Britain - Officer Cleared in Protest Death - NYTimes.com A British police officer was cleared of manslaughter on Thursday over the death of a newspaper vendor during the Group of 20 demonstrations in 2009. The officer, Simon Harwood, had said he used reasonable force when he hit the vendor, Ian Tomlinson, 47, with a baton and shoved him to the ground as Mr. Tomlinson tried to find his way out of a cordon put up to contain protests in central London. Mr. Tomlinson collapsed and died moments later. Police Constable Harwood cried in the dock at Southwark Crown Court in London after the verdict was read. Mr. Tomlinson's family was also in tears, saying in an emotional statement outside the courthouse that the verdict "really hurts" and that they will pursue civil action. Britain's police watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission, said the officer would face internal disciplinary proceedings from the Metropolitan Police later this year.