A serving Metropolitan Police detective who was raped by convicted former officer David Carrick has publicly called for Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to resign, describing Scotland Yard’s legal handling of her civil case as "like being raped all over again." Detective Constable Linda Williams spoke out after settling a four-year damages claim against the force, which paid compensation without admitting liability. Williams, who waived her legal right to anonymity, accused police leadership of failing to overhaul the force's culture and challenging the severity of her psychological trauma during legal proceedings.
Williams, now 60 and a 27-year veteran of the Met, was attacked in 2004 by Carrick while assigned to a three-month attachment with him in south London, miles away from her standard duty station. Carrick was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2023 for a catalogue of sexual offences committed against Williams and 11 other women, using his police position as a mechanism for coercion and control. Williams, who previously served as a specialized rape investigation officer in the early 2000s, suffered post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a direct result of the assault and the subsequent actions of the police force.
Recalling the night of the attack, Williams explained that Carrick had suggested she stay at his residence to avoid driving a long distance late at night before an early morning shift. When she refused his offer, Carrick stated, "It's what I do. I'm going to carry on." Fearing that resisting physically would trigger extreme violence, Williams endured the assault and subsequently kept the ordeal hidden for years. She noted the painful irony of her professional role at the time, stating that while she regularly supported sexual assault victims through criminal investigations, she felt completely unable to report her own attack.
Williams stated that reporting the rape in 2004 would have effectively ended her police career due to the prevailing culture within the Metropolitan Police. She believed Carrick would have been interviewed without further action, asking herself, "Then I'd be the officer that alleges rape, and who's going to want to work with me?" Describing a deeply ingrained misogynistic environment, Williams recalled specific instances of abuse within the force, including having her forehead stamped with the words "Property of the Met" and being forcibly locked inside the boot of a police car for an entire shift.
Williams eventually brought the allegation forward to Hertfordshire Police after viewing media coverage revealing that Carrick had been formally charged with raping another woman. Hertfordshire detectives subsequently investigated her case, ultimately leading to Carrick's conviction. However, the emotional and psychological toll on Williams remained immense. She described leading an isolated life focused strictly on her work and pets, having avoided romantic relationships with men since the day of the attack and forfeiting the opportunity to start a family. Feeling immense guilt for not coming forward earlier, Williams remarked that she still feels incapable of being in a relationship.
Seeking financial damages, Williams initiated a civil claim against the Metropolitan Police on the grounds that the force failed to protect her from a known predator and created a culture that prevented her from reporting the crime. The resulting legal battle endured for four years and left her feeling suicidal. During the proceedings, legal representatives acting for the Met Commissioner contested the severity of her PTSD diagnosis, arguing in court documents that her psychological harm was limited because the abuse was confined to a single episode and had not significantly impaired her daily functioning over a 15-year period.
Williams expressed deep distress over the force's courtroom strategy, stating she was brought to tears and felt labeled as a liar when defense lawyers cited her exemplary service record as proof that she exhibited no signs of psychological injury. "I don't know how many times you have to be raped to have severe PTSD," Williams remarked, criticizing the Met's legal team for failing to comprehend how trauma manifests in survivors. Her solicitor, Sophie Bullimore of Penningtons Manches Cooper, echoed this concern, emphasizing that reducing a life-altering trauma down to a single isolated event on paper demonstrated a lack of sensitivity and needed to be handled with significantly greater care.
Assessing the impact of her experience, Williams stated that her PTSD is "90% down to the Met Police, 10% to Carrick," attributing the majority of her ongoing distress to the force's institutional response and legal maneuvers. Feeling controlled by the department during the civil case, Williams personally emailed Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, asking why he had not reached out directly to one of his own serving officers. Although Rowley subsequently met with her and offered an apology, Williams deemed the gesture insincere and lacking detail, stating that it "meant nothing" and demonstrated a fundamental lack of empathy from top management.
In an extraordinary public stance for an active officer, Williams asserted that Rowley is unfit to lead the UK's largest police force and should resign immediately. While acknowledging that her immediate colleagues have been consistently supportive, she argued that senior leadership lacks the commitment to protect victims. Williams reached out to journalists after viewing a report detailing ongoing misogyny and racism within Scotland Yard, concluding that despite high-profile promises of reform, the force has failed to make meaningful progress in supporting victims of sexual violence and domestic abuse. She stated her desire to protect future victims, whether officers, staff, or members of the public, adding, "We can turn it around, but I don't think Mark Rowley can turn it around."
Sir Mark Rowley assumed control of the Metropolitan Police in 2022 following a series of severe institutional crises, including the murder of Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens and the sharing of unauthorized crime scene photographs of murdered sisters Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman. Rowley pledged to root out corrupt personnel, later issuing an apology following Carrick's conviction in early 2023 and acknowledging institutional failures. His commitments coincided with the landmark 2023 report by Baroness Casey, which formally characterized the Met as an institutionally misogynistic "boys' club." Responding to Williams' public statements, a Metropolitan Police spokesperson stated that the force recognizes the unique impact on her as a serving officer, commended her continued public service, and confirmed that Rowley has requested a second in-person meeting to discuss her concerns further.
Afterwards, Linda says she "never told a soul".
"We've not moved on enough in the police to really give victims of domestic violence, sexual offences any [of the] support they really need."
