Police officer barred for pushing boy against wall

A police officer has been dismissed without notice after he swore at and pushed a teenage detainee against a wall.

Former Wiltshire officer PC Lee Prince was said to have used "excessive and unnecessary" force against a 17-year-old boy on 17 April 2023, according to Wiltshire Police.

A hearing on 27 February found his actions had breached the standards of professional behaviour for police officers of authority, respect and courtesy, use of force, discreditable conduct and duties and responsibilities, and amounted to gross misconduct.

He was dismissed from the force without notice and will also be placed on the national barred list preventing him from working in policing in future, said police.

Deputy Chief Constable Mark Cooper said: "The trust and confidence of our communities depends on our officers and staff displaying the highest standards of professionalism at all times.

"The way PC Prince interacted with a member of our community is completely unacceptable and he has rightly been held to account for his actions."

DCC Cooper said the force continues to "act robustly" on behaviour that falls short of what "communities expect and deserve".

"We will not stop until we root out behaviours such as those displayed by PC Prince from our organisation," he added.

In line with The Police Conduct Regulations 2020, the officer has a period of 10 working days to appeal the outcome.

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