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14
Apr
Police officer dismissed for downloading indecent images of children
A North Yorkshire Police officer has been dismissed without notice following a misconduct hearing.
The hearing was held at the force’s Alverton Court headquarters in Northallerton on April 7.
Chief constable Tim Forber decreed the case would be heard in secret, with the press and public not allowed to attend.
Police published a notice of the hearing this month, which said the unnamed officer – referred to only as 'officer A' – faced dismissal if found guilty of breaching the force’s standards of behaviour and ‘discreditable conduct’.
The notice added:
Officer A is alleged to have searched for, downloaded, opened and stored indecent images of children on their home computer.
It is alleged these matters individually and collectively amount to gross misconduct, namely a breach of the standards of professional behaviour that, if proved, is so serious that the officer’s dismissal would be justified.
Redacted judgment
The outcome of the hearing was published today (April 14).
It says gross misconduct was proven and officer A was dismissed without notice.
But almost the entire 12-page document has been redacted and no details of the misconduct have been disclosed.
No other information, including where officer A was based in the county, has been revealed.
The Stray Ferret has approached York and North Yorkshire police, fire and crime commissioner Jo Coles and the College of Policing, which is the professional body for policing, for comment on the decision to redact virtually all the information about the case.
The College of Policing said it would not comment on the matter, as it relates to a specific force.
A spokesperson for the police, fire and crime team at York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority told the Stray Ferret the deputy mayor, who earns £68,670 per year, is "not currently available" and would not able to provide a comment.
Ms Coles' role as police, fire and crime commissioner is to scrutinise the emergency services.
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