West Midlands Police officer found guilty of assault
Declan Jones, 30, was convicted following a trial at Coventry Magistrates’ Court in June. The verdicts were returned at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court this afternoon.
Last updated 2nd Aug 2021
A West Midlands police officer has been found guilty of two counts of common assault.
The court heard that PC Jones assaulted two members of the public on 20 and 21 April 2020 while on duty and attending to unrelated incidents.
In one incident, PC Jones stopped a male riding a bicycle to search him. However, the officer punched him several times in his torso and held him down onto the bonnet of the police patrol car. The following day he stopped a 15-year-old boy for a search. The officer punched him to the floor and kicked him in the ribs as he lay face down with his hands behind his head.
The incidents were captured on video camera footage played to the court. In each case, the assaults on the victims caused pain and injury.
Declan Jones was a serving police officer at the time. The expectation was that he went about his duties lawfully, protecting members of the public and only using reasonable force when absolutely necessary to do so.
He did not deny delivering the blows but claimed that he had acted lawfully in response to perceived danger, believing that each person may have had access to a concealed weapon. Following a search, neither of the victims was found to be carrying any weapon or, indeed, any prohibited item.
The CPS proved that the defendant's actions were neither necessary nor proportionate. The district judge that heard the case rejected the explanation for his actions and agreed that they were unlawful.
Celia Thorpe of the CPS said: "I do not underestimate the difficult, demanding and sometimes dangerous role of being a police officer patrolling our streets; however, in common with all members of society, police officers are accountable for their actions and are not above the law.
"Today's verdicts demonstrate that the CPS will endeavour to bring cases to court where unlawful force is used and where it is in the public interest to do so.
"I would like to thank and pay tribute to the bravery of the victims who came forward and gave their support to the very thorough investigations carried out by the IOPC, their attendance at court and giving evidence during the criminal trial."
PC Jones will be sentenced on 10 September 2021 at Birmingham Magistrates' Court.