South Yorkshire Police officer allegedly shared policing pictures on WhatsApp along with innappropriate comments

The allegations have been made against Police Constable Owen Davies, who is set to be brought before a panel at a misconduct hearing at South Yorkshire Police’s Professional Standards department next week.

Documents detailing PC Davies’ alleged conduct state: “It is alleged that on a number of occasions the officer used his personal mobile phone to take and retain photographs relating to operational policing matters. On multiple occasions he used a personal device to share photographs relating to operational policing matters via WhatsApp without a legitimate policing purpose for doing so and accompanied in multiple instances by inappropriate comments.”

The documents allege that such conduct, if proven, would amount to breaches of the force’s Standards of Professional Behaviour in respect of ‘confidentiality, authority, respect and courtesy, honesty and integrity and discreditable conduct’.

They also state that the matters PC Davies is accused of amount to breaches of the Standards which are ‘so serious as to justify dismissal and therefore constitute gross misconduct’ – if proven.

South Yorkshire Police’s guidance on misconduct hearings state that they should be heard by a panel of three people that should be chaired by an ‘independent legally qualified person who will be chosen from a pool held by the local policing body, the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC)’.

The other panel members should be an ‘officer of at least the rank of Superintendent and an independent lay person selected from an approved list held by the Office of the PCC’.