The first person to be prosecuted as part of the investigation into payments by journalists to officials has been sentenced to 15 months in prison. Det Ch Insp April Casburn, 53, from Essex, was convicted last month of misconduct in public office. She had called the News of the World, offering to sell information to the paper, after the inquiry into hacking by the tabloid reopened in 2010. The sentencing judge called it "a corrupt attempt to make money".
This sad case completely undermines the police-public relationship based on trust, which is required to police our streets effectively in my opinion. >
We need to have faith in the police when they end public appeals for help with, “All information will be treated in the strictest confidence.”
It’s all about public perception - unfortunately, one rotten apple can infect the whole barrel.
