The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) is doing everything it can to “root out” misogynistic behaviour in the force, Chief Constable Jon Boutcher has said.
The Chief Constable said “we have people that we don’t want” but warned those who display inappropriate behaviour that they would “very quickly lose your job”.
Mr Boutcher updated the Policing Board following the publication of an independent review into the death of showjumper Katie Simpson in 2020.
He revealed that the force receives nearly 60 reports of violence against women and girls every day.
Ms Simpson, 21, from Tynan, Co Armagh, died in Altnagelvin Area Hospital almost a week after an incident in Gortnessy Meadows, Lettershandoney.
Police originally thought she had taken her own life.
It was not until the following year that Jonathan Creswell, the partner of Ms Simpson’s sister, was arrested on suspicion of murder.
The trial of Creswell, 36, for the murder of Ms Simpson ended in April 2024 after he took his own life following the first day of proceedings.
The review led by Dr Jan Melia found that “institutional misogyny” in the PSNI contributed to “clear warning signs” being missed in the original investigation.
Mr Boutcher said Ms Simpson was a “bright, bubbly young woman with a bold sense of humour, a great work ethic and a bright future ahead of her”.
He said: “There were a number of absolutely unacceptable police failings, many have been previously identified, including the failure to refer Creswell to the public protection arrangements in Northern Ireland or have his previous serious offending, easily searched on the police system.”
The Chief Constable said officers “lacked professional curiosity” and “too readily accepted Creswell’s lies”.
He said: “These failings and not investigating concerns raised by a number of people allowed Creswell to avoid being treated as a suspect for some five months, causing further unnecessary pain and trauma to Katie’s family.”
Mr Boutcher added: “Let me be clear, when Katie was admitted to hospital in August of 2020, we absolutely failed her.
“We did not treat her death as suspicious until January of 2021, when the investigation very quickly found compelling evidence to charge Creswell with her murder.
“I previously personally apologised to the family for these failings, and I do so again now.”
The Chief Constable said he had spoken to the entire organisation about standards and behaviours.
He added: “No one, no one should accept inappropriate behaviour.
“The PSNI will deal with such behaviour in the strongest possible terms,
“I will seek criminal sanctions against such behaviour, and we have a zero tolerance for it.
“At the very least, you will quickly lose your job.
“We must remember the overwhelming majority of our workforce are professional with the highest of standards and work tirelessly to keep people safe.
“They will be devastated by this report.”
Mr Boutcher said violence against women and girls is a “major threat to our wider society”.
He said: “Most recent figures show that 22,000 offences were recorded over a 12-month period, that is nearly 60 crimes a day.”
Mr Boutcher added: “As an organisation, we are now very much victim-focused, and we are tackling violence against women and girls as an absolute priority within the organisation.”
Sinn Fein board member Linda Dillon asked what was being done about the “culture of misogyny” in the PSNI.
Mr Boutcher said he had raised with the board previously his concerns about misogyny in the force.
He said: “I have to say most of the organisation will feel deeply wounded and angry about that because they won’t recognise it within their work environment.
“I have met a number of police officers and members of police staff since I arrived and I raised this with a number of people around my concerns when issues were raised with me about racism or sectarianism in policing and wider society.
“My biggest concern from what I saw, and some of that from the initial understanding of what happened in 2020 with regards to Katie was of misogyny.”
He said this was one of the reasons he had commissioned an independent review into PSNI culture around violence against women and girls.
The Chief Constable added: “I know from being in this organisation for two-and-a-half years, and I think the board would accept, that we have a workforce that do an incredible job.
“But we have people that we don’t want and we are doing everything we can to root them out.”
He added: “Where we see these behaviours, we will deal with them.
“Reporting them is the fast track to eliminating them so that we can now deal with those people who in any way demonstrate not just misogyny, but any other hateful behaviours for the organisation because there is no place for them.
“I want to make very, very clear, this has been an area which has caused me concern for some time since I arrived.
“We will not stand for it and we will take every action we need to address it.”
