Sarah Everard's murder by a police officer demands major societal change – Scotsman comment
After Couzens was sentenced to a whole-life term in prison, John Apter, of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “This vile individual’s abuse of [police] authority has cast a shadow on all those who work within policing. He has brought disgrace to our uniform. The way he took advantage of Sarah’s trust makes me feel sick to the stomach.”
Amid calls for her to resign, Metropolitan Police commissioner Cressida Dick admitted trust in the force had been “shaken” and “a precious bond of trust” damaged, promising she would ensure “any lessons” were learned.
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Hide AdCouzens was known to watch violent pornography and was nicknamed “The Rapist” while working at the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, reportedly because he made female officers feel uncomfortable. He has also been linked to three allegations of indecent exposure, one in Dover in 2015, and two in London this year, with claims Kent Police and the Met failed to investigate.
Dick now needs to show she is capable of ensuring that any such allegations against police officers are always fully investigated and that misogynistic attitudes among her force are driven out. As should all chief constables across the country. Those unable to bring their forces into the 21st century should resign or be sacked and replaced by more capable officers.
However, as others have pointed out, this is much more than simply a police problem but one for society as a whole.
The rise of the utterly foul 'Incel’ culture among young men who express outright hatred of women may seem like a relatively new one to some, but it has fed off attitudes that have persisted among some for decades.
As Sandy Brindley, of Rape Crisis Scotland, points out, we create the culture in which we live and we can change it.
Fostering a society in which the violent and controlling behaviour exhibited by far too many men is held to be abhorrent – rather than joked about – should now be given the priority it always deserved. It is, quite literally, a matter of life and death.