Drink-drive trainee PC admits gross misconduct

James Hayward was arrested after leaving Avon and Somerset force HQ in Portishead

A trainee police officer who drove on the M5 while twice the drink-drive limit has admitted gross misconduct.

James Hayward, 20, was pulled over on the A358 near Taunton, Somerset, on 12 March, the morning after having been drinking the night before.

He was banned from driving for 17 months and fined £316 when he appeared at Exeter Magistrates Court last week.

A police disciplinary hearing found he would have been dismissed from the force had he not already resigned.

Mr Hayward, from Kingston St Mary in Somerset, was barely two months into his training.

He was on a residential training course when he went for a night out and his car keys were only returned to him the following morning.

As he was driving from Avon and Somerset force HQ in Portishead, he was arrested and found to be more than twice the drink-drive limit.

At his misconduct hearing, Mr Hayward said he had been in a "very dark place" and had dealt with his emotions by consuming a large amount of alcohol. 

'Disgusted'

"I continue to be disgusted by my choice to operate a vehicle on that day," he said.

"I can only be thankful nobody was hurt at the hands of an unfit driver in these circumstances."

Ruling that Mr Hayward would have been dismissed without notice, Chief Constable Andy Marsh said road users had been "put in danger by PC Hayward".

"The seriousness is aggravated by the fact a colleague had previously taken PC Hayward's keys from him to stop him driving," he said.

"PC Hayward had time for reflection yet still decided to drive."

He said his conduct was "further aggravated by the fact he drove from a police premises whilst under the influence of alcohol".

"While this conduct was a single occurrence I don't have confidence in PC Hayward's future decision making," he said.