In the second part of this podcast, Deborah Britstone of 3D Solicitors and John Beggs KC of Serjeants Inn Chambers continue their exploration of the expectations of those in command of armed operations including pre-strike considerations and post-incident imperatives. 

In this first part of a two-part podcast, Deborah Britstone of 3D Solicitors and John Beggs KC of Serjeants Inn Chambers discuss the command of police operations.  In this first episode, they discuss the key considerations in planning and commanding armed operations and the main vulnerabilities of police commanders in any subsequent legal proceedings.

A psychologist, was accused of misconduct having retweeted and commented on social media posts which were critical of or disagreed with the Government's approach the Covid-19 pandemic. In light of this case, Daniel Berke and Mark Harries KC examine when a regulator may go too far in trying to limit the exercise of free speech and beliefs, and when it is appropriate to intervene.

Dijen Basu KC and Daniel Berke discuss how police officers can be more effective as witnesses in court, giving vital tips and insights on how to prepare and present evidence.

Deborah Britstone of 3D Solicitors and Alexander dos Santos of Serjeants Inn Chambers discuss the presentation of expert evidence in police misconduct cases and when it might be appropriate to ask a Panel to consider hearing the expert evidence concurrently, known as 'hot-tubbing'. 

Ashley Boroda www.ashleyboroda.com is an expert in connectivity. He advises police forces and other organisations on how to understand differences in people and their key characteristics to ensure that the right people are in the right roles to ensure the best provision of services and to avoid costly errors. Daniel Berke of 3D Solicitors met with Ashley to discuss his trailblazing ideas.  

Daniel Berke and Aaron Rathmell discuss a Supreme Court Judgement in ZXC v Bloomberg which held that, in general, a person under criminal investigation has, prior to being charged, a reasonable expectation of privacy in respect of information that relates to that specific investigation.

Daniel Berke and James Berry discuss guidance on workplace relationships when relationships should be declared, managing potential conflicts of interest, and the risk of disciplinary proceedings if guidance is not followed.

or Police Conduct – the IOPC - when the complaints engage certain mandatory criteria. Daniel Berke and Cecily White discuss the 2021 case of  R (Rose) v Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police.

Frances McClenaghan and Deborah Britstone discuss the Supreme Court decision in Northern Ireland No 1,2 and 3 and the Human Rights Act 1998. The Supreme Court provided guidance on three key matters: the extent to which the investigative duty under Article 2/3 of the ECHR is engaged in pre-commencement deaths, when new evidence revives the investigative obligation and how the court assesses the independence of investigations.

Introduction: This is an update to Season 4 Episode 1. 

George Thomas and Deborah Britstone discuss updates in R (Miller) v College of Policing [2020] EWHC 225 (Admin), the case concerns tweets, posted by Mr Miller, considered to be offensive to transgender persons. Following police intervention, Mr Miller bought a claim for judicial review claiming the police actions were contrary to his right of freedom of expression at common law and amounted to an unlawful interference under his rights under Article 10.

Can police officers make complaints about officers? Can they raise conduct issues and what protections do they have as whistle-blowers? Daniel Berke of 3D Solicitors and Elliot Gold of Serjeants' Inn Chambers discuss these questions arising from a recent article in the Telegraph.

Deborah Britstone of 3D Solicitors and Joanne Kane of Serjeants Inn Chambers discuss the role of the police in enquiries under Section 47 of the Children Act 1989 and the issues associated with this legislation in the policing context. 

Giving evidence can be intimidating and worrying. Daniel Berke met with Gerry Boyle QC to discuss the circumstances in which police officers may be required to give evidence and to talk through tips and thoughts on how evidence can be given clearly, effectively, and helpfully in courts, inquests, and tribunals.

Honesty and integrity are traits that underpin the professions and the police. Professionals know that acts of dishonesty will almost always result in being barred from their profession by their regulator – this is particularly so within the legal and justice professions. 
Mark Harries QC and solicitor Daniel Berke discuss the case of Claire Matthews, a solicitor who was struck off for an alleged cover-up of loss of documents and the basis for her appeal.

Lauren Maires from 3D Solicitors and Dijen Basu QC discuss the case of a group of police officers who exchanged sexist, degrading, racist, antisemitic, homophobic, and disability-mocking messages while off off-duty in a WhatsApp group chat. They also posted crime scene photographs of their current investigations. No crime was committed in posting those messages and photos. The case came down to the question, was the WhatsApp group chat a private matter for the officers taking part, or could they be subjected to disciplinary action for their messages?

Barrister Elliot Gold met with Lauren Maires of 3D Solicitors to discuss recent High Court cases concerning misconduct proceedings within the Police arising from allegations of discriminatory behaviour.

In this podcast, Deborah Britstone of 3D Solicitors and Hannah Hinton of Serjeants Inn Chambers discuss the recent trial of Benjamin Monk, who was convicted by a jury of the manslaughter of Dalian Atkinson.  The podcast also covers the recent IOPC report on Taser use and the response of the NPCC to that report.

Receiving a letter to say that you may need to give evidence or provide evidence to a statutory public inquiry can be daunting for police officers – even more so if you risk facing criticism. Lawyers Daniel Berke and Alex dos Santos discuss how inquiries operate, the rules for inquiries, what it means to be a core participant and what to do if you receive a Salmon letter.

Daniel Berke and George Thomas discuss the different powers contained in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 to limit or prevent protests that have contained a strong religious or moral element and look at the extent to which courts are prepared to sanction the use of these powers in relation to types of activities that perhaps would not immediately spring to mind when the words ‘anti-social behaviour’ are heard.

Daniel Berke and Aaron Rathmell discuss the principles which should be applied to investigations to avoid breaches of Article 2, the right to life – following the decision of Strasbourg in Tershana v Albania where failure adequately to investigate an acid attack against a woman amounted to a breach of the procedural obligation under Art 2.

Lawyers Daniel Berke and Aaron Rathmell discuss Y v Bulgaria where the European Court of Human Rights set out the minimum requirements for criminal investigations where a person has been subjected to ill-treatment contrary to Article 3.

 If concerns are raised that a person might be vulnerable to radicalisation, how long can a police force hold data about that person? Daniel Berke and barrister Rachael Gourley discuss the decision of The High Court in a recent case which held that the police’s continued retention of data of a sixteen-year-old was contrary to the Data Protection Act 2018 and Article 8. 

Daniel Berke and Dijen Basu QC discuss the case of an arrested person who sought to establish “the liberty of inebriated English subjects to be allowed to lie undisturbed overnight in their own vomit soaked clothing” by claiming the officer breached PACE and her right to privacy.

If a professional person facing disciplinary proceedings disputes the misconduct allegations and continues to do so even after a finding of gross misconduct, can the misconduct hearing conclude that the individual lacks insight and remorse – and impose a higher disciplinary sanction?  Deborah Britstone and Alexander dos Santos discuss a recent GMC case that considered this issue.