A police officer has acknowledged her failure in duties after being accused of conducting an unjustified strip-search on a 15-year-old Black girl at a school in East London. She admitted that the incident should never have occurred.
The girl, referred to as Child Q, was incorrectly suspected of having cannabis and was compelled to reveal her private areas at her Hackney school in December 2020.
No drugs were discovered, and a subsequent search of her hair conducted by officers yielded similar results.
Trainee Detective Constable Kristina Linge, one of the female officers involved in the strip-search, testified at a gross misconduct hearing that she acted in “good faith” but recognized the distress caused and offered her apologies.
When questioned about whether she would have acted differently had Child Q been white, the 46-year-old Det Con Linge replied, “no.”
Two additional officers, PC Victoria Wray and PC Rafal Szmydynski, face accusations of violating professional standards, having allegedly played a role in the “unjustified,” “disproportionate,” and “demeaning” strip-search.
All three officers deny any wrongdoing.
Despite acknowledging several shortcomings during the incident, Det Con Linge stated to the panel that she endeavored to ensure Child Q felt “as comfortable as possible.”
“I recognized that she was a minor and took precautions to minimize her embarrassment,” she explained.
Having joined the Metropolitan Police in 2018, Det Con Linge was still on probation when the search occurred. During her testimony in southeast London, she noted that Child Q “wanted her mother to be notified or informed about the search,” and that the deputy safeguarding manager of the school acted as the appropriate adult, remaining in the corridor during the incident.
Det Con Linge also indicated that she believed the training provided to police regarding various search procedures was insufficient.
In discussing interactions with school staff following the unsuccessful search for drugs on the student, Det Con Linge mentioned that the head teacher was “adamant that the student had drugs and consented to the search.”
Under cross-examination, Det Con Linge became emotional when questioned about her failure to record the strip-search in the police database until five weeks later.
“I remember starting it but didn’t finish it. I forgot,” she admitted. When asked if she was trying to ignore the issue, she responded, “No. You can’t disregard a significant event; I knew there would be repercussions. It was not intentional.
“Nothing remains hidden in policing. I wouldn’t shift the blame to anyone else for my own errors.”
The hearing is ongoing.
