Sunday, February 26, 2023
Call for action on widespread misconduct within the police
The Observer reports that roughly one in 100 police officers in England and Wales faced criminal charges, including for sexual offences, last year alone.
The paper's figures are based on the fact that the Police Federation, the staff association for police officers, received 1,387 claims for legal support from members facing criminal charges in 2022. They add that the data also suggested that the number of officers facing criminal charges has skyrocketed by 590% since 2012. That year, just 235 claims were made for Police Federation legal support by its members:
The Police Federation of England and Wales represents around 140,000 former and serving police officers and spends millions of pounds a year in legal fees, which help defend those accused of severe misconduct or even criminality. The organisation is a statutory staff association, meaning all police officers become members by default when they join any force in England and Wales.
One campaign group said the federation was always ready to “defend the indefensible” and was a “major obstacle” to dealing with racism and misogyny in the police.
Last week, it was revealed that a former federation chairman, John Apter, would not face prosecution over two sexual assault allegations made against him. Apter was suspended by the Police Federation and by Hampshire Constabulary in December 2021.
The kind of criminal charges faced by police officers can range from misconduct in a public office and sending grossly offensive messages on a public network to more serious offences including assault, sexual offences and even murder.
The new data comes amid a growing number of cases of serious criminality by officers. Earlier this month, former Met officer David Carrick was jailed for life after he raped, assaulted and inflicted “irretrievable destruction” on at least 12 women.
In 2021, another serving police officer, Wayne Couzens, used his police ID and handcuffs to kidnap, rape and murder 33-year-old Sarah Everard. This month, it was revealed that the police missed clear chances to identify Couzens as a potential sex offender and a danger to women in the days, months and even years leading up to Everard’s murder.Last month, Metropolitan Police chief Sir Mark Rowley said it was “crazy” that he was unable as commissioner to sack “toxic” officers suspected of serious crimes after it was revealed 150 officers were under investigation for sexual misconduct or racism.
The London mayor, Sadiq Khan, has now written to the home secretary asking her to urgently push through new laws allowing police chiefs to sack rogue officers on the spot. Although the Home Office is currently reviewing policing’s dismissal processes following the failure to remove Carrick as a serving officer, Khan is frustrated that existing laws mean that the Met is still being forced to employ officers who have committed serious offences.
Last week, it was revealed that a Met officer caught publicly masturbating twice on a train was still serving after the force could only issue him another written warning.
The Met admitted last month it is investigating 1,000 sexual and domestic abuse claims involving about 800 of its officers. Khan wrote to Suella Braverman on Friday, stating “it is incomprehensible to the public that under current regulations the Met can be required to reinstate serving officers convicted of a criminal offence”. A Home Office source said Khan’s intervention was an attempt to “cover up for years of failure in which as commissioner responsible for the Met police he has done very little”. A review of the police’s disciplinary system has months left to run, but Khan warns “profound changes to police vetting, conduct and misconduct processes are urgently needed”.
The paper's figures are based on the fact that the Police Federation, the staff association for police officers, received 1,387 claims for legal support from members facing criminal charges in 2022. They add that the data also suggested that the number of officers facing criminal charges has skyrocketed by 590% since 2012. That year, just 235 claims were made for Police Federation legal support by its members:
The Police Federation of England and Wales represents around 140,000 former and serving police officers and spends millions of pounds a year in legal fees, which help defend those accused of severe misconduct or even criminality. The organisation is a statutory staff association, meaning all police officers become members by default when they join any force in England and Wales.
One campaign group said the federation was always ready to “defend the indefensible” and was a “major obstacle” to dealing with racism and misogyny in the police.
Last week, it was revealed that a former federation chairman, John Apter, would not face prosecution over two sexual assault allegations made against him. Apter was suspended by the Police Federation and by Hampshire Constabulary in December 2021.
The kind of criminal charges faced by police officers can range from misconduct in a public office and sending grossly offensive messages on a public network to more serious offences including assault, sexual offences and even murder.
The new data comes amid a growing number of cases of serious criminality by officers. Earlier this month, former Met officer David Carrick was jailed for life after he raped, assaulted and inflicted “irretrievable destruction” on at least 12 women.
In 2021, another serving police officer, Wayne Couzens, used his police ID and handcuffs to kidnap, rape and murder 33-year-old Sarah Everard. This month, it was revealed that the police missed clear chances to identify Couzens as a potential sex offender and a danger to women in the days, months and even years leading up to Everard’s murder.Last month, Metropolitan Police chief Sir Mark Rowley said it was “crazy” that he was unable as commissioner to sack “toxic” officers suspected of serious crimes after it was revealed 150 officers were under investigation for sexual misconduct or racism.
The London mayor, Sadiq Khan, has now written to the home secretary asking her to urgently push through new laws allowing police chiefs to sack rogue officers on the spot. Although the Home Office is currently reviewing policing’s dismissal processes following the failure to remove Carrick as a serving officer, Khan is frustrated that existing laws mean that the Met is still being forced to employ officers who have committed serious offences.
Last week, it was revealed that a Met officer caught publicly masturbating twice on a train was still serving after the force could only issue him another written warning.
The Met admitted last month it is investigating 1,000 sexual and domestic abuse claims involving about 800 of its officers. Khan wrote to Suella Braverman on Friday, stating “it is incomprehensible to the public that under current regulations the Met can be required to reinstate serving officers convicted of a criminal offence”. A Home Office source said Khan’s intervention was an attempt to “cover up for years of failure in which as commissioner responsible for the Met police he has done very little”. A review of the police’s disciplinary system has months left to run, but Khan warns “profound changes to police vetting, conduct and misconduct processes are urgently needed”.
Khan, responsible for setting the strategic direction and budget of the Met, writes: “This transformation must be supported by radical reform of the legislative framework to empower police chiefs and give them the tools they need to take fair and effective executive action to remove anyone falling short of the high standards expected by the police, community and the public.”
The Observer investigation also found a sharp rise in the number of misconduct and gross misconduct claims recorded by the Police Federation. The net total related to the two shot up from 418 in 2018 to 598 last year, a 43% rise.
Clearly, there is something wrong when the body that is tasked with enforcing the law has such a high percentage of officers being accused of misconduct and worse. Reform is needed urgently.
The Observer investigation also found a sharp rise in the number of misconduct and gross misconduct claims recorded by the Police Federation. The net total related to the two shot up from 418 in 2018 to 598 last year, a 43% rise.
Clearly, there is something wrong when the body that is tasked with enforcing the law has such a high percentage of officers being accused of misconduct and worse. Reform is needed urgently.
