Process for firearms officer return to duty after fatal shooting
Jermaine Baker Inquiry · Report into the Death of Jermaine Baker · Issued 5 July 2022 · Addressed to: National Police Chiefs Council
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation, 15.20
There needs to be proper and objective consideration by the NPCC as to whether, and if so when, it is appropriate for a firearms officer to return to active deployment following their part in a fatal shooting. Such consideration must always occur at an appropriately senior level in the organisation and take account of the views of the family of the deceased and all relevant public interest matters. A proper audit trail must be kept of the process.
Jermaine Baker Inquiry, Report into the Death of Jermaine Baker · 5 Jul 2022 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The College of Policing updated APP-AP in August 2023 but the implementation of a family consultation process regarding officer redeployment following fatal shootings was noted as unclear (College of Policing APP-AP update, August 2023).
- The Police Accountability Rapid Review was published in October 2025 by Tim Godwin and Sir Adrian Fulford, directly prompted by the W80/Baker case. The review recommended amending the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020 to apply the criminal law test for use of force in misconduct cases (Police Accountability Rapid Review, Home Office, October 2025).
- No published evidence of a completed NPCC protocol on officer return to active deployment following a fatal shooting, including family consultation, has been identified to March 2026.
Response — verbatim from government
●Metropolitan Police Service — initial response
MPS formally responded on 28 October 2022 (para 38). MPS considers this a national recommendation and did not consider it appropriate to respond at this stage.
Metropolitan Police Service · 28 Oct 2022 Written response →
●National Police Chiefs Council — follow-up
No formal NPCC response published. MPS response (28 October 2022, para 38) noted this is a national recommendation. Requires NPCC to establish process for considering when a firearms officer should return to active deployment following a fatal shooting.
National Police Chiefs Council · 28 Oct 2022 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 23 Oct 2025 Police Accountability Rapid Review published October 2025 (Tim Godwin and Sir Adrian Fulford), directly prompted by the W80/Baker case. Government accepted recommendation to raise use of force test in misconduct cases from civil to criminal standard. Changes to Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020 intended for Spring 2026. W80 misconduct hearing concluded 15 October 2025 with panel finding no case to answer. Source →
- 1 Aug 2023 Status as of College of Policing APP-AP update (August 2023): In Progress Source →
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.