Officer who threw drunk woman to ground keeps job

A police officer who threw a vulnerable drunken woman to the ground during an arrest has been allowed to keep his job.

PC Ashley Tucker, 33, was found to have committed gross misconduct and given a final written warning which will stay on his file for five years.

The woman's head hit the pavement during the incident in Bristol city centre in the early hours of 16 April 2023, a tribunal panel concluded.

The PC denied breaching behaviour standards but, delivering the panel's decision, chairman Adrian Phillips said: "Tucker's actions were unnecessary, disproportionate and unreasonable."

Mr Tucker had also denied gross misconduct, claiming during the hearing that he took action because the woman, Miss A, had kicked a council bin, shouted and he feared she was a threat to the public.

However, Mr Phillips said: "Miss A wasn't posing a risk to anyone else and this would have been apparent to PC Tucker."

Mr Phillips said Mr Tucker dragged her on the ground while her hands were cuffed behind her back, which was "unnecessary".

It could not be determined if the bruising she suffered to her head was due to the incident or from an earlier fall while intoxicated.

Barrister Mark Ley-Morgan, representing the force, said: "It's more by luck than judgement that what the officer did didn't result in a serious injury."

Mr Ley-Morgan added that members of the public who were watching the incident were "distinctly unimpressed".

"It undermines confidence in the police service," he added.

Barrister Julian King, representing PC Tucker, said the behaviour was "starkly different from his regular behaviour".

The panel agreed that his actions were not premeditated and that he did not intend to cause injury.

Mr Tucker told the panel: "I've worked extremely hard to attain what I have in the police.

"It was not a reflection of my character."

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) also interviewed Mr Tucker under criminal caution for the possible offence of common assault.

However, the Crown Prosecution Service did not bring any criminal charge.

Derrick Campbell, of the IOPC, said: "The evidence clearly showed that PC Tucker's use of force was excessive and his actions were unacceptable."

The tribunal also considered but dismissed a sex discrimination allegation, which was made because Mr Tucker had dealt with two men very differently earlier that evening.

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