Police officer is sacked after mocking Katie Price’s disabled son in WhatsApps saying new recruits ‘need to be read to like Harvey Price’
A police officer has been sacked after a disciplinary hearing revealed he had shared offensive WhatsApp messages mocking Katie Price’s disabled son Harvey.
Sergeant Natalie Dolan, who was responsible for training student officers at Greater Manchester Police (GMP), was found guilty of gross misconduct after a four-day trial.
While the panel cleared him of allegations involving racism and sexism, it concluded that his disability-related messages and those of his colleagues crossed the line into professional misconduct.
The hearing focused on an 18-month conversation between Sergeant Dolan and former trainee PC Jones, and the panel, chaired by GMP’s Chief Resource Officer Lee Rawlinson, highlighted two specific messages aimed at disabled people.
Dolan suggested the new hires were so incompetent they ‘must be read to love Harvey Price’.
He used the insult ‘perverts’ and referred to recruits as ‘lickers’; The hearing was told the term was a ‘terrible’ way of making fun of disabled people.
Although Sergeant Dolan’s lawyer, Jennifer Ferrario, claimed the ‘Harvey’ comment was a joke based on a GIF on social media and argued that ‘licker’ was a typo for ‘ar** licker’, the board rejected these defenses.
They decided that the language used ‘mocked disabled people’ and was ‘discriminatory’.
Sergeant Natalie Dolan, responsible for training student officers at Greater Manchester Police (GMP)
The investigation into the 43-year-old sergeant’s digital footprint revealed a pattern of unprofessionalism beyond his disabled comments.
The panel found 23 messages contained ‘derogatory or offensive’ remarks about fellow officers and 4 messages openly mocked the student officers they were assigned to train.
He has also previously referred to Chief Constable Sir Stephen Watson as ‘ar*e’.
Following the verdict, Katie Price condemned the officer’s behavior on social media and highlighted the seriousness of professionals in positions of power targeting vulnerable people.
He said: ‘I will do anything and everything to stop this disgusting behavior from professionals who taunt and say disgusting things about my son.’
Despite Sergeant Dolan’s long career and his defense that he was “appalled” by the quality of modern soldiers, the panel found his behavior indefensible for a serving officer. Reports MEN.
Although the force’s lawyer, Stephen Morley, claimed the messages were also racist and sexist, citing comments about ‘mosque recruitment’, the panel decided there was insufficient evidence to prove these specific accusations on the balance of probabilities.
Findings of disability and gross misconduct resulted in his immediate dismissal from Greater Manchester Police.
Following the verdict, Katie Price condemned the officer’s behavior on social media and highlighted the seriousness of professionals in positions of power targeting vulnerable people.
Dolan claims new hires are so incompetent they ‘must be read to love Harvey Price’
Concluding the hearing, Mr Rawlinson stated that Sergeant Dolan had fundamentally breached the requirements of honesty and equality.
He described his behavior as a ‘serious departure from expected ethical standards’ and stated that his discriminatory language towards disabled people was likely to bring the police force into disrepute.
The panel also found that Dolan failed to object to inappropriate conversations at an early stage and improperly shared confidential information about interns without policing purposes, creating a clear conflict of interest.
Mr Rawlinson confirmed that, taken together, these breaches amounted to gross misconduct.
Attorney Stephen Morley argued that termination was the only appropriate outcome and emphasized that Dolan was part of the team responsible for teaching ethics to new hires.
But defense attorney Jennifer Ferrario noted Dolan’s 25 years of “brilliant” service and his “significant personal mitigation.”
Although his client accepted the findings, he said the ‘Harvey’ comment was intended as a ‘bad joke’ and argued for a final written warning or demotion rather than dismissal.
In addition to his immediate dismissal, Sgt. Dolan was placed on the College of Police’s exclusion list, preventing him from serving in the police force again.
In a statement after the hearing, DS Dave Jones, of the force’s Professional Standards Directorate, said: ‘Police officers are rightly held to the highest standards of professional conduct.
‘The behavior identified in this case was completely unacceptable and does not reflect the many hard-working and committed officers at Greater Manchester Police. GMP is committed to creating a professional, inclusive and respectful work environment.
‘There is no room for discriminatory behavior based on any characteristic in our organization. I hope this result shows that regardless of rank or role, we will take strong action where standards are not met.
‘We are committed to maintaining the highest level of integrity and ensuring that those who serve with us reflect the values we represent.
‘We are determined to ensure that any officer who falls below these standards is held accountable. We are determined to ensure that the necessary measures are taken to maintain public confidence and trust in this situation.’
