Police officer who used “foul and abusive” language on night out sacked

A Gwent Police officer has been formally sacked from her job and banned from working with the police again after using “foul and abusive language”, including using the N-word, on a night out.

Molly Parr, 27, was arrested by one of her own colleagues after getting drunk at a colleague’s leaving do in September 2019.

A police misconduct hearing was told how PC Parr was off-duty with colleagues when she began drinking at a bar with other officers.

She was heard shouting and being abusive to a homeless man asking drinkers for money.

The officer is also alleged to have used the “N-word” and “foul and abusive language” on the night out.

She was at a leaving do for colleague PC Jeffrey Smith in the Brewery Quarter in Cardiff, when he realised “things were getting out of hand”.

PC Smith said he remembered hearing Parr use the “N-word” on the night.

The hearing was also told about a recording made on the night where Parr can be heard saying the racist word.

CCTV footage shown to the hearing shows Parr, who is originally from Manchester, and DC Kelly Perry stood chatting outside the Brewhouse bar at around 9pm.

A homeless man with a dog appears and asks drinkers for spare change before approaching Parr.

DC Perry said the homeless man appeared to have a “Birmingham accent” and Parr said “he wasn’t from Wales” and should “go back to where you came from”.

DC Perry said the homeless man then responded by pointing out Parr’s Manchester accent.

The homeless man went to a different table when Parr was heard shouting: “Don’t give him money, don’t give him money”.

DC Perry said she felt “uneasy” and described Parr’s behaviour as “inappropriate”.

She added that Parr had asked her about her behaviour outside and she replied that it wasn’t how she would have acted.

The hearing was told PC Samuel Smith, who was also drinking at the leaving do, later arrested Parr.

He told the hearing that “matters started to deteriorate after around 10pm” and that he “placed himself on duty” to arrest her.

The hearing was told there was a “domestic incident” involving Parr and her partner which was “not pleasant to view”.

PC Smith said: “Parr was threatening violence to her partner and him to her.”

Parr was described as “heavily intoxicated” before she was arrested for breach of the peace.

Presenting officer for Gwent Police Jonathan Walters said: “When you add up all of the actions of that evening it was gross misconduct.”

Federation representative Steve Thorpe said Parr, who did not attend the hearing, accepted her behaviour “fell below what was expected of her.”

The hearing was told Parr later resigned from Gwent Police and does not wish to rejoin any other force.

But she was formally dismissed from the force after she was found to have committed gross misconduct – and was put on the banned list by the College of Policing.

An investigation from Gwent Police’s professional standards department found that the former officer had breached the professional standards behaviour regarding ‘authority, respect and courtesy’, ‘discreditable conduct’ and ‘equality and diversity’.

Amanda Blakeman, Gwent Police’s deputy chief constable, said: “The behaviour of Molly Parr, a former Gwent Police officer, contradicts the high standards we expect of all our staff – whether on or off-duty. If she had not resigned from the force, she would have been dismissed.

“There is no place for this type of behaviour, in particular the aggressive and offensive language used by the former officer, in Gwent Police.

“Even though she is a former officer of this force, it is right that we have continued with these proceedings.

“The purpose of the police misconduct process is not just to hold officers, or former officers as with this case, to account for their actions; it is to maintain public confidence in the police service, uphold high standards, deter misconduct and protect the public.”