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  1. Media Law
November 21, 2011

Guardian amends Duggan headline but defends story

By Andrew Pugh

The Guardian has changed the headline on a story published over the weekend about Mark Duggan, whose fatal shooting by police triggered riots across London in August, after the Met complained to the Press Complaints Commission.

Both the Met and the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) claimed Saturday’s Guardian front-page headline ‘Revealed: man whose shooting triggered riots was not armed” was inaccurate and misleading.

The force said on Saturday that ‘despite making this point in the strongest terms to the newspaper’the story was not amended, though the online version of the article has since been changed to the headline: ‘New questions raised over Duggan shooting”.

While The Guardian changed the headline, it also noted that the IPCC statement did not ‘contradict the substance of our story and we stand by the reporting”.

A spokesperson said: ‘We have amended the online headline as a precautionary measure while we consider their concerns about it and will continue to investigate and report on this vital matter of public interest.”

The Guardian report claimed the investigation into Duggan’s death had found no forensic evidence that he was carrying a non-police-issue gun, while both the Met and the IPCC insisted the sequence of events surrounding his death had not yet been established.

In a statement released on Saturday night the Met said: ‘One of the key elements we will seek to establish is the sequence of events concerning the non-police issue firearm found at the scene. That has not been established yet, contrary to what has been written in the Guardian article today.

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“We would urge people not to rush to judgment until our investigation is complete and they have the opportunity to see and hear the full evidence themselves.”

The IPCC’s statement said: “This is a complex investigation that involves gathering information including witness statements, pathology, forensics and ballistics analysis and we have stated to the coroner that it will be completed within four to six months.

“One of the key elements we will seek to establish is the sequence of events concerning the non-police issue firearm found at the scene. That has not been established yet, contrary to what has been written in the Guardian article today.

“We would urge people not to rush to judgment until our investigation is complete and they have the opportunity to see and hear the full evidence themselves.”

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