A former police officer from Sussex, identified only as Officer X, has had gross misconduct allegations proven against him at a disciplinary hearing. The officer was accused of domestic abuse towards two women and would have been dismissed without notice had he not already resigned. The hearing was held at Sussex Police Headquarters in Lewes and was led by an Independent Legally Qualified Chair. The former officer was granted anonymity by the LQC after making legal representations before the hearing.
During the hearing, it was heard that Officer X, while off-duty, committed violent, abusive, coercive and/or controlling behavior towards two former partners, referred to as female A and female B. As a result, he was alleged to have breached standards of professional behavior in respect of Authority, Respect and Courtesy, Equality and Diversity, and Discreditable Conduct. The breaches were proven by the misconduct panel and it was determined that this amounted to gross misconduct.
Supt Petra Lazar, Deputy Head of Professional Standards, said that while the case did not meet the threshold for criminal charges, it was important to persist with misconduct proceedings. She added, “Police-perpetrated violence will absolutely not be tolerated and we will continue to use all the resources and powers at our disposal to prevent, detect and deal with it robustly.”
The matter was criminally investigated, and advice was sought from the Crown Prosecution Service. However, it was considered that the case did not meet the evidential threshold to prove the offenses beyond all reasonable doubt.
Sussex Police expect their officers to act with the utmost integrity and in accordance with the Code of Ethics and the Standards of Professional Behavior. They have invested in a comprehensive program of cultural change towards challenging, reporting and tackling unethical or unprofessional behavior. “Criminal behavior, misconduct, and misogyny have no place in Sussex Police,” Supt Lazar said. “The actions of this officer in this case fell far short of the standards we expect, which is reflected in the findings by the panel.”
