Judge rules that PCs charged after Dalian Atkinson death inquiry can be named

A judge has lifted an anonymity order protecting the identities of two police constables charged after a three-year inquiry into the death of ex-footballer Dalian Atkinson.

West Mercia Police Constable Benjamin Monk was charged with the former Aston Villa striker’s murder last week, while his colleague PC Mary Ellen Bettley-Smith was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Both officers appeared in court last week without being asked to give their personal details, and were granted an interim Contempt of Court Act order banning publication of their names after it was argued there were risks to their safety.