Police officer dismissed after driving at speed under blue lights without good reason

An officer who admitted dangerous driving while on duty has been dismissed without notice.

PC 1592 Ryan Lee was returning to Worksop Police Station around 11.05pm on 26 April 2023 when he activated the blue lights on his vehicle – despite having no operational reason to do so. 

The response officer travelled at speeds that significantly exceeded the limit and at one point clocked around 101mph on the A614, where the limit was 50mph. 

Footage captured by a dash-mounted video camera also showed PC Lee overtaking vehicles on the A617 after crossing solid white line road markings.  

The officer then struck a wild animal – believed to be a hare – at high speed on the A614, which also damaged his police car in the process. 

PC Lee would go on to plead guilty to a charge of dangerous driving when he appeared at Sheffield Magistrates' Court on 27 February 2024.

He is next due to appear at Sheffield Crown Court for sentencing on 26 March 2024.

Ahead of this, an accelerated misconduct hearing took place at Nottinghamshire Police’s Sherwood Lodge Headquarters on Friday (15 March 2024), which was chaired by Chief Constable Kate Meynell.

At the hearing, PC Lee admitted his behaviour amounted to gross misconduct and expressed remorse for his "loss of judgement", while apologising for "letting down members of the public". 

CC Meynell agreed that the officer’s conduct amounted to gross misconduct and PC Lee was dismissed without notice.

Superintendent Kathryn Craner, head of Nottinghamshire Police’s Professional Standards Directorate, said: “It is completely unacceptable that PC Lee drove a police car dangerously and significantly above legal speed limits.

“He also activated the vehicle’s blue lights, when he had no operational reason to do so.

"As a police officer, he should have known the danger his actions posed to other road users.

“His actions fell well below the standards expected of him by Nottinghamshire Police and this accelerated gross misconduct hearing has now seen him dismissed from the Force.”