Kate Forbes urged to allow Sheku Bayoh inquiry to examine Crown Office decision not to prosecute

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Kate Forbes has been urged to extend the terms of reference of an inquiry into the death of Sheku Bayoh in police custody nine years ago.Aamer Anwar, who represents the victim's family, said the move is necessary so the inquiry can fulfil its purpose.

Dad-of-two Sheku died after he was brutally restrained on the ground by six officers in Kirkcaldy, in 2015, while under the influence of drugs.

CS gas, pepper spray, batons and leg and arm restraints were used during the arrest. The Crown Office decided not to take legal action against the police involved following an investigation.The ongoing public inquiry, before Lord Bracadale, is looking into the circumstances of Bayoh’s death, including whether race was a factor in the actions of the police.Anwar claimed today the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (Pirc) and the Crown Office “failed” to carry out their respective roles in the days following Bayoh’s death.He said the family are waiting for Forbes, the Deputy First Minister, to extend the terms of reference to include how the Crown made its decisions during the prosecution process, and claimed the inquiry is not fit for purpose without being able to do so.The lawyer said: “For over nine years the family have campaigned for the truth and justice, including the setting up of the public inquiry.“It is now clear after two years of evidence that the inquiry cannot complete its task without an extension of the terms of reference.”He said the Bayoh family met with Ms Forbes during the summer, and contacted her on four occasions from September to November to detail their request for the terms of reference to be extended.He told reporters there had been a “fundamental failure” by the Crown Office to understand