Police disciplinary cases pause for Christmas, then resume on January 5, with hearings already listed through to March.
Police disciplinary cases pause for Christmas, then resume on January 5, with hearings already listed through to March.
Police misconduct hearings may fall silent over Christmas, but the pipeline is far from empty.
While no hearings are scheduled between December 25 and January 5, disciplinary proceedings are set to resume immediately in the New Year, with cases already listed well into March.
In total, 37 individual officers across 10 police forces are listed to face misconduct hearings, based on hearings currently scheduled and monitored by Misconduct999.
Behind the festive pause, officers remain under investigation. Victims remain waiting. Whistleblowers stay in limbo. And police forces continue preparations to discipline — or defend — officers accused of serious breaches of professional standards.
Sadly, new cases alleging breaches of the Standards of Professional Behaviour will continue to emerge in the months ahead, reflecting a pattern seen year after year across policing in England and Wales.
Each Christmas, public visibility drops. Hearing notices are slow. Updates dry up. Transparency slips behind festive shutdowns and “out of office” replies.
But the alleged conduct does not disappear with the decorations.
Cases scheduled from January onward include allegations spanning dishonesty, abuse of authority, sexual misconduct, misuse of police systems and discreditable conduct matters that strike directly at the heart of public confidence in policing.
Misconduct999 will continue to monitor hearings, outcomes and disciplinary processes into the New Year and beyond, because accountability does not end at Christmas it merely pauses.
