Federation criticises Dorset Police amid misconduct video clip
Dorset Police Federation says the clip chosen will not inform the public
A police federation has criticised Dorset Police for its use of a clip amid an ongoing police misconduct case.
Officers released footage of an officer - PC Lorne Castle - who "behaved aggressively and used unreasonable force" while arresting a 15-year-old boy.
In a statement, Dorset Police said the aim of releasing the video - which followed the incident in Bournemouth town centre on January 27th, 2024 was to counteract "misinformation".
he two-minute clip, 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 Pc 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.
Responding to the clip, the Dorset Police Federation said that they believe the force chose "a carefully selected video clip" to release to the public, which was used as evidence against Castle.
"The reason for the release appears primarily to be an attempt by Dorset Police to manage some of the public criticism the force has received following the decision to dismiss the officer, rather than a genuine desire to properly inform the public," the federation added.
Their statement added that Dorset Police failed to include crucial context such as the fact there had been a brawl in the town centre just two days prior to the attack - an attack which had involved youths with knives.
"Over the last few years, the residents of Bournemouth will have been alarmed by the number of tragic, fatal incidents involving knives and senior commanders in Dorset Police have rightly encouraged officers to be robust in attempting to deal with it," they said.
"But ... our view is that the showing of selective clips of an officer’s Body Worn Video is not a useful or responsible to way to properly inform the public about an incident - and only serves to entice the public into making judgements without having the benefit of all the facts. This is not fair or just."