I can’t imagine being confronted with the body of someone who has jumped to their death: limbs splayed in ways that shouldn’t be possible, clothes shredded by velocity and tarmac, the bloodied remains of a face. The idea is appalling. So I have every sympathy for the police officers who saw just that at the Grenfell Tower fire and are currently seeking damages in the High Court. But while they have my sympathy, I happen to think that their case is bad news for the rest of us.
We seem to be entering a more litigious era, one in which tragedy becomes industry
Thirty-three officers are suing 12 different parties, including the Met police commissioner and Kensington and Chelsea council, for ‘psychiatric injuries’. Over a hundred firefighters have already received a total of £20 million in a similar legal action. Their argument is essentially that the fire should never have happened and that dealing with its consequences was so traumatic that they have been left struggling to work.
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