Parents’ ‘unlawful’ arrest over school WhatsApp messages | UK | News
The police force admitted the arrest of two parents over messages in a school WhatsApp group was unlawful and paid the couple £20,000 compensation.
Times Radio producer Maxie Allen, 50, and her partner Rosalind Levine, 46, were arrested on suspicion of harassment and malicious communications following a “trivial” dispute over their children’s school, the Daily Mail reports.
CCTV footage captured the moment six uniformed officers led parents away from their suburban home in front of their crying little daughter in January.
After a five-week investigation, Hertfordshire Constabulary concluded there was no incident and no further action was taken. The force agreed to pay the couple £20,000 despite previously defending its decision.
Hertfordshire Constabulary admitted the legal criteria for arrest were “not specified” and accepted official responsibility for wrongful arrest and detention. But police defended their decision to investigate the couple, citing the number of messages sent by parents to Cowley Primary School.
The arrests sparked controversy across the country
The incident sparked a nationwide debate after the pair were searched and locked in a cell for eight hours after their school reported them to the local police force. Mr Allen told The Times:
“We are delighted that Hertfordshire Constabulary has acknowledged, albeit belatedly, that our arrests were unlawful. I hope the discussion around our case has a positive impact on how these issues are dealt with in the future.
“Police should not be a tool for public authorities to obstruct legitimate interpretation and scrutiny.”
Disputes between parent and school lead to bans and complaints
The arrests followed a months-long series of disputes between parents and the school that resulted in Allen and Levine being banned from the school. In June last year, the school lodged a police complaint with parents over a social media campaign. Cowley Primary School complained again in December over the couple’s ‘persistent’ calls and emails.
However, Allen and Levine maintained that they frequently contacted the school because of their daughter Sascha’s needs because she has epilepsy, is neurodivergent and is registered as disabled.
After the family agency warned the couple about using ‘provocative’ statements online, Levine made a negative comment about the school’s acting principal and head of administrators in a WhatsApp group.
The parents were then warned by a police officer in December to pick up their daughter from school, which they did the following month. A week later they were both arrested by Hertfordshire Constabulary.
Force pays £10,000 per person for ‘illegal’ detention
Police have now paid £10,000 each to the parents for the ‘illegal’ arrest, saying the figure was “significantly above the amount required by case law and reflects the force’s desire to bring matters to a conclusion”.
This was despite the force’s chief constable Andy Prophet previously saying he had ‘lawful reasons’ to detain the parents on January 29. Although the couple were never abusive or threatening, the force’s lawyers said there was ‘reasonable suspicion’ the incident escalated between December and January.
Call to police ‘not to repeat this mistake again’
Bryn Harris, general counsel for the Free Speech League, said police and others across the country should “never repeat this mistake.”
He added: “A good place to start is to recognize that criminal law is not a tool for protecting tender feelings or injured reputations and that officers should not allow this law to be abused in this way.”
A Hertfordshire Constabulary spokesman said: “Whilst there is no issue of officer misconduct in relation to this matter, Hertfordshire Constabulary has accepted liability solely on the basis that the statutory test for the necessity of an arrest in this case was not met. It would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.”
