Police ombudsman will not face misconduct charges

Marie Anderson was reported for the potential offences of perverting the course of justice and misconduct in public office

Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson will not face any charges arising out of a police investigation which examined potential misconduct.

The decision was announced by the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) after the "careful" consideration of evidence.

The investigation involved a domestic incident at Mrs Anderson's home in Holywood, County Down, two years ago.

The PPS said there was "no reasonable prospect of conviction for any criminal offence".

She was reported for the potential offences of perverting the course of justice and misconduct in public office.

In June, Mrs Anderson announced she was taking "a temporary leave of absence with immediate effect".

She delegated authority to her organisation's chief executive.

Her statement cited "commentary" which was "detracting" from the job.

It also indicated she had decided to retire this December, after being in the £150,000-a-year job since 2019.

Announcing the decision not to bring charges, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Stephen Herron, said it was "a complex and sensitive" case.

As a result of the domestic incident in 2023, a male received a caution for common assault.

'Evidence was insufficient'

Mr Herron said the events of September 2023 that led to this investigation were "undoubtedly difficult".

"The central allegation was that the ombudsman had misconducted herself in public office and/or attempted to pervert the course of justice through her interactions with police who were investigating the incident," he added.

He said prosecutors considered all relevant facts, including the "context in which the interactions took place, records made by police in relation to what was said by her, and the evidence from senior police who spoke directly to the ombudsman during key stages of the relevant events".

Mr Herron continued: "The evidence was insufficient to establish she was either acting or purporting to act as a public officer at the relevant times; or that she misconducted herself or attempted to pervert the course of justice through anything she said or did in response to police enquiries."

In a statement, the ombudsman's office said it had been informed about the PPS decision.

It said Mrs Anderson "remains absent from work and senior staff continue to have delegated authority to continue the work of the office".

The investigation into Mrs Anderson had been conducted by West Midlands Police at the request of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

PSNI deputy chief constable Bobby Singleton said police had a duty to investigate where there are "reasonable grounds" to suspect offences.

"This was an extremely complex and challenging investigation and the difficulties that police encountered have been fully acknowledged by the Public Prosecution Service," he said.

He added that the PPS had noted "the high standard of the investigation".

Mr Singleton said delays in progressing the case "were beyond the control" of the PSNI and the outside investigation team.

The chair of the Police Federation, Liam Kelly, said: "Officers who were involved in this matter acted professionally without fear or favour.

"They behaved impeccably and meticulously in the way they went about what was a difficult incident and subsequent investigation."