Off-duty officer barred after mocking woman on train

Mr Marshall breached the standards of professional behaviour for police officers

A drunk police officer who mocked a lone female passenger throughout a "degrading and humiliating" two-hour train journey has been barred from policing.

Steven Marshall was an off-duty student officer at Avon & Somerset Police when he boarded a first-class carriage from London Paddington on 6 November 2021.

He was found guilty of gross misconduct at a hearing on Tuesday.

"He's wholly unsuitable to hold a role in policing," said Supt Mark Edgington.

The panel at Avon and Somerset Police headquarters in Portishead heard Mr Marshall, who resigned in 2022, did not have a valid ticket and showed his warrant card when challenged by the train manager.

Mr Marshall refused the GWR manager's request to move from the seat he boarded after attending a Chelsea Football match.

He then spent the whole trip poking fun at Ms A, who cannot be named for legal reasons, who was sitting in a single seat across the aisle.

Mr Marshall "mimicked and harassed" Ms A and made "multiple jibes" at her, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Services (LDRS).

'Rude and disrespectful'

The woman said she was left her fearful for her safety during the two-hour journey.

She said that it was only at the end of her journey to Taunton when there were fewer passengers that she felt able to tell PC Marshall: "You have intimidated a lone female passenger for over two hours. You should know better."

She said he apologised but told her it had just been a joke.

The panel decided Mr Marshall, who had been based in Bridgwater, would have been dismissed if he had not already resigned.

Supt Edgington, head of the force's Professional Standards Department, said: "This former officer was rude and disrespectful to both the train manager and his fellow passenger during this prolonged incident.

"Despite being off-duty at the time, he still needed to show the behaviours and values expected of him as a serving member of our police service, which he woefully failed to do on that evening."

He added: "The misuse of his warrant card is a serious matter and that, along with his unpleasant and intimidating behaviour, means he's wholly unsuitable to hold a role in policing or any other law enforcement agency."