Police misconduct hearing considers allegations of ‘gross misconduct’

A POLICE misconduct hearing has been held this week to consider allegations of gross misconduct against Detective Constable Rebecca Bryant.

The hearing considered matters concerning her failure to declare an association with a crown court juror which led to a subsequent re-trial.

The misconduct panel, chaired by Peter Griffiths QC, have provided the outcome of dismissal without notice.

South Wales Police Assistant Chief Constable Jeremy Vaughan said: “When issues regarding the original trial came to light, the matter was immediately and voluntarily referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct who oversaw an investigation by the South Wales Police Professional Standards Department. A misconduct hearing has now taken place comprising of an independent legally qualified chair, an independent member and a police superintendent who have found that two of the allegations against Detective Constable Rebecca Bryant amounted to gross misconduct and she has been dismissed. DC Bryant’s actions resulted in the convictions of three murderers being overturned which brought immense grief to the family of Lynford Brewster. For this we are truly sorry.

The family showed tremendous courage and dignity throughout the retrial of Dwayne Edgar, Jake Whelan and Robert Lainsbury who were unanimously convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison for a second time. “Our misconduct investigation, which has been subject of independent oversight, did not find any evidence that DC Bryant intended to undermine the criminal justice process. However, her actions have caused great upset to those affected by this case and have undermined the trust and confidence that the communities of South Wales put in the police service. The overwhelming majority of our 5,000 police officers and staff work tirelessly to serve their communities and demonstrate the very highest levels of professional conduct at all times. As this case shows, any complaints or information relating to individual conduct is taken extremely seriously and will always be thoroughly investigated and appropriate action taken against those who fail to meet these standards.”