Appeal judges throw out human rights challenge to stop and search powers

The Metropolitan Police has been accused by Ann Juliette Roberts of breaching human rights laws by using the controversial powers against a disproportionately high number of black Londoners.

Mrs Roberts, 39, of Upper Edmonton, north London, claimed that the powers allowing “searches without justification” were discriminatory on the grounds of race and incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

She applied for a judicial review but two High Court judges ruled the police had acted lawfully and section 60 of the 1994 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act did not breach human rights.

Lord Justice Maurice Kay, Lady Justice Rafferty and Lady Justice Macur rejected her claim that the High Court was wrong in law.

Mrs Roberts became involved in a row with police in September 2010 after a ticket inspector discovered there were insufficient funds on her Oyster card to pay her fare on a bus.

According to the police, she lied about her details and was uncooperative and behaved in a suspicious manner.

A police officer thought she might be concealing a knife in her bag and she was subjected to a search under section 60. She was arrested after obstructing the search and handcuffed but had to be taken to the ground when she continued to resist.

No weapons were found and Mrs Roberts, who was of good character, received a caution which was later quashed.

The police had been authorised to use section 60 powers, which allow ‘’random’’ searches in the Haringey area because of gangland violence involving weapons.

Mrs Roberts, a black woman with an African-Caribbean heritage, sought declarations that section 60 is incompatible with Articles Five and Eight of the human rights convention, which protect the right to liberty and private life. She also wanted a declaration that the section violates Article 14, which prohibits discrimination on the grounds of race or colour.

Lord Justice Maurice Kay said the scheme of section 60 could not be said to be arbitrary as it permitted the use of stop-and-search powers only for a very limited period of time in a specific locality and that therefore it did not provide an arbitrary power.