Police Face Criticism Over Internal Review Clearing Essex Force

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Police have been accused of “marking their own homework” after a review conducted by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) cleared Essex Police of any wrongdoing in their handling of the Allison Pearson hate crime case. Officers visited Pearson, a columnist for *The Telegraph*, at her home on Remembrance Sunday, informing her she was under investigation for allegedly stirring up racial hatred over a social media post she had deleted a year prior. Pearson described the visit as feeling “bullied and harassed,” particularly as it occurred while she was preparing to attend a Poppy Day service.  

 

 

Just four days after the visit, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) dismissed the case, determining there was no realistic prospect of conviction. Pearson has since initiated legal action against Essex Police, denouncing the investigation as “shocking and utterly wrong” and revealing that the ordeal led to suicidal thoughts. Despite her claims, the NPCC review has now declared that Essex Police acted appropriately throughout the case.  

 

Responding to the findings, Pearson expressed her frustration, stating: “I am upset although sadly not surprised by this report. Getting the NPCC to review my case is allowing the police to mark their own homework. It doesn’t matter how nice or courteous the attending officers were. That is a deflection from serious questions like why the case law regarding freedom of expression had not halted the investigation in its tracks and why basic common sense and the proportionality principle were ignored?”

 

She further questioned how the NPCC could suggest that a police visit was not intimidating. “At a time when police won’t attend burglaries and other serious crimes, this was an astonishing waste of time. I am now taking legal action against Essex Police for the harm they caused me with shocking over-reach that, frankly, beggars belief.”  

 

The NPCC report commended the officer who visited Pearson, describing his manner as “polite” and “exemplary.” It also justified the force’s decision to pursue the investigation, despite the CPS’ rapid dismissal of the case. The review stated: “Our collective view is that, given the course of action, it was correct to record the crime but the fact the prosecutor does not believe there to be a realistic prospect of conviction does not negate the legitimacy of the complaint.”  

 

A meeting on November 20 concluded that no crime had been committed, based on the CPS decision. However, the NPCC report took a different stance, stating: “This is a more definitive stance than our interpretation of the CPS decision. We do not take the view that a crime did not take place, rather that there was no realistic prospect of conviction based on the evidence available.”  

 

The case has reignited debates over the recording of non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs) by police. These incidents, which do not meet the threshold for criminality but are perceived as being motivated by prejudice, have drawn criticism for their potential to suppress free speech. Last year, over 13,000 NCHIs were recorded in England and Wales, with critics arguing they distract from more pressing police work.

 

After dropping the criminal investigation into Pearson, Essex Police chose not to record the matter as an NCHI, classifying it as “trivial, irrational or malicious.” However, the NPCC review challenged this decision, stating: “We did not feel the circumstances of this complaint met the criteria for exclusion ... Our view was that if the circumstances are applied (without consideration of the crime) to the authorised professional practice and Home Office code of practice on non-crime hate incidents, we feel that the report would not be deemed to be trivial, irrational or malicious. We think the circumstances meet the requirements of the national standard for incident recording for a non-crime incident.”  

 

Former police officer Harry Miller, who successfully challenged an NCHI issued against him by Humberside Police, criticized the system, stating: “What is the point of recording them? How is it going to help the police prevent an escalation towards criminality which is supposed to be the stated purpose of non-crime hate incidents? This whole report makes no sense. It is time to scrap NCHIs once and for all.”  

 

Lord Young, director of the Free Speech Union, also voiced concerns over the NPCC’s stance. “It’s disappointing that the NPCC thinks Allison’s year-old tweet, which she deleted almost immediately, should have been recorded as a non-crime hate incident. The reason Allison’s case caused such an outcry is because the public doesn’t want the police to be wasting their time investigating and recording ‘non crimes’ when there are so many actual crimes going unpunished. According to the most recent data, Essex Police only solved 13.5 per cent of crimes in 2023. Why are they spending time investigating Allison’s tweets when they should be policing our streets?”  

 

Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the need for reform. “I am extremely surprised by this report. Free speech is at the heart of our society and police should not be harassing journalists. It appears that no crime was committed – the CPS made clear that there was no realistic prospect of any conviction, which there obviously would be if the tweet was criminal,” he said. “Incidents such as this where there is no realistic prospect of imminent criminality should not be investigated or recorded as NCHIs either. That infringes free speech and wastes police time. Police should be investigating real criminals, not policing tweets or Facebook posts online. Further change to the NCHI regime is clearly needed to stop this happening.”

 

Based on a report by The Independent  2025-03-10

 

Related Topics

Female Journalists Rally Around Allison Pearson Amid Fears for Press Freedom

A Police Visit on Remembrance Sunday Reveals the Reality of Our Two-Tier Justice System

UK Police Persist in Patrolling Speech: Have They Learned Nothing?

Allison Pearson My week from hell

 

 

[Andycoops]

Any institution that investigates it's self is guilty of corruption, non accountability, non transparency.

 

Do the Muppets in these organisations think people believe a word they say, if they do they should be sacked and placed into a mental asylum.

 

In the 21C the police are operating in the dark ages and are a laughing stock to making statements like this.

[mikeymike100]

The police investigating the 'police' and clearing them, proves they are a complete joke as are these 'non crime hate incidents'   Either there a crime has been committed or is has not, if its a 'non crime' by definition there is no crime, its not rocket science! Why are they collection information on people who have NOT committed a crime??

[Watawattana]

What a massive waste of time and money.  I don't blame the police though; politicians set the agenda that the senior police officers have to follow.  Well done the CPS for dumping the case so quickly.  I also find it sad that the police are getting sued, seems like an attention-seeking, money-grabbing act.  Best she spends her time campaigning against the stupid wokisim and whichever political party backs it.

[JonnyF]

So basically they can intimidate citizens under non crime hate laws and then when called out, clear themselves.

 

Sounds like North Korea. 

 

Britain heading down fast. I only hope others do not follow.