Former Police Officer Acquitted of Misconduct Charges Over Inappropriate Photos
A former police officer who took selfies at the location where a teenager was killed has been found not guilty of misconduct in a public office. Ryan Connolly, aged 41, was cleared of all four charges against him after the judge discharged the jury midway through his trial at Manchester Crown Court.
Judge Rules Evidence Insufficient for Conviction
Recorder of Manchester Judge Nicholas Dean KC concluded that the prosecution's evidence could not prove Connolly had committed misconduct. He stated it would be unlawful for the jury to consider verdicts on the charges. Judge Dean told the court, "My conclusion is the Crown cannot demonstrate the serious misconduct here, that the evidence is incapable of demonstrating serious misconduct, so the jury could not reach a conclusion so that Mr Connolly was guilty of misconduct in public office."
Not guilty verdicts were officially recorded on Friday, the fifth day of the trial which began on Monday. Prosecutors now have until Monday to decide whether to appeal against this ruling.
Details of the Inappropriate Photographs
Jurors heard that Connolly, a constable with Merseyside Police, took selfies while deployed to guard a murder scene in Belle Vale, Liverpool, in 2018. This followed the fatal stabbing of 16-year-old Daniel Gee-Jamieson. One photo showed Connolly lying on the grass near the crime scene.
More than 50 photographs were discovered in the sent folder of WhatsApp on his personal phone when he was arrested in February 2020. These images included:
- Pictures of vulnerable people detained at hospitals
- Images of police force systems
- Photos of Connolly's colleagues
- 24 photos of individuals arrested at police stations and hospitals
Some of those photographed were domestic violence victims or people with mental health problems. The prosecution argued Connolly had "wilfully misconducted himself by taking inappropriate photographs where there is no professional need to do so," and then retained and shared them.
Defence Claims and Legal Technicalities
The court heard that Connolly claimed the images were taken for work purposes, but they had not been uploaded to police systems. With the exception of one photo sent to a supervising officer, there was no evidence of who received the pictures, and no accompanying messages were retrieved from his phone.
During the trial, a juror asked why Connolly had taken the photos, questioning "What was he getting out of it?" Judge Dean explained that misconduct in public office is a complex common law offence often involving corruption, such as officers tipping off criminals for money—something not alleged in this case.
Pending Sentencing for Other Offences
Despite this acquittal, Connolly from Huyton, Merseyside, will return to the same court on Monday for sentencing on three counts of possessing extreme pornographic images, to which he previously pleaded guilty. He was formally dismissed from Merseyside Police in 2021, with the force describing his behaviour as "deplorable."
A misconduct hearing revealed other disturbing content on his phone, including racist, homophobic, and disability-mocking images, as well as messages showing he socialised with a known criminal.
