Mark Duggan's family win right to take inquest verdict battle to Court of Appeal

'Lawfully killed': Mark Duggan's family is launching a Court of Appeal battle over the verdict of his inquest
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Laura Proto27 October 2015

The family of Mark Duggan will go to the Court of Appeal in the next stage of their legal battle to challenge the inquest verdict that he was “lawfully killed”.

Mr Duggan was shot dead by a police marksman in Tottenham in August 2011 and his death sparked riots nationwide.

The minicab the 29-year-old was travelling in was intercepted by armed police officers on the basis of intelligence that Mr Duggan was part of a gang and had collected a gun.

Mr Duggan was shot twice by an officer known as V53, with one shot fatal.

At his inquest last January, a jury decided he was lawfully killed, but his family will now ask Lord Justice Sales for permission to launch a full appeal against the High Court ruling.

Mr Duggan’s family want to challenge the decision by three High Court judges that an inquest jury was entitled to bring in its 8-2 majority verdict.

Supporters and family members were left outraged after the inquest verdict was announced and London’s High Court dismissed his mother’s application for a judicial review.

Pamela Duggan claimed Judge Keith Cutler had misdirected the jury and that an open verdict should have been reached.

Sir Brian Leveson, president of the Queen's Bench Division - who heard the case with Mr Justice Burnett and Judge Peter Thornton QC - said the court "recognised the tragedy" of the loss of Mr Duggan's life, but ruled none of the grounds of challenge had been established.

The decision left open the possibility of future civil action against the Metropolitan Police.

Sir Brian said: "As we have sought to make clear, it was not the purpose of the inquest to determine civil liability.

"In civil proceedings the burden of proof and the ingredients are different and may - we do not say must or will - provide a different answer to the very difficult questions posed by this case."

Ms Duggan said she remains “deeply distressed” about her son’s death and the inquest verdict, while his aunt, Carole, said the family felt “extremely let down and disappointed" and that it was being blamed for the "uprising" of the 2011 riots which followed the shooting.

Additional reporting by Press Association.

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