Met police officer not guilty of causing death by careless driving

A Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officer has been cleared by a jury of causing death by careless driving, after an incident in East London.

The trial of Police Constable (PC) Daniel Bowen, aged 29, based at Stratford Police Station, followed an Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigation into the circumstances of a road traffic incident in East Ham in July 2020.

A police van collided with 83-year-old Peter Dawe and sadly he died later in hospital.

On the morning of 15 July 2020, a police carrier van carrying nine police officers and driven by PC Bowen collided with Mr Dawe at the junction of High Street North and Ron Leighton Way.

Mr Dawe, who was crossing the road on a traffic light controlled pedestrian crossing, fell after being hit by the off-side wing mirror of the police vehicle.

Sadly, he died on 3 August in the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel.

We found evidence PC Bowen was holding a police radio while at the traffic lights and did not see Mr Dawe.

Our investigation was completed within six months and we provided a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which then made the decision to charge PC Bowen.

We found he had a case to answer for gross misconduct for breaching police professional standards for conduct.

• On 28 July 2023, following a misconduct hearing organised by the MPS, the case against PC Bowen was not proven.