WOMEN’S campaigners have hit out after two police officers who touched younger female colleagues during drinking sessions kept their jobs.
Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has pledged to end misogyny in the Met Police in the wake of a series of damning reports following the Wayne Couzens scandal.
Couzens kidnapped, raped and murdered Sarah Everard in March 2021.
In the latest case DC Brett Cooley touched the breasts of a female trainee officer as he grabbed her in a pub, later touching her hip.
He asked another probationary woman about her sex life and said “are you looking at my ****”.
A woman referred to as Officer A told a misconduct hearing he grabbed her from behind under her breasts and armpits and
pulled her up, causing her to say “what the hell, you got my boobs”.
He received a final written warning after a misconduct panel led by an independent legally qualified chair (LQC) concluded some of his actions were misconduct but not sexually motivated.
It comes just weeks after Sergeant Daniel Fletcher kept his job with a demotion after putting his finger down the back of a junior female colleague’s shorts.
The woman, also referred to as Officer A, described it as “a traumatic event, seared on her memory”.
A force misconduct panel also led by an LQC concluded it was “done in jest” rather than sexual.
Women Against Rape, which campaigns for justice for victims of sexual, domestic and racial abuse, suggested misconduct panels downplayed what could be considered sexual assaults and which should have been criminally investigated.
A spokeswoman said: “After all that’s been exposed about police rape, racism and misogyny, and assurances that the Met is getting rid of such officers, it’s unacceptable that women officers are still facing such behaviour from senior officers.
“We demand a change of police priorities so all sexual offenders are sacked and prosecuted, including those who work for the police.”
Former Met officer Alice Vinten, who now campaigns for women’s rights, posted on X: “So, in the Met, you can sexually assault
someone and keep your job. How is this possible?”
DC Cooley admitted touching Officer A on the hip, without consent, at the bar, but an allegation he felt her bottom for sexual purposes was not proven due to lack of evidence.
Colleagues said DC Cooley’s actions were out of character and the panel accepted he was not behaving in a sexualised manner. He said a troubling family matter was on his mind on the evening in May 2022.
A Met Police spokesman said Sir Mark’s views of LQCs leading misconduct panels was clear and he has made changes so misconduct reported after May 7 this year will be heard by panels force seniors oversee, giving him the final say.
A Met spokesperson said: “The Commissioner has been clear on his commitment to drive up standards in the Met and the need for reforms to the current misconduct process to allow us to do this effectively.”