Britain announces inquiry into ‘systemic failures’ by police following Sarah Everard murder

The case shocked the nation and has deeply dented public confidence in police.

Priti Patel, Britain’s home secretary, told annual Conservative Party conference on Tuesday that “the public have a right to know what systematic failures enabled his continued employment as a police officer.”

Couzens, who worked for the London Metropolitan Police, has also been linked to a WhatsApp group with five police officers that allegedly shared misogynistic and racist material. He was also connected with incidents of alleged indecent exposure, including one that occurred at a London McDonald’s three days before Everard’s abduction.

“I can confirm today there will be an inquiry, to give the independent oversight needed, to ensure something like this can never happen again,” Patel told the conference. “Her murderer, whose name I will not repeat, was a monster. His explicit intention was to instill fear and terror in women and girls.

“I say this as home secretary, but also as a woman — such unconscionable crimes and acts of violence against women and girls have no place in our society.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson told BBC on Tuesday that the anger over the murder was a symptom of a “wider frustration that people feel.”

When asked about the calls for misogyny to be made a hate crime, Johnson said that it would be better to enforce the existing laws.

The number of prosecutions and convictions of rape in Britain are at record lows.

According to the BBC, the inquiry will first examine Couzens’ behavior in the lead up to the murder and then address police issues such as vetting procedures and workplace conduct.