Officer in Go Green Taxi crash to face gross misconduct hearinghttp://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/166922 ... t-hearing/A POLICE officer involved in a horrific crash which left a South Oxfordshire taxi driver in hospital will face a ‘gross misconduct’ hearing, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has said.Provisional findings from an IOPC investigation suggest that the officer ‘may have a case to answer over the manner of his driving’.
Go Green Taxis say their driver Neil Chalmers remains in hospital some eight months after the crash on the A4130 near Wallingford, which involved one other car.
Full details about Mr Chalmers’ condition remain unknown, but he underwent 10 hours of surgery and was in a ‘serious’ condition after the collision on January 2.
The driver of the police car – who is expected to be identified at a public hearing – and another officer were also seriously injured in the crash, but have since returned to work.
South Central Ambulance Service sent six vehicles to the scene in Crowmarsh Hill, where one other driver was treated for minor injuries.
The IOPC – formerly known as the Independent Police Complaints Commission – launched a mandatory investigation following the incident, and this week said Thames Valley Police ‘agreed’ with its conclusions so far.
A spokesman for the organisation said: “A police officer driving a marked car which was involved in a crash in Wallingford, Oxfordshire, will face a gross misconduct hearing following an IOPC investigation.
“The police car was responding to an emergency at about 11.40am January 2, 2018, when it collided with a taxi and then a second car on the A4130, Crowmarsh Hill."
Police were responding to an emergency call when the crash occurred.
The spokesman continued: “We completed our investigation in June and concluded that the officer may have a case to answer over the manner of his driving.
“TVP agreed with our conclusion and will schedule a gross misconduct hearing.”
The police force would not comment on the case and did not say when the hearing would take place.
Go Green Taxis declined to comment further, but previously released a statement which read: “We have been in constant contact with Neil and his family during this difficult time.
“He would like to say thank you for the outpouring of love that he has received, please be assured that we will pass on any messages of goodwill.
“We wish all that were involved in this accident a speedy recovery and thoughts are with the families during this tough time.”
The full report – which is expected to be in the region of the 30 pages long – will be published after the hearing, the IOPC said.
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