The Met Police Commissioner has said firearms officers are “understandably anxious” after a force marksman was charged with the murder of Chris Kaba.
Mr Kaba, 24, was shot and killed in Streatham Hill, south London, in September last year.
The officer accused of his murder, named only as NX121, appeared in court on Thursday.
Sir Mark Rowley said many officers are “reflecting on the potential price of such weighty responsibilities”.
The commissioner said that after the murder charge, he met with 70 firearms officers who operate across London.
Mr Kaba died from a single gunshot wound to the head after the car he was driving was hemmed in by a police vehicle and an officer opened fire on 5 September 2022.
He was being followed by an unmarked police car with no lights or sirens and turned into a residential street where he was blocked by a marked police car.
A firearms officer fired one shot through the windscreen and hit Mr Kaba.
It later emerged that the Audi that Mr Kaba was driving, which did not belong to him, had been linked by police to a gun incident the day before.
In a statement, Sir Mark said: “Our firearms officers… are not only prepared to confront the armed and dangerous to protect London’s communities but they do so recognising the uniquely intense and lengthy personal accountability they will face for their split-second operational decisions.
“I understand why many of them are reflecting on the potential price of such weighty responsibilities.
“Bravery comes in many forms. When officers have the levels of uncertainty and worry I saw in my colleagues today, simply going in and doing their jobs not knowing what incidents are ahead of them is courageous.”
The officer charged with the murder of Mr Kaba has not been named publicly after an application for anonymity was granted in court.
NX121 was released on bail.
