Brazilian Jean Charles de Menezes, who was shot dead by anti-terrorism police on the London underground, was entitled to the protection of the law regardless of who he was, jurors were told today.
The 27-year-old was acting no differently to "hundreds of others" when he was gunned down by police, who would benefit from a guilty verdict over his death, not be destroyed by it, the Old Bailey heard.
Clare Montgomery QC, prosecuting, said the "shining example" of bravery many officers showed on July 22nd, 2005, would not be besmirched by a conviction.
The Metropolitan Police is accused of a "catastrophic" series of errors leading up to the death of Mr de Menezes at Stockwell Tube station.
He was shot seven times after being mistaken for suicide bomber Hussain Osman. The Metropolitan Police deny a single charge under health and safety laws.
In her closing speech, Miss Montgomery urged jurors not to be "deflected" by a consideration of Mr de Menezes's character, including the fact he had taken cocaine and the suggestion he may have been an illegal immigrant.
She said: "Whoever he was, wherever he came from, he was entitled to the protection of the law that day. He did nothing to deserve the death that you have heard so vividly described. His conduct that morning was no different from the conduct of hundreds of others, of commuters who come into the city."
The court has heard Mr de Menezes was followed from a block of flats linked to Osman, taking a bus to Brixton Tube station before getting back on it to go to Stockwell when he realised the station was closed for a terror alert.
His behaviour aroused the suspicions of surveillance officers pursuing him, the court has heard.
PA