The killing of a London woman earlier this month and the policing of a vigil to remember her continued to shake the British establishment on Monday, as more details emerged about what happened at the weekend ceremony.
London police chief Cressida Dick was due to meet Prime Minister Boris Johnson and lawmakers later on Monday to discuss ways to protect women from violence in the wake of the murder of Sarah Everard, who first went missing while walking home on March 3.
A woman who attended the Saturday vigil and was pinned to the ground by police officers - seen in an image that went viral online - said on Monday morning that she was only there to light a candle.
Speaking about the incident on British television, Stevenson said she did not understand why she was "pushed to the ground so forcefully" and was "terrified" by her ordeal.
"It happened very quickly and I was only there to lay a candle down, I did not expect that to happen," she said.
A London police officer has been charged with Everard's kidnap and murder.
The vigil, planned by women's rights campaigners, was cancelled by the organizers after London's Metropolitan Police threatened the group with fines and prosecution under legislation restricting social contact due to the coronavirus pandemic.
But hundreds of women and men nevertheless went to pay their respects, which ended in tense exchanges between the police and the attendees.
The Met has since been accused by lawmakers, campaigners and citizens for being too heavy handed.
Dick has refused to step down as police chief despite London Mayor Sadiq Khan describing the force's response as "unacceptable." and calls for her resignation from lawmakers.
