PCC Statement on the dismissal of a serving Dorset police officer

The final officer involved in the WhatsApp group misconduct hearing has today been dismissed from the Force.

The actions of officers and former officers involved in this group nurtured a vile culture of 'racist, misogynistic and homophobic' behaviour that is both morally and socially unacceptable.

Moreover for police officers to hold and display such views causes real damage to the confidence the public have in Dorset Police and so I am relieved that Inspector Nicolas Mantle together with PC Jordan-Gill were dismissed from the force and no longer have the privilege to serve the public. Further, I welcome the sanctions imposed on the other officers and former officer that were involved in this case.

I welcome the clear leadership shown by the Force in this matter and note that the apology made by the Deputy Chief Constable that the behaviour of these officers let the public of Dorset down.

Alongside the Force leadership, I remain committed to Dorset Police investigating any unethical or unacceptable behaviour within its ranks, and I continue to encourage members of the public to report any experiences of wrongdoing, or a falling in standards by officers to Dorset Police. On that point, I would like to say a personal thank you to those who were brave enough to report these officers, so that formal action could be taken against them - it takes courage to stand up and call out your work colleagues, and I applaud the actions of those who did just that.

The police must be held up to the light of public scrutiny and I am particularly pleased to note that this hearings were witnessed by members of public who were able to see first-hand how robustly and professionally such matters are dealt with. Independent, democratic scrutiny in local policing is vital, that is after all the role of every Police and Crime Commissioner across the country and I vow to continue to keep holding the police to account on your behalf.

I would like to expand a little on how that scrutiny takes place here in Dorset. The scrutiny of Force governance and strategy is done through my scrutiny panels and Dorset Police has a well-established governance framework, encompassing an examination of areas such as performance, legitimacy, disproportionality, and equality, diversity, and inclusion – which are attended by my office. Over the last few months, my team have identified areas for further improvements to be made in respect of Dorset Police’s consideration of these important areas, and as a consequence I have raised these concerns to the Chief Constable and sought a remedy.

My office has worked closely with senior officers within the Force to address the concerns and Dorset Police has altered its governance structure, and produced a Governance Handbook, something with did not previously exist. I mention this process, not to suggest in any way that the previous governance of Dorset Police was lacking, but to demonstrate how my office and I add value and hold the Force to account for improving services.

It is important for you, our residents and communities to know that work is happening in addition to this scrutiny as part of business as usual and to that end, I issued a PCC Challenge on vetting to seek reassurance that this was robust for both new recruits and for transferees. I was assured by the response provided by the Chief Constable, albeit we both agreed to remain vigilant and that I advocated for sufficient monitoring of Force ICT systems – both desktop and handheld devices – and I am pleased to report that the required software is now in place, is being fully utilised and that there are clear routes to follow up any resulting intelligence.

I have also recently agreed to enhance the role my team and I play in scrutinising the use of police powers within Dorset, and as a next step I will be further considering opportunities to enhance the role we play in the complaints system. This includes the review and appeal function, dip-sampling of complaints, and liaison with the IOPC.

Finally, with regard to preventing such cases arising again, I have spoken with the Professional Standards department and I acknowledge their honest assessment of the situation in that, no one person or body can promise such an outcome. Whilst the Chief Constable and I will do everything we can to minimise the opportunity of similar cases arising in the future – that fact remains that they will, in every Force, in every public body, in every organisation and institution, because human beings are flawed and because we all have biases and prejudices – which ultimately makes reporting such behaviour, acting swiftly upon it and dealing with it robustly, all the more important.

 

David Sidwick

Police and Crime Commissioner