A review concluded that Metropolitan Police officers got away with breaching the law and engaging in misconduct. The force’s commissioner is outraged by the results and apologizes to officers and members of the public who were “let down.”
The commissioner of Scotland Yard wishes to dismiss hundreds of officers and employees who, according to him, have committed crimes and acted unethically.
According to research, the Metropolitan Police’s internal misconduct system is inefficient, and too many repeat offenders are permitted to retain their positions.
One cop faced eleven disciplinary hearings for sexual harassment, violence, fraud, and other offenses. Some charges were proven, while others were dismissed, but each was handled separately; he was not fired and is still employed by the Metropolitan Police Department.
Sir Mark Rowley remarked, “We’ve slacked down a bit, removing less than one every week, perhaps 40 or 50 per year. According to this assessment, which states unequivocally that we have been far too lenient, I must eliminate hundreds of employees.
“Some of them are unethical and do not deserve to be police officers or to wear uniforms. In many circumstances, some of their actions are criminal.”
More than 500 employees were involved in three to five disciplinary cases, and 41 employees were involved in six or more disciplinary cases, according to the report.
The commissioner stated that present police regulations made it impossible to dismiss certain individuals he was compelled to retain. The Home Office vowed to review the guidelines and hinted that new legislation could be introduced.
Baroness Louise Casey, the author of the study, stated that the Met’s misconduct procedure was excessively slow, with cases taking an average of 400 days to resolve. In addition, she regarded it as racist and sexist.
“The data surrounding racial imbalance in the Metropolitan Police’s misconduct system is so overwhelming and disturbing that, even in 2021, 81% of black employees and officers are more likely to be in the misconduct system than their white counterparts is shocking,” she added.
The internal misbehavior system is an illustration of what I would term institutional racism.
She claimed that a law that made it easier to fire probationers were not being applied properly, as black officers were 126% more likely than white recruits to be subject to Regulation 13. Asian cops were 123 percent more likely to be dismissed than white officers.
Dame Louise was asked earlier this year by Sir Mark’s predecessor Dame Cressida Dick to review the Met’s culture and standards of conduct following a series of scandals: the murder of marketing executive Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens, the photographing of the bodies of two murdered sisters, and the exchange of racist and misogynistic text messages by officers at Charing Cross police station.
This preliminary assessment examined the force’s misbehavior system, as it was deemed the most pressing aspect of her charge.
She stated that too many concerns from coworkers regarding other coworkers were being ignored, leaving staff with the impression that “nothing occurs.” Sexual misconduct allegations were less likely to be investigated than other allegations.
In an official letter to Sir Mark, Dame Louise stated, “The misconduct system is not performing as you, I, your officials, or the public would expect.”
In his response, Sir Mark stated, “The evidence is clear: the disproportionate manner in which black and Asian officers and personnel have been treated demonstrates patterns of intolerable prejudice that constitute systematic bias.”
“It is unacceptable that charges of racism, sexual misconduct, and misogyny have a lower likelihood of being upheld. Moreover, the Met’s systems and procedures do not support the desired results.
“You uncover the horrific experiences of those inside our ranks who have endured bigotry and hatred at the hands of coworkers, only to compound their anguish with a lackluster response from the organization. This cannot persist.
“I apologize to those we have let down, including the general public and our sincere and devoted officers. The public deserves a better Met, and so do our dedicated employees who try every day to improve the lives of Londoners.”
The system attempted to grant them the benefit of the doubt.
Dal Babu, a former chief superintendent of the Metropolitan Police, stated, “in some respects, I’m not surprised” by the findings.
He told, “In my experience, the system tries to give difficult persons the benefit of the doubt when interacting with them.
According to what we’ve heard today, there are numerous officers in the organization that does not belong there.
He noted that what concerns him “more than anything else” is the “difficult” of implementing the recommendations, as this is “the most recent of hundreds of police-related recommendations we’ve received.”
The full review by Dame Louise is anticipated to be published in the New Year.
