A police officer who rammed an escaped cow with a force vehicle will return to frontline duties despite thousands of complaints.
Surrey Police confirmed on Friday that an investigation had found the tactic was “both lawful and necessary”, clearing the officer of wrongdoing.
The force was heavily criticised when footage posted online showed a 10-month-old calf being rammed by a police car after midnight on 15 June following reports of an animal on the loose in Staines-upon-Thames.
The 10-month-old calf, Beau Lucy, who was loose in a residential street before a police car was seen knocking her along the tarmac (PA Media)
The video, which went viral on social media, appears to show a member of the public running away. The animal, named Beau Lucy, can be seen loose in a residential street before a marked 4×4 police vehicle knocked her along the tarmac and then drove into her again, pinning her down – to the shock of residents watching on.
Surrey Police said there had previously been reports of the cow running at people and damaging cars across the town that night.
They said Beau Lucy suffered a large cut to her leg in the incident – although in the update issued on Friday, reported that she is now well and remains at the farm with her herd.
Later in June, Deputy Chief Constable Nev Kemp said officers had received more than 20,000 messages on social media and 2,000 complaints from the public, “highlighting the strength of feeling about this case”.
The animal, named Beau Lucy, can be seen loose in a residential street in the footage (Kai Bennetts/PA Wire)
On Friday, the force said the incident had been thoroughly investigated as both a criminal and internal misconduct matter – led by the professional standards department and overseen by a senior investigating officer (SIO) – and had now concluded.
The force said the investigation reviewed over 250 pieces of video footage, 75 witness statements and obtained the expert opinions of animal welfare specialists to determine if the actions of those involved amounted to the offence of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.
“The SIO has now completed their investigation and determined that while footage of the incident was distressing in nature, those involved in the incident acted within their duties, and the tactics adopted were both lawful and necessary to prevent harm to the public and property,” the force said.
“As such, no further action will be taken in either the criminal investigation, or the internal misconduct matter.”
Then-home secretary James Cleverly was among those who questioned the police officers’ actions at the time (PA Wire)
DCC Kemp said the force appreciated the strength of feeling in relation to the incident, adding: “After investigating for five months, the SIO found that while there is necessary organisational learning in relation to how we handle loose livestock, no criminal offences were made out and therefore no further action should be taken against those who were involved.
“This determination was supported by the head of professional standards for Surrey Police who subsequently reviewed whether there was any potential misconduct.
“They determined a need for individual learning, but that no further action is taken in relation to misconduct. The driver of the vehicle will return to frontline duties in due course.”
Mr Kemp said the incident had highlighted several issues in relation to how the police responded to a loose-livestock incident and said they wanted to do what they could to reduce the possibility of an event such as this happening again.
“We have reviewed the recommendations made by the SIO and experts in this area, and will be working to address these promptly, sharing any best practice with forces across the UK,” he said.
Then-home secretary James Cleverly was among those who questioned the police officers’ actions at the time, posting X: “I can think of no reasonable need for this action. I’ve asked for a full, urgent explanation for this. It appears to be unnecessarily heavy-handed.”