case. Little came of that. An inquest in 1997 concluded that Stephen Lawrence was the victim of a racist murder at the hands of five white youths - although the five suspects refused to testify on the grounds that it would incriminate them. They continued to go free, living their lives in our community.

The then Home Secretary, Jack Straw, ordered an inquiry into the case in 1997, and this became known as The Macpherson Report. Eventually delivered in 1999, it detailed extensive failings on the part of the Metropolitan Police Service - from the moment officers arrived at the scene of the crime, to their conduct and competence throughout the investigation. These determinations had a catastrophic effect on relations between the local police force and the community that had been shaken by these events.

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