PC keeps job despite theft finding
A DERBYSHIRE police officer will not be dismissed from her job despite it being found that she stole items from a sexual assault referral centre intended only for victims.
Instead, a Derbyshire Constabulary misconduct panel decided Constable 14539 Joanna Brown will receive a final written warning.
Geoffrey Payne, chair of the misconduct panel, said: “Any case of dishonesty is serious. PC Brown’s conduct involved personal gain, albeit limited, from facilities meant for victims of crime, who, at the time of using those facilities would very often have suffered significant trauma. The public and other police officers rightly expect much higher standards than that.
“All of that said, the panel is satisfied that the public and other officers would not overlook the fact that this was a single, unrepeated and one-off incident, that is now genuinely regretted, where the gain was of limited value, and which took place against a background of significant mental health difficulties. Nor can the fact of these proceedings and the strong condemnation of the dishonesty found therein be overlooked.
“Therefore, whereas dismissal without notice is very frequently, and rightly, the outcome in cases of dishonesty, the particular circumstances of this case allow for an alternative and exceptional course to be taken.
“The panel is satisfied that a final written warning will suffice to meet the purposes of the misconduct regime and that is what will be imposed in the case of PC Brown.”
The misconduct panel had found PC Brown’s actions were justifiable for dismissal after she unlawfully took a care bag containing a number
of Boots healthcare and beauty products from the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) while on night duty on February 23 this year.
The care bags were donated to the centre by the retail chain to give to victims of a sexual assault or rape.
The centre is run by charity Supporting Victims of Sexual Violence (SV2), who help people in exceptionally traumatic circumstances.
It was found PC Brown’s actions breached the standards of professional behaviour for honesty and integrity and discreditable conduct, contrary to the Police (Conduct)
Regulations 2020 and her actions amounted to theft from a charity. It was also found her actions would undermine trust and public confidence in PC Brown as a police officer and Derbyshire Constabulary.
The four-day hearing, which has been held virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic, heard the offence took place in the early hours of February 23, 2020, while PC Brown was working a night shift and was taking a victim to the SARC alongside another police officer.
On Monday, the hearing was told how fellow police officer Chloe Collins, who was working with PC Brown on the night shift, swore at her when she realised a care bag was hidden near the back seats of the police van.
PC Collins then reported what had happened to the sergeant later on in the shift, which prompted a formal investigation.
Giving evidence on Tuesday, PC Brown accepted she took the care bag but felt she had been given a “green light” to take it by her colleague, PC Bec Smith. However she also accepted that she knew PC Bec Smith was not “the owner” of the care bags.
PC Brown said: “I believe I said ‘would I be able to have one?’ and her response was ‘It’s not a problem with me’. To me that was her saying it was okay. I believe that was the green light.”
PC Brown also revealed how she was going through a difficult time during the SARC incident citing previous traumatic incidents which left her feeling low and taking antidepressants for clinical depression.
The incidents included when she arrested an aggressive man just weeks earlier who later spat in her eye during a hospital visit, told her his partner was suffering from hepatitis and said he hoped she would get it as well. This left PC Brown worried for her health.
PC Brown also revealed how she was also deeply affected by the news her younger sister had suffered brain damage following surgery for cancer and was having nightmares after seeing a baby with severe injuries from a dog attack in Long Eaton while on duty just two weeks before the SARC incident.
Dr Steffan Davies, of Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, said the incidents were having an affect on her mental state while at work.
It was also alleged PC Brown stole a lip balm from the centre as well, but the misconduct panel stated this offence did not amount to her acting dishonestly and did not warrant dismissal.
A Derbyshire police spokesman commented on the hearing and said: “The independent panel, led by a legally qualified chair, heard all the evidence and mitigation presented to them during this gross misconduct hearing and found that issuing the constable with a final written warning was the most appropriate sanction in this case.”