West Mercia Police chief apologises to LGBT+ community for 'any historic misuse' of laws
West Mercia Police's chief constable has issued a formal apology to the LGBT+ community for harm caused by historic laws.
The apology comes after the 'Apologise Now' campaign from the Peter Tatchell Foundation, which has called on police forces to acknowledge 'past homophobic witch-hunts and discriminatory law enforcement'.
In a letter to Mr Tatchell, Chief Constable Murray expressed regret for the harm caused by the way the police enforced historic anti-LGBT+ laws.
He wrote: “On behalf of West Mercia Police, I want to apologise for any historic misuse of the legislation and the detrimental impact this would have had on people’s lives and to their confidence in the police service.”
Murray is the ninth UK police chief to apologise, following similar apologies by the heads of the Metropolitan, City of London, Sussex, South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Avon & Somerset, Cambridgeshire and Nottinghamshire forces.
The 'Apologise Now' campaign was backed by comedian and TV presenter Paul O’Grady before his death last year.
Responding to the appeal, Chief Constable Murray said: "Attitudes and practices across our force are very different now and a huge amount of work has been done over the decades to improve the trust and confidence our LGBTQ+ communities have in West Mercia Police.
"This has also helped us to become a workforce that is more representative of the communities we serve than ever before.
"We are particularly proud of our positive day-to-day community engagement as well as at Pride events across the three counties and with specific groups, such as SAND in Shropshire and Telford.
"We have delivered learning packages to our workforce and our communities on the importance of tackling hate crime. Through this and our engagement we have seen an increase in reporting and in prosecutions for hate crime.
"We are working with our officers and staff to ensure that everyone feels empowered to challenge any discriminatory behaviour."
Mr Tatchell expressed thanks for Chief Constable Murray’s apology.
He said: “My immense gratitude to Alex Murray for his forthright apology to the LGBT+ community on behalf of West Mercia police. He has not only said sorry but backed it up with positive, proactive action to engage with the LGBT+ community to better serve and protect them.
“Some people in power find it hard to say sorry for past wrongs. Alex Murray didn’t hesitate or evade the need for a clear apology. That marks him out as a commendable police chief. We thank him and his officers.
“This apology does the West Mercia Police proud and will win much appreciation and praise from the LGBT+ community. It will go a long way towards securing a more constructive, collaborative relationship between West Mercia Police and LGBT+ people – further building trust and cooperation.
"It is a commendable continuation of the great work the police have been doing in recent years. I hope it will inspire more LGBTs to report hate crime, domestic abuse and sexual assaults."
The Peter Tatchell Foundation said it continues to urge every Chief Constable in the UK to apologise for historic homophobic persecution.
