[JURIST] The UK High Court on Thursday rejected [judgment text] an appeal [JURIST report] brought by the family of a Brazilian man who was shot and killed by London police [JURIST report] two weeks after the July 2005 London transit bombings [JURIST news archive] when police mistook him for alleged terrorist Hussain Osman [BBC charge summary]. The appeal was brought against a July decision by prosecutors not to bring individual charges [JURIST report] against the police officers involved in the shooting. Lawyers for the family of Jean Charles de Menezes [advocacy website] said the decision by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) [official website] not to prosecute the officers should have been given to a jury. During a hearing in the case, the family's lawyers argued that "the rule of law would be undermined" if there were no charges, but the court ruled that the CPS decision not to prosecute was reasonable. The family has said they will appeal Thursday's decision.

In September, the London Metropolitan Police [official website] pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to criminal charges under the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act [text; backgrounder] for "failing to provide for the health, safety and welfare" of the public in causing the death of de Menezes. A hearing in that case is scheduled for January. BBC News has more.