PC failed to act after man seen 'covered in blood'

A police officer's failure to investigate a report of a man covered in blood was "inexplicable", a misconduct hearing has found.

The panel at Lincolnshire Police headquarters found that PC Gayle Newton, 50, had failed to be diligent in her duties, to prioritise the welfare of the victim – who was later found to have been stabbed – and to treat a member of the public with respect on 3 April 2023.

It amounted to gross misconduct and Ms Newton would have been dismissed had she not already resigned, the panel concluded.

Acting on Ms Newton's behalf, Det Con David Haddock, of the Police Federation, said she accepted "her inaction fell below the standards expected".

Ms Newton, who did not attend the hearing, was based at Gainsborough Police Station.

Liz Briggs, counsel for Lincolnshire Police, told the panel that, on the day of the incident, Ms Newton was at a Tesco superstore on Trinity Street when she was approached by a member of the public who reported seeing an injured man nearby.

The witness later said she had "never seen someone covered in so much blood" and "he looked close to death"

Ms Briggs said Ms Newton told the witness she "would sort it", but failed to take any further details, make notes or ask where the injured man was walking to.

The panel was told that Ms Newton drove for three minutes in a "cursory effort" to find him and failed to contact colleagues, before driving eight miles to Blyton. There was no explanation for this as she was not attending an incident.

Ms Briggs said Ms Newton "chose to sit out of the way so not to be involved in this investigation".

A short time later, East Midlands Ambulance Service notified police that the man had been taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries after being stabbed.

Ms Newton returned to her police station, but did not share her knowledge with colleagues.

In defence of the former officer, Det Con Haddock said: "Why she did this is a mystery.

"She has been unable to account [for] why she did what she did, partly due to her poor recollection of the day."

Ms Newton had served with Lincolnshire Police for 20 years, regretted her actions and was "sorry for the disrepute" she had brought upon the force and herself.

The hearing was told that the ex-officer had strained working relationships with colleagues, which caused her to feel "anxious".

Assistant Chief Constable Chris Davison, who chaired the panel, described Ms Newton's failure to immediately respond to the witness report as "inexplicable".

There had been a risk to the victim and potentially to members of the public.

He said the public expected police officers "to act to protect life" and the panel was confident Ms Newton failed to act.

Ms Newton, who served her last day with the force on Tuesday, can appeal.

The force said no one was charged in connection with the stabbing and the victim made a full recovery.

Additional reporting by Jamie Waller, Local Democracy Reporting Service.

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