The result of a Gross Misconduct hearing held at Police Headquarters last week has been published.
Former police constable, Christopher Ryan Hudson, 33, from Huddersfield was the subject of a second misconduct hearing on 12 July 2024.
Mr Hudson was dismissed from North Yorkshire Police in June 2023 following an Accelerated Misconduct Hearing in relation to matters concerning his vetting and his failure to disclose information and comply with vetting requirements.
This latest hearing, which was a Gross Misconduct Hearing, concerned matters relating to his conduct against a woman who cannot be identified for legal reasons.
Mr Hudson was alleged to have breached the Standards of Professional Behaviour in relation to discreditable conduct and authority, respect and courtesy and concerned the harassment of a woman that was unwanted, of a sexual nature, and had the effect of violating the woman’s dignity, and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating and offensive environment for her.
Mr Hudson was in a police patrol van, and started to push the officer with him to have sex, before in appropriately touching the officer. The officer refused all advances and then move away from him.
The hearing determined that former officer 823 Hudson’s actions, amounted to Gross Misconduct and were so serious that had he not ceased to be a member of North Yorkshire Police he would have been dismissed with immediate effect. He will be placed on the College of Policing Barred list.
Deputy Chief Constable Scott Bisset said:
There is absolutely no place in policing for this behaviour. We demand the highest level of integrity from our officers and staff.
Hudson’s conduct has had a devastating impact on the woman involved leading to her giving up a promising career. This type of misconduct is difficult to report under any circumstances but when it involves the very people the public should be able to trust, it adds a further element of concern.
It is essential that the communities we are proud to serve, and our own colleagues, have total trust in us. Mr Hudson has betrayed that public trust and he has betrayed his former colleagues at North Yorkshire Police who are rightly appalled.
Members of the public can be rest-assured that we will take immediate action when such incidents come to light.
Following a criminal investigation, Mr Hudson was previously charged to court with one count of sexual assault in connection with the same allegations. He was found not guilty by jury in 2023.
Although found not guilty at court this does not prevent the commencement of gross misconduct proceedings which are subject to a different legal threshold. In appropriate cases, disciplinary proceedings will be taken against officers even if they have been acquitted in the criminal courts.
