Police leader comments about widow were gross misconduct

John Apter committed gross misconduct, the tribunal found

A former police leader committed gross misconduct by making a sexual comment about a police widow, a tribunal has heard.

John Apter, 55, who was chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, faced a Hampshire Constabulary disciplinary tribunal over the incident with Lissie Harper, who was married to PC Andrew Harper.

PC Harper, from Wallingford in Oxfordshire, was killed while responding to a quad bike theft in Berkshire in 2019.

But Mr Apter was cleared of making a comment about a colleague and of touching a woman's bottom.

Hampshire Constabulary disciplinary tribunal's legally qualified chair Giles Pengelly said of John Apter's conduct: "We find the comment made about Lissie Harper proved and is proved to the level of gross misconduct."

Three teenagers were jailed for PC Harper's manslaughter in 2020. The Thames Valley Police officer died just four weeks after getting married.

Mr Apter was found by the panel, sitting at Hampshire Constabulary's strategic headquarters in Eastleigh, to have said that he would like to "comfort" Mrs Harper in his hotel room, shortly before she collected a posthumous award on behalf of her late husband.

It ruled that Mr Apter had made the comment during a staff "huddle" during preparations for the ceremony at the annual Roads Policing Conference in January 2020.

Mrs Harper was made an MBE in 2022 for her campaign to strengthen the law in his memory, which was known as Harper's Law.

Mr Apter made a sexual remark about Lissie Harper, the widow of PC Andrew Harper

The panel cleared Mr Apter of a second allegation that he said in early 2019 to a pregnant Police Federation colleague: "Maybe you'll get a bum now."

And the panel also cleared him of an allegation that he had touched the bottom of a woman, referred to as Female A, at a restaurant while visiting London for the National Police Bravery Awards in December 2021 before asking her: "Is that okay?"

He denied the three allegations, which followed an investigation ordered by the Independent Office for Police Conduct, and told the tribunal that he "absolutely" had not made the comments.

He said he had only "scratched" the woman's upper back, and added that he found the claims "deeply hurtful".

Mr Apter has previously spoken out against the use of sexist nicknames as part of a canteen culture in the police in 2021, after the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving officer.

He told the hearing that he had "challenged" inappropriate behaviour by police officers and stood by his public comments about misogyny.

'Lewd'

Mr Pengelly told Mr Apter that had he been a serving officer he would have been dismissed without notice.

His name will be automatically added to the College of Policing's list of barred officers for at least five years.

Cecily White, for Hampshire Constabulary, said Mr Apter's comment was "lewd" and "clearly sexually suggestive, demeaning and derogatory about women".

She said because it was made at a policing event "that disconnect between the face that was shown to colleagues internally and the public externally" would be held in low regard by the public.

In his high-profile position, Mr Apter should "deal respectfully with women, particularly in front of other policing colleagues", she explained.

"This is really about the damage to public trust and confidence in policing and the discredit it could bring on the service, and hampering the good work of other officers up and down the country."

'Strong advocate'

Ailsa Williamson, representing Mr Apter, said there had not been any further complaint against Mr Apter in relation towards Mrs Harper.

She claimed he "took a very serious approach to Lissie Harper's needs at the policing event".

She said that after Mrs Harper was informed of the comment, "her observation was that she was surprised" because he "had only been professional and kind to her on the handful of occasions she had met him".

She said he had been a "strong advocate for female rights" and "not someone who has displayed sexual attitudes" and that the lengthy investigation had caused "significant impact on his health" and "damaging effects" on his previously "unblemished" reputation".

The allegations against Mr Apter first emerged at the end of 2021, after which he was suspended from Hampshire Constabulary and his chairman role.

Previously, a criminal inquiry into the claims was dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Mr Apter, who had a 30-year police career, chaired Hampshire Police Federation from 2010 and the national federation from 2018.

That represents more than 130,000 officers from the rank of constable to chief inspector.

Deputy Chief Constable Sam de Reya, of Hampshire Constabulary, said: "What we have heard during this hearing about inappropriate comments and behaviours is deeply troubling.

"It was particularly distressing to hear the details of the comment involving Mrs Harper."

She continued: "Such lewd comments are never acceptable and to speak in that way towards someone who was going through such a traumatic personal loss, and someone who the wider policing family feel so protective of, is beyond comprehension and it is so upsetting that with everything PC Harper's family has been through, they have now had to deal with this.

"The fact this was by someone who publicly represented police officers nationally and was seen as a role model by so many makes this even more damaging for policing.

"There is absolutely no place for this behaviour and we all have a responsibility to call this out so that our communities can have complete trust in us to always act with the highest of standards."

The hearing was adjourned for the panel to consider its sanction against Mr Apter.

The Police Federation of England and Wales said it would not be commenting on the case.

Clarification 17 October 2024: The headline on this article was amended to make clear the comments about Mrs Harper were made about her, as we reported in the top line and not to her directly.