The officer, who worked for Cambridgeshire Police, faced a misconduct hearingA former Cambridgeshire Police officer faced a misconduct hearing (stock image)(Image: Brian A Jackson / Getty Images)A Cambridgeshire Police officer sent an image of a child who was a victim of “very serious abuse and neglect” to a colleague, a misconduct hearing heard. Police Constable (PC) Amadae Dowd, who joined the Cambridgeshire Police force in 2016, faced a misconduct hearing accused of breaching the standards of professional behaviour.These alleged standard breaches relate to integrity, confidentiality and discreditable conduct. The officer was accused of wrongly disclosing confidential information during her role as a police officer.On February 10, 2021, the officer was assigned to ensure the safety of a 13-year-old child who had been the victim of “very serious abuse and neglect and was extremely vulnerable”, according to the panel.The child was in hospital and the officer was sent to sit with them. The officer was aware of the extent of the abuse, including that the child had been locked in an address for months with no food and had been beaten up and injured, according to the panel. The child’s face was badly burnt.PC Dowd allegedly sent an image of the child via WhatsApp to a colleague. It was a cropped picture of an evidential photograph.The officer was accused of sending a second image showing an adult female whose face had been badly burned in an acid attack. According to the allegations, the officer knew it was wrong to do so and told the recipient ‘Obvs delete.’The two photographs she sent to her sergeant via WhatsApp were obtained from the file relating to the two victims. The officer had used her personal phone to take the pictures from the file and then sent them. She claimed it was her way of more accurately describing the injuries than using words.In another incident, on April 14, 2021, PC Dowd was at hospital with a 17-year-old child. According to the hearing outcome, it was believed that the child had packed drugs in their anus.The child has been described as “vulnerable” and the officer was monitoring the child. PC Dowd was allegedly asked, ‘Have you killed him?’ The officer was accused of sending a picture of the child sitting on the edge of a bed and doubled up in a group chat with a message saying, ‘Maybe?!’The officer told the panel the youth was very difficult to deal with. She claimed that the messaging and sharing of the photograph was a form of ‘decompression’ and the officers involved used dark humour as a ‘pressure valve.’PC Dowds told the panel how her team were encouraged by her sergeant to utilise WhatsApp as a medium of communication for her team members for ‘work matters’ and this was apparently an accepted practice within the force at the time of the events.The panel found that the officer, and others involved in the conversation, showed a complete lack of respect towards the youth. Her counsel described the officer’s actions as “ill judged and thoughtless”, failing to appreciate the seriousness of her actions. The panel determined that, given her experience, such a failure was inexcusable.The panel determined that the allegations against PC Dowd did breach the standards of professional behaviour. The panel found that the breaches amounted to gross misconduct. In conclusion, PC Dowd received a final written warning for three years.
Officer sent image of child who was victim to ‘very serious abuse’ to colleague
