West Midlands Police officer Sunil Narr cleared of Coventry assault

A police officer accused of hitting a man over the head with a baton after a high-speed pursuit has been cleared of assault.

PC Sunil Narr, of West Midlands Police, denied assault occasioning bodily harm over the blow to Joshua Ward in Hillfields, Coventry in August 2017.

The jury at Birmingham Crown Court accepted he was aiming at Mr Ward's shoulder and accidentally hit his head.

Mr Ward told the court he could not remember driving at 90mph.

He was pulled over on Lower Ford Street in the Hillfields area on 1 August after driving through the city at speeds of more than 90mph (145km/h).

Giving evidence during the trial, Mr Ward denied trying to get away from police and telling ambulance staff he would "make police pay" after he was struck.

He also claimed Mr Narr, 32, had made a phone call to inform a sergeant he had fallen over and grazed his head.

Mr Narr, who said he feared being run over by Mr Ward when he acted, told jurors: "I am fully aware that the force I use against others has to be necessary, proportionate and justifiable.

"At no point did I believe a strike to the head was proportionate or necessary.

"I absolutely did not aim for his head."

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, on Twitter, and sign up for local news updates direct to your phone.