In March 2021, 33-year old Sarah Everard was ‘kidnapped, r*ped and murdered’ by ‘serving’ Metropolitan police officer, Wayne Couzens. In order to commit this crime, Couzens abused his position of a police officer; he used his police-issued handcuffs, belt and staff ID to ‘arrest’ Sarah Everard for breaking COVID-19 restrictions. Following an investigation, Couzens was arrested and subsequently sentenced to a whole-life order. 

 

This case was categorised as an example of ‘systemic failures’ within the policing service, in that there were previous allegations against Couzens, including indecent exposure, that were overlooked by his colleagues. Here, it is evident that Couzens’ actions called into question the legitimacy of the police, as his continued employment despite his previous misconduct ‘allowed’ him to commit this heinous crime through a status of power and police equipment. This led to a public inquiry, the Angiolini Inquiry, which aimed to look at Couzens’ previous behaviour and conduct prior to the crime, as well as any wider issues across policing, such as vetting practices, professional standards and discipline, and workplace behaviour. 

 

Cases like this one have encouraged a movement within psychology towards a focus on violence against women and girls (BPS, 2021). Research has also criticised government responses to Sarah Everard’s death as ‘problematic’, unhelpful and likely to reinforce victim-blaming (Brighton, 2021; Rainbow, 2021). Therefore, psychologists may be able to address this issue by advocating for policy that engages with systemic violence and victim blaming experienced by female victims, with an aim to reduce female victimisation overall. 

It is well known, especially within the black community, that the police are seen to be a racist organisation; with black people being over-represented in statistics such as stop and search, imprisonment, and deaths within or following police custody (Home Office, 2022, IOPC, 2021). Thus, calling into question whether the police are willing to protect and serve the black community. 

Psychological literature and cases such as this highlight the ways that racial bias manifests in policing, and the need to take more action addressing issues like racial profiling. Studies such as Nadal et al. (2017) suggest that police acknowledge the negative perceptions of police within the black community. Only after this would they be to take the next step of integrating race into all aspects of police culture. Hence, race is no longer an afterthought, potentially improving racial dynamics and increasing better community relationships (Nadal et al., 2017). 

The media has the ability to construct the narrative around police legitimacy, as it acts as both a complaint and regulatory tool, therefore it is vital to remember the impact that the media can play, especially since this was a topic that was heavily reported on (Yannoulatou, 2022). The COVID-19 restrictions in place at the time of the vigil included a ban on 30 or more people gathering in a public, outdoor place (Lowerson, 2022). The police handling of peaceful protests and vigils during the pandemic has been suggested to be one of the most central challenges to police legitimacy (Stott et al., 2022). It is difficult to ascertain if this situation does question the legitimacy of the metropolitan police, it can be argued that the interplaying factors that contribute to the question in this case are four-fold: (1) Wayne Couzens being a police officer at the time of offence, (2) the offence highlighting social inequalities in terms of gender, (3) the political significance, and (4) COVID-19 regulations.  

Violence against women and girls (VWAG) is a prominent area in Forensic Psychology. Suggestions have been made for women to take steps to mitigate their vulnerabilities, including, altering their routes, being ‘street savvy’, minimising their alcohol intake and checking the credentials of police officers to confirm their identity (Brooks, 2011; Brown & Hovarth, 2021). However, others argue that the focus should not be on females changing their behaviours, but for males to alter theirs instead (Vera-Gray & Kelly, 2020). Psychological research into perceptions of safety based on the murder of Sarah Everard could inform policy and legislation. The situation that Sarah Everard was in (well-lit streets, open area) seemingly goes against what women perceive as dangerous (Unwin Teji & Raynham, 2021) and since this, strategies have been adopted by government to increase feelings of safety (Safer Streets Fund, Project Vigilant; Gov, 2021).   

This caused the Met to apologise as he had previously to the attention of police over nine incidents, including r*pe allegations, between 2000 and 2021. Assistant Commissioner Barbara Gray, the Met's lead for professionalism, said: "We should have spotted his pattern of abusive behaviour and because we didn't, we missed opportunities to remove him from the organisation”, thus questioning the legitimacy of the police. Carrick, would control what the women wore, what they ate, where they slept and even stopped some of the women from speaking to their own children.

He was finally stopped when one woman did decide to report him. In October 2021, following publicity about Metropolitan Police officer PC Wayne Couzens, she contacted police.

The police have been criticised for its macho culture, lack of diversity and command and control ethos. Few outsiders see training in action. Essentially, police train police, and any insight from scholarship and/or research, and even force performance or HMIC inspections, is generally kept at arms’ length from the training school preparations because there is no active mechanism to address these concerns from within. 

Despite similar cases, such as that of the murder of Sarah Everard, calling for a movement towards psychological literature focusing on violence against women and girls (BPS, 2021), it is evident that this is not being acknowledged in the police training process. Additionally, women and girls are urged to take precautions to avoid the increased risk of being sexually assaulted, for example, by ensuring they do not drink too much, yet this still does not prevent all cases, as ultimately the police process when dealing with individuals who have committed a sexual offence, are flawed. Therefore despite the growing psychological literature surrounding violence against women and girls, this remains redundant as it is not being implemented into police practice.