A North Wales police constable PC who got a final written warning for grabbing a woman colleague’s breasts in a drunken moment at a party twelve years ago has been cleared of gross misconduct.

This week PC Daniel Doughty appealed against the finding of a disciplinary panel last autumn, when he was served with a written warning, and today THU it was announced that it was being set aside.

An appeal hearing at North Wales police headquarters, Colwyn Bay, heard four hours of legal argument on Tuesday.

His QC, Hugh Davies, had claimed : “Police can’t recruit from monasteries.” He said the case was “of some importance” nationally because of the prospect of a complainant raising something non-criminal which involved an officer many years before.

In 2007 PC Doughty was a PCSO and “drunken and immature” behaviour towards a woman colleague happened in a works party at Wetherspoon’s, Llandudno.

The QC said “it was the talk of the Western Division of the force” but supervisors had not considered it worthy of action. It was ten years later that the force’s professional standards department had become involved. The officer was 21 at the time and was now married with three children and his career included extensive community work.

Barrister Mark Ley-Morgan, for North Wales Police, said conduct aspirations in the service should be akin to those covering doctors and lawyers. “It was wrong to suggest that historical conduct cannot be investigated,” he said. “There is a distinction where police officers are involved and it was important to maintain the integrity.” Regulations had to be adhered to in order to maintain public confidence in the police.

At the hearing last year the PC accepted there had been misconduct but not gross misconduct. The panel found there had been no sexual motive “but it was stupid and nasty.” A whistleblower had taken the complaint to the professional standards department.

In evidence PC Doughty, a constable since 2008 who had been based at Bangor and Llangefni, recalled that on the night they’d been ten-pin bowling and he was “merry” after drinking four pints of cider. He said about 20 officers were present and he’d apologised to the woman - who cannot be named. In May 2015 he’d seen her at a party when he was dressed as Mickey Mouse and she was “fine,” he maintained.

The appeal panel’s chairman was Richard Merz and one member was the Chief Constable of Cleveland, Richard Lewis.

In their judgement today they announced : “Following a Misconduct Hearing held on 18 June and 23 October 2018 Police Constable Daniel Doughty was found to have breached the Standard of Professional Behaviour and that this amounted to Gross Misconduct. The breach related to the Professional Standards of Discreditable Conduct.

“Police Constable Doughty was given a final written warning. This decision was subsequently appealed.

“A Police Appeal Tribunal was held on Tuesday, 30 April 2019 at Police Headquarters, Colwyn Bay.

“The Tribunal allowed the appeal because the conduct alleged pre-dated the officer’s appointment as a police constable, there was no criminal conviction resulting from it during his service or at all and it was not therefore a breach of the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2012.

“The finding of Gross Misconduct against PC Doughty is now removed from his record with immediate effect.”