Police worker sentenced after illegal use of data

A former member of police staff has been sentenced after she used a police computer system to carry out illegal searches on several people, including herself.

Laura Dean, who was based at Bridgwater Police Centre, pleaded guilty to 11 counts of computer misuse at Exeter Magistrates' Court on 12 August.

The 33-year-old, who resigned from Avon and Somerset Police in 2025, was sentenced on Wednesday to six months in prison, suspended for 12 months, and 140 hours of unpaid work.

Ch Insp Jo Hayward-Melen, from the Professional Standards Department, said Dean had "deliberately accessed sensitive personal data of people without a lawful policing purpose".

Dean purposefully used a police computer system, Niche, to carry out the searches.

Hayward-Melen added: "While there is no evidence to suggest she used that information, the public will rightly be appalled that any police employee would act in such a way.

"The fact that has been dealt with by a criminal investigation should reassure the public how seriously we have viewed this matter and it has culminated in Dean being sentenced for her crimes."

Police say none of the searches she made related to victims of crime she had contact with in a professional capacity.

A separate misconduct process has been running alongside the criminal investigation and will continue following Dean's conviction.

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