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A colleague is dating someone who runs an explicit content subscription service and has occasionally featured, but not identified as a police officer. They see no issue with this. How would you handle the situation?
Case Studies
- You find out that a colleague of yours had an explicit OnlyFans account before they joined the police. What do you do?
- You find out that a police officer has shared explicit pictures on a dating app with the consent of the recipients. What do you do?
- Your colleague is a committed Christian and has some very conservative social views. As a lay preacher who has been recorded on multiple occasions, those views can be clearly linked with this colleague by anybody who looks for them. Is this a problem?
Discussion
- How do you manage different perceptions of values?
- What is considered inappropriate behaviour?
- How do you manage the tensions between your professional and private life?
- Is it acceptable for a police officer to appear in an explicit OnlyFans (or other similar online platform) account? Does it matter if the person is identifiable as a police officer or not?
- Is it acceptable for a police officer to share explicit pictures on a dating app? How would this be viewed by the general public and what would this mean for public confidence or the authority of the police?
- What is the boundary between flirtatious content and explicit imagery?
- Do different generations see the same thing in different ways? Who is right and does it matter? How do you manage the lack of understanding and discussion between generations, especially regarding sensitive subjects?
- Values and expectations may vary amongst police force members of different ages, backgrounds, and beliefs. Do those views impact how they may be treated (e.g. members of the LGBTQ+ community)?
- What about specific elements of the public that you serve (e.g. those with conservative religious views)? Does this undermine your ability to gain public confidence?
If you decide that your colleague’s behaviour is inappropriate, what are you going to do about it?