PC who 'smashed man's head into wall' dismissed

A police officer who swung a drunk prisoner around with such force that he "smashed his head into a wall" in a custody suite at Newquay police station has been dismissed.

PC Michael Ireland claimed that the man, who lost a tooth in the incident in January 2024, had "nutted" the door and "his face connected with the wall", a misconduct hearing was told.

Ireland sprayed another person he arrested in December 2023 with irritant spray and verbally abused him.

He also grabbed a third drunk man by the throat, put his finger in his face, used force on his legs, threatening to "fold him in half in the back of the van" before placing him in leg restraints, the hearing in Exeter heard.

Ireland later said his conduct "went over the top".

All the incidents were recorded by CCTV and bodyworn cameras.

Ireland had transferred to Devon and Cornwall Police in 2022 from Merseyside Police.

He said he used the spray as a "punishment" and in a misconduct interview he apologised for his actions and said he should not have said the things he said to the detainee.

The panel found Ireland was "deliberately dishonest" when he "tried to distort the facts" to conceal his wrongdoing.

It said CCTV evidence showed Ireland's anger and the force he used when he swung the man against the wall.

The panel said his behaviour in the other two incidents was "unnecessary, disproportionate and unreasonable".

It noted "the operational difficulties for officers when dealing with intoxicated, belligerent and - in some cases - passive aggressive persons".

The panel said there was some "provocation" in the first case "by way of language and disrespect" but it did not excuse Ireland's behaviour.

In formally dismissing him, the panel ruled that the public "would not tolerate a police force that accommodated an officer who has behaved" as Ireland had.

"Any lesser outcome would only serve to discredit the credibility of the police service and not deter other officers from acting in similar ways and would undermine the public trust and confidence in the police," the panel said.

Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk.