Police officers joked about death of Paul Hardcastle’s son in crash

A police force has issued an apology after officers were captured on body-worn camera footage making jokes about the death of musician Paul Hardcastle’s son in a road crash.

Paul Jr, aged 35, died on 12 January this year near Ongar, Essex, when his motorcycle collided with a van while he was being pursued by police officers.

In an interview first reported by The Times newspaper, Hardcastle, who topped the charts in 1985 with the hit song 19, said he had taken some comfort knowing the pursuit officer tried her utmost to save his son’s life.

However, he told the outlet he was "just completely stunned" when shown body-worn footage, uncovered by police watchdog the IOPC in June, showing three female constables joking about his son’s death.

The three officers had been dispatched following the crash and were not involved in the chase itself.

One officer laughed while asking colleagues if it was the wrong time to reveal that Paul Jr had previously complained about her failure to properly investigate a road rage incident that left his vehicle with £750 of damage.

A transcript indicates one replied she could “consider that closed”, adding “every cloud”.

The IOPC uncovered the footage during an investigation triggered automatically by the death, which found that officers had behaved properly in the pursuit.

Hardcastle told The Times of the footage: “It was the constant laughing and sniggering.

“There was no respect.

“How do they treat members of the public who are alive if that’s how they treat the dead?”

He said he learned that the three PCs were assigned reflective practice, the lowest form of censure in policing, which he called a “box-ticking exercise that will have no impact on their conduct”.

He is pushing for more serious misconduct proceedings.

Chief Superintendent Scott Egerton of Essex Police said: “I offer an unreserved apology to Mr Hardcastle’s family for the profound distress these remarks have caused.

“The comments were made by officers who were not involved in the initial response or the determined efforts to save Mr Hardcastle’s life, having attended the scene later.

“They should have demonstrated the highest standards of compassion and professionalism.

“Their remarks were needless, insensitive and unacceptable.

“When this matter was brought to our attention, we took action.

“Our Professional Standards Department investigated the matter, and the behaviour was addressed directly with the officers involved.

“I want Mr Hardcastle’s family to know that we recognise the hurt these comments have caused and that they should never have been put in this position.”