Trainee PC who touched colleague's leg is barred from job

A trainee police officer has been barred from the force after she put her hand on a colleague's leg before asking him 'do you think I'm fit?'.

Brogan Canning repeatedly told her senior colleague 'you know you want to' as she also attempted to lunge in for a kiss.

A misconduct hearing, held virtually, heard how Canning had targeted her former tutor on a drunken night out, leaving the officer feeling 'anger and embarrassment'.

North Yorkshire Police ruled that she would have been sacked if she had not already quit.

One witness, Nathan Mills, described watching her 'stroking the hand' of the male officer, who later told Mills that she'd actually been stroking his leg.

Another, PC Megan Smith, recalled Canning 'acting oddly throughout the night' before she put her in a taxi home.

The male officer immediately told PC Smith about what happened, and in his evidence, told the hearing that he 'had expected more professional behaviour' from Canning, who quit the force after an investigation was launched.

While Canning suggested there may have been 'some inconsistencies' in the witness statements, the panel ruled her actions equated to gross misconduct. 

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In her written statement, the mother described her antics as 'out-of-character'.

'Notwithstanding her lack of memory, the officer did not dispute the allegations,' states a report.

'She had been good friends with (the male officer) previously and did not provide any reason to doubt his honesty or assertions.

'She had drunk a significant amount of alcohol, which had impaired her judgment on the night and her subsequent recollection of events.

'She was remorseful from the outset and has extended her personal apologies to him.'

Trainee police constables are considered police officers from day one and receive on-the-job training.

The virtual hearing considered four allegations that Canning had attempted to kiss PC A, grabbed him by the back of the neck, pulled his head towards hers, touched his upper thigh or groin area, and repeatedly told him 'you know you want to' before asking: 'Do you think I'm fit?'

The panel, which assessed the case on written evidence only after both sides agreed that no witnesses were required, found statements from PC A and colleagues PC Nathan Mills, PC Megan Smith and PS Ryan Lyth to be credible.

'An unwanted sexual approach towards PC A amounts to victimising and offensive behaviour and therefore, is a breach of the standard,' the misconduct panel added.

'This matter concerns multiple breaches of the standards and clearly could have an impact on public confidence in policing and the reputation of the police service,' said assistant chief officer (ACO) Sarah Jackson, who chaired the virtual hearing.

'We therefore have concluded that the most appropriate outcome is a finding that the officer would have been dismissed had they still been a member of the police force and that this sanction does fulfil the purpose of the misconduct regime.

'We do note that before these matters, the former officer was of good character and did show remorse for their actions; however, this record would not allow us to impose a lesser outcome, given the serious nature of our findings.'

The ruling also means Canning is placed on the police barred list, preventing her from serving with a UK police force again.

It comes after another trainee police officer was  banned for life for passing information to her drug dealer boyfriend. 

Ex-West Yorkshire Police officer Maryam Ilyas, 20, accessed the force's computers to find confidential data and inform her criminal boyfriend about an operation into him.

It was found that Ms Ilyas had used police computer systems to search for details about the man on three occasions between March and May 2025.

Ms Ilyas resigned ahead of her disciplinary hearing yesterday, but the panel ruled that she would have otherwise been fired.

Her links to the man were identified when he was arrested in June, with officers finding messages between the pair, including pictures of money and chats about drugs.

The hearing was told that Ms Ilyas failed to notify the force of her relationship with the man when she was recruited in June 2024, and in January, she told investigators she was 'unaware of his criminal history'.

Catherine Hankinson, the force's former deputy chief constable, ruled that messages indicated an 'existing relationship' up to July 2025. 

She said the officer's conduct had been 'repeated', 'sustained' and 'intentional'. 

Ms Ilyas admitted the allegations, including failing to declare the relationship on her vetting form and was found to have committed gross misconduct. 

Before the hearing, she had tried to deny wrongdoing, telling The Sun: 'I was a student officer.

'I was really new to all this and I feel like I was expected to know everything straight away.'