Topic: Ian Tomlinson

Ian Tomlinson (1961/62 – 1 April 2009) was a British newspaper vendor who died in the City of London, London's financial district, during the 2009 G-20 London summit protests on his way home from work. A first postmortem indicated that he had suffered a heart attack because of coronary artery disease, and had died of natural causes.

His death became controversial a week later when The Guardian obtained video footage, taken by an investment fund manager from New York, showing that Tomlinson, who was not a protester, had been struck on the leg from behind by a police officer wielding a baton, then pushed to the ground by the same officer. The footage showed no provocation on Tomlinson's part, who at the time was walking along with his hands in his pockets.

After The Guardian published the video, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) began a criminal inquiry from which the police were removed. A second postmortem, ordered by the IPCC and Tomlinson's family, indicated that Tomlinson had died from an abdominal haemorrhage, the cause of which remains unknown. The officer in question has been interviewed on suspicion of manslaughter. A third postmortem was conducted at the request of his defence team, the results of which have not been released.