Following Carrick’s sentencing, Wiltshire Police Chief Constable reaffirms the force’s commitment to rooting out misconduct.
Wiltshire Police Chief Constable Kier Pritchard has reaffirmed the Force’s total commitment to rooting out misconduct following the sentencing of David Carrick, who admitted a string of sexual offences against women – including 24 counts of rape – while working as a police officer.
The vile actions of Carrick have, rightly, prompted extensive public discussions about how women and girls in our communities can trust the police service and have confidence they will be protected by those who are supposed to protect them,” he said.
“This comes at a time when the service is already attempting to rebuild public trust following the murder of Sarah Everard by then-serving officer Wayne Couzens.
“Policing is now at a tipping point, with the public questioning why we should be trusted to keep them safe.
“The actions of the minority who abuse their positions for their own gratification fundamentally go against everything that we believe in, and our primary role in keeping people safe.
Such cases also deeply undermine the work of the vast majority of my officers, staff and volunteers who are highly committed public servants working tirelessly and bravely to keep the public safe.
We are not immune to such toxically damaging cases here in Wiltshire and we, like all other Forces, must now hold the mirror up to ourselves and ensure we root out those who so badly betray the trust the public should have in us.
We currently have 13 ongoing gross misconduct investigations against officers and staff which are all subject to ongoing enquiries within our Professional Standards Department. Four of these are being investigated criminally.
“I would like our communities to know that we will continue to root out those individuals who abuse the position of trust they are in. Such individuals have no place in policing, and we will relentlessly pursue those who do not uphold the oath and values that we, as public servants, live by.
His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) recently made 43 recommendations to Forces focused on improving standards of vetting and misconduct investigations. We have already worked through these recommendations and completed two formal reviews to ensure that we are confident in the effectiveness of our processes and practises.
“We are pleased to say that, as a result of this work, the majority of the recommendations were already in place and, of the eight that were not, there is now a clear plan in place to ensure they are adopted soon.
“In addition to this work, we are also working on a detailed, independent review of our vetting practises which will include cross-reference checks on all police officers, staff and volunteers on the nationally held database.
“I am absolutely committed to identifying those who seek to undermine the trust we place in them to keep the public safe.”
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