Police officer guilty of manslaughter in soccer star’s death

A jury unanimously found Constable Benjamin Monk guilty of manslaughter but cleared him of murder.

Former Aston Villa star Atkinson, 48, died in August 2016 after police were called to his father’s home in Telford, central England. He went into cardiac arrest on the way to a hospital and died around an hour after officers used a Taser to subdue him. Prosecutors said Monk used a stun gun for 33 seconds against Atkinson — more than six times longer than was standard.

Monk, 43, said he had been afraid for his life after Atkinson, who appeared to be having a mental health crisis, made threats and smashed a glass door pane. He claimed he acted in lawful self defense, first using a stun gun eight times and then aiming kicks at the athlete’s shoulder. His boot hit Atkinson at least twice in the head.

The officer was charged after a three-year inquiry and convicted after a six-week trial. Atkinson’s family members criticized the length of time it had taken to bring the case to court, but said they were “hugely relieved that the whole country now knows the truth about how Dalian died.”

“On the night he died, Dalian was vulnerable and unwell and needed medical attention,” the family said in a statement. “He instead received violence, and died with PC Monk’s boot lace prints bruised onto his forehead.”