Katie’s family have learned today in many ways is confirmatory of what they already know. Todays finding helps provide much needed answers but equally there are unresolved issues arising from new complaints one of which involves a serving member of the police. The family are keen to see the out workings of that investigation as it may help inform the key issue under pinning this seriously flawed investigation namely the adoption and maintaining of a suicide theory to explain Katie’s death.
PONI have rightly called out the unacceptable debacle that was this entirely misconceived police suicide theory. It was bad enough that this was posed at the outset of the investigation but it was sustained for an unacceptably long period. Unfortunately, the ripple effects of this flawed investigative approach are still being felt today. Directly or indirectly it impacted in a number of different ways beyond the family including the case of one man sadly taking his own life leaving a family without a father ; the wellbeing of a senior nurse who was part of the medical team tasked with trying to save Katie; it has created wholesale division and recrimination within policing the out workings of which are now the subject of both existing and pending litigation
For the Simpson family it has left them seriously retraumatized having been subjected to the unfolding horror that was Katie’s killer Jonathan Cresswell living in their midst for many weeks after her sad passing. For all of this, blame lies firmly with the PSNI. The passage of time over the last few years since Katie’s death has not healed the deep wounds felt by the family. They have demonstrated commendable bravery in the face of unimaginable distress and anxiety.
In saying this the family do have reservations that todays findings fall short in two key areas. Firstly they perceive a lack of accountability at more senior level within policing. One critical demonstration of this is the very important statement from Man A referenced in the findings whose narrative was completely ignored by police. The family want to know who made the decision at senior level to ignore this critical statement. The problem was then compounded when a new MIT investigation immediately recognized the high importance of that statement as a key contributing factor in the latter day decision to prosecute Cresswell for murder.
Secondly having identified officers for disciplinary and misconduct proceedings they feel there was very much a light touch. They’re feeling is that more should have been done to discipline the multitude of failings identified but ultimately more ought to have been directed at senior ranks within PSNI. That this didn’t happen has left them with a real unease today and it’s a point they intend to raise with both Jon Boutcher and the Director of PONI.
In saying all of this it’s important not to lose sight of the fact that Katie’s killer took the cowards way out and killed himself before facing trial. The iconic image of Katie smiling as she competes in pony jumping masks the horrible reality that Jonathan Cresswell even in his own death managed to rob the family of the quiet satisfaction in seeing him jailed for the rest of his life. Whilst the police handling of the case in the early stages was deplorable and compounded their trauma the family don’t want the justifiable criticisms of police to detract in any way from a public recognition of psychopathic evil that was Jonathan Cresswell.
The family want to thank PONI for exposing a lot of what they suspected all along but they’re unconvinced about accountability issues that needed directed against officers at the highest level. They are left with a gnawing sense of blame passing to lower ranking officers and they’re not best pleased about that.
Equally they want to put on record their sincerest appreciation to those professional PSNI officers who railed against a hitherto immoveable fixed policing stance which eventually resulted in the long overdue decision to charge Cresswell with murder. In particular they reserve praise for the diligent policing work of one specific officer without whose support Cresswell may never have been charged. Equally they are appreciative of the fulsome personal apology from the chief Constable Jon Boutcher given earlier during the summer but they want to hear from him on their now recorded concerns.
The findings will assist the work of the coroner in Katie’s pending inquest as well informing the various civil legal actions arising from the identified failings many of which amount to the worst form of police negligence.
Todays findings will hopefully signpost a way forward for policing in cases of this nature. The family really hope that never again will any other family have to endure what they’ve been put through over the last three years. If at least that happens then it will give the family some modest comfort to know that Katie’s sad passing will have left a lasting legacy. To that end they urge complete and immediate compliance with the 3 recommendations of PONI and follow up on their expressed worries. The last thing they want is for something like this to ever happen again but after today they still harbor a doubt that the specter of a repeat failing like this could still in fact recur. Only when they’re convinced that all precautionary steps have taken and lessons leaned will they feel they can have some closure after Katie’s death.”