'Toxic police boys' club' left PC losing her hair

A "toxic atmosphere" created by a sexist "boy's club" of three Merseyside Police officers left a female constable so stressed she began losing her hair, a misconduct hearing has heard.

The hearing was told the woman, referred to as Officer H, was called "fat and ugly", told she had "elephant legs" and mockingly asked if she was growing a moustache.

The three officers also sprayed nitrous oxide, known as laughing gas, around a moving police van, while two were described as watching a video of a sobbing colleague who had been attacked "for amusement".

Former PC James Taafe, PC Callum Smith and Sgt Andrew Ditchfield were all found guilty of gross misconduct.

PC Taafe was sacked without notice, while the misconduct panel noted PC Smith and Sgt Ditchfield would have also been dismissed if they had not already resigned.

Merseyside Police said their "outdated and offensive" behaviour went "against everything we strive to be as an organisation".

All three were involved in spraying the cannister of laughing gas, which they had seized from a group in Liverpool City Centre on 12 November 2022 - which left some "probationer" constables in the back of the van "taking evasive action" to avoid inhaling the gas.

The hearing heard how Sgt Ditchfield and PC Smith had watched a body-worn camera footage of a colleague, Officer N, who was crying after being punched in the face and knocked to the floor by a member of the public, with witnesses describing the pair as "ripping into" and mocking Officer N and appearing to find the footage "hilarious".

PC Smith was alleged to have watched a pornographic video in front of female colleagues, which involved the mother of a young man he and his colleagues would regularly stop and search.

He accepted watching the video and said he had viewed it for "ammunition" against the man, who he said was abusive towards the police, rather than any sexual purpose.

One witness, Officer A, described a culture of "banter being taken too far" with "constant and daily" bad behaviour.

Another, Officer B, said: "I don't know why those people think it's acceptable to behave like that and have that type of bullying attitude and openly say negative comments to other people.

"It made for a very awkward and uncomfortable atmosphere."

A misconduct hearing at Merseyside Police HQ in Cazenau Street heard the "team dynamics changed" following the arrival of PC Taafe, who was transferred there in 2022.

Witnesses said PC Smith was drawn towards PC Taafe, who had more than 20 years' experience, and the pair regularly made sexist and misogynistic comments.

They said their supervisor, Sgt Ditchfield, acted like he was also part of the "little boys' club" and would simply "laugh" at their behaviour.

Officer H and another female PC, Officer K, were described as regular targets.

The misconduct panel, chaired by independent solicitor David Tyme, noted that during one shift Officer H had received messages from a female colleague saying: "Yeah it's actually too far it's not on tbh [to be honest], they've really gone at you tonight."

The panel heard that when Officer H tried to challenge their behaviour, PC Taafe would tell her it was "just character building", and that she would face "worse on the streets".

In fact, the panel noted the "clear and unfaltering" evidence that their behaviour caused her stress, anxiety and impacted her confidence.

Det Ch Supt Sabi Kaur, head of Professional Standards at Merseyside Police, said: "We will remain proactive in our commitment to hold to account those whose conduct falls below the high standards we demand."

All three officers are now on the College of Policing barred list, meaning they are prohibited from working in any policing role in future.

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