Two PCs dismissed following misconduct hearing

Two counts of misconduct and one of gross misconduct were found proven against the first officer at the hearing.

The officer was said to have punched a man who had been detained, after a scuffle broke out whilst officers were attempting to search him.

The panel determined this to be gross misconduct, after ruling the punch was not necessary to gain control of the man and that doing so put him at risk of harm, breaching standards in relation to the use of force.

On a separate occasion the officer was involved in the arrest of a man within his home address, which was captured on a body worn camera.

However, when the officer brought the man into custody, they claimed the arrest had been made outside the address, which the panel determined to be misconduct, breaching standards of honesty, integrity, duties and responsibilities.

A further occasion saw the officer leave work to go home without informing or seeking the permission of their supervision – again amounting to misconduct in breach of duties and responsibilities.

The second officer faced two allegations, which the panel determined amounted to two counts of gross misconduct.

The first was that the officer was present when a colleague punched a man being detained, but did not challenge or report that excessive force had been used, breaching standards around challenging and reporting improper conduct.

On a separate occasion, the officer was asked to carry out cell watch on a vulnerable detainee in police custody, but twice fell asleep.

The panel ruled this behaviour put the detainee at risk of harm, falling below the standards expected and breaching standards relating to duties and responsibilities.

Chief Superintendent Judi Heaton, head of Professional Standards Branch, said: “The behaviour of both officers fell below the expected standard here at Humberside Police and therefore their actions were rightfully examined through a misconduct hearing.

“The majority of our workforce are hard-working, dedicated and committed professionals and it is important that those who let down the force are held to account and are not able to further damage the reputation of the force and those who work here.”

Due to welfare and safety concerns relating to one of the accused officers, the hearing was held in private and the officers will not be named. If any person would like the full rationale for the decision to hold the hearing in private, they are asked to make this request by contact to the following email address PSBAdmin@humberside.pnn.police.uk.