Sacked police officer says he is seen as ‘abuser' after ‘aggressive' arrest

South Wales Guardian

a day ago

Lorne Castle was dismissed by Dorset Police after an independent disciplinary tribunal found that he had committed gross misconduct in relation to the arrest of the youth in Bournemouth town centre on January 27 2024.
The ex-police constable had admitted misconduct in relation to breaching the standards of professional behaviour relating to authority, respect and courtesy, conduct and use of force but denied gross misconduct.
Following the hearing, a Dorset Police spokesman said that Mr Castle had acted 'inappropriately' as he detained the teenager after receiving reports of two assaults in the seaside town.
The spokesman said: 'Pc Castle was seen to use unnecessary and inappropriate words towards the boy and place both his hands on his throat.
'The panel found that Pc Castle failed to act with self-control, did not treat the boy with courtesy or respect.
'His shouting, swearing, finger pointing, taking hold of the boy's face and throat and suggested use of leg restraints was not necessary, reasonable or proportionate.'
A video clip of the incident, released by the force on Tuesday, shows the officer tackling the boy to the ground before taking hold of the teenager's face and throat while repeatedly swearing and shouting at him.
The boy can be heard shouting and crying 'what have I done' and 'what did I do' before the officer shouts 'stop screaming like a little b****, do you understand that? Shut up'.
The teenager also screams 'my f****** neck, get off me, I don't want you on me', while Mr Castle is on top of him.
The officer later shouts 'stop resisting or I'm gonna smash you, do you understand?' and says the boy is being arrested on suspicion of assault.
Speaking on LBC radio, Mr Castle said that the suspect, who had been wearing a mask, had been 'an unknown risk' and was found to be in possession of a knife during the arrest.
The 46-year-old father-of-three said: 'If I'd have known on those circumstances that he had a knife that would have probably been a firearms incident.
'The real danger is the unknown. We knew he was potentially violent, but we didn't know how violent.
'Now, the risk for any police officer is the moment you go to detain someone, until you know you've got them safely detained.'
He added that it was a 'scary situation' because he was on the ground with the offender with other people nearby.
Mr Castle said he had received thousands of messages of support but felt that people were questioning his nature despite previously having '10 years of exemplary service' and having previously received a bravery award from the Humane Society.
A GoFundMe page set up for Mr Castle by a retired police officer has so far raised £49,616.
He said: 'I've got a phenomenal family and everyone knows that but people are asking that question now 'am I some sort of abuser?' because I attempted to arrest someone who was potentially violent, who resisted and my risk analysis was 100% correct.'
In a statement Dorset Police Federation criticised Dorset Police's decision to release the footage, saying the force had done so 'without also providing context or balance'.
The federation added: 'Our view is that the showing of selective clips of an officer's body worn video is not a useful or responsible way to properly inform the public about an incident – and only serves to entice the public into making judgments without having the benefit of all the facts.
'This is not fair or just. '
Dorset's Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Farrell said: 'We are sharing body worn video to address concerns about misinformation and to reassure the public that, while tackling crime in Dorset, our officers will continue to be proactive and robust – but by using their powers proportionately and with respect.'