Gross misconduct hearing for officer accused of excessive use of force

An officer will face gross misconduct proceedings over alleged excessive use of force during an arrest. Derbyshire Constabulary Inspector Matthew Mozley was found to have no case to answer following a local investigation into his arrest of Anthony Cook in 2015. Mr Cook, who suffered a fractured collarbone during the arrest, appealed against the outcome in January 2016. He later passed away due to issues unrelated to the incident, but his father made a second appeal in July that year. The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) upheld both appeals and in March 2017 recommended the force hold gross misconduct proceedings. When Derbyshire Constabulary disagreed, it directed the force to hold a hearing, which will begin on Monday (February 5). The IOPC also directed the force to make a referral to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), but the CPS took no further action. An IOPC spokesperson said: “Whether or not Inspector Mozley breached professional standards in relation to his use of force will be a decision for the misconduct panel having considered all of the evidence.”