Officer cleared of assault after prosecution delay

A police officer has been cleared of assaulting a woman after a judge dismissed the case due to an administrative error.

Sgt David Woods had been accused of knocking a phone out of the alleged victim's hand at a home in Witham in October 2022.

The 44-year-old, of Coggeshall in Essex, was due to stand trial at Ipswich Magistrates' Court on 7 April, but the judge dismissed the case because the statutory time limit for prosecution had passed.

Essex Police said Woods remained suspended from the force and that misconduct proceedings were ongoing.

The alleged incident happened on 23 October 2022, but it was not reported to police until May 2024.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said it did not receive a file for charging until late September that year. The police then revealed Woods had been charged in December 2024.

However, for an assault of this nature, proceedings needed to commence within two years of the alleged offence, and needed to commence within six months of the alleged victim making a statement.

It is unclear why the case was allowed to proceed, but the BBC understands that at court, it emerged an incorrect date had been written on the file for charging.

Ipswich Magistrates' Court said Woods' legal costs would be paid for out of central funds.

In a statement, an Essex Police spokesperson referred to the dismissal as an "administrative issue relating to the time taken for a charge to be authorised".

"He remains suspended and misconduct proceedings are ongoing," they said.

The CPS declined to comment further.

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