A judge has warned two female police call handlers that they are "looking at prison sentences" after admitting to accessing restricted material on police computer systems and leaking it. Ellie-Mae Doherty, 22, and Jessica Fitzhugh, also 22, worked as call handlers in the Derbyshire Constabulary control room.
Doherty pleaded guilty to misconduct in public office, which includes admitting to accessing confidential material and leaking it to third parties, as well as failing to disclose associations with individuals involved in criminality to her employers. Fitzhugh denied misconduct in public office but pleaded guilty to accessing unauthorized material on the police computer system, including taking images of data without authority.
The offenses occurred between 2023 and 2024. His Honour Judge Timothy Spencer KC told the defendants at Leicester Crown Court that they were both in an "extremely serious position" and that their training would have made clear that their actions were wrong. He stated that a custodial sentence was "on the cards for both of you" and that they should have "no illusions about that."
Both women have been suspended from their roles within Derbyshire Police. The charges followed conduct referrals by the force to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in December 2023 and March 2024. An investigation was subsequently carried out by the force's Counter Corruption Unit under the direction of the IOPC.
Judge Spencer granted both women unconditional bail. They are scheduled to be sentenced on August 28. Their parents accompanied them to the 15-minute hearing.