Stephen Lawrence: murder sparked a 'sea change' on racism, says Jack Straw He said was "delighted" to have played his part in the hunt for justice but paid tribute to the perseverance of the Lawrence family in their fight for justice. Mr Straw ordered the inquiry after the collapse of a private prosecution by the Lawrence family and after a coroners court concluded the teenager's death amounted to "unlawful killing." The report found there was "unwitting, unintentional and unconscious" racism throughout the Metropolitan Police and triggered wide-ranging reforms of the way the force policed ethnic minority communities.