A Lancashire Police officer has been dismissed without notice after sending racist, abusive, and sexual messages to female colleagues. PC Christopher Tierney, 35, used the force's internal directory to obtain contact information for nine officers before contacting them via WhatsApp and Facebook.
A misconduct hearing in Ormskirk found that Tierney had abused his power over junior colleagues, describing his conduct as 'deplorable and disgraceful'. The panel heard that Tierney, most recently a traffic officer, had sent messages containing racial and religious stereotypes, including derogatory emojis and written phrases, to one female officer with whom he had a 'toxic' relationship.
Tierney also behaved inappropriately towards eight other female officers, sending sexual or emotional messages, describing one as 'hot' and another as the 'hottest girl on the team'. He kissed some of them and attempted to start relationships. Tierney joined the force in 2007 and expressed remorse, stating the messages felt like they were written by someone else.
Lancashire Police's lawyer, Matthew Holdcroft, argued that Tierney's behaviour was 'predatory' and that the public would be appalled if he were allowed to return to duty. Panel chairman Karimulla Akbar Khan said Tierney's conduct was a significant deviation from police standards and that there was 'no place in the police for people like him'.
