Detective Sergeant Sebastian Day, 39, has been barred from serving with Sussex Police for life after admitting gross misconduct for sending sexually explicit messages to a junior female colleague, a disciplinary panel ruled Monday.
The messages, sent around a leaving party on April 23, 2021, included suggestions that the pair meet "on the seafront" and references to staying in a hotel or "the back of an Uber if it's really classy." The junior officer, identified in proceedings as "Female A," responded to some texts, calling him a "cheeky git" and attempting to end the exchange. She later told the hearing she felt "uncomfortable" about how the messages escalated.
Day, who was Female A's supervisor at the time, admitted gross misconduct at the recent disciplinary hearing and was required to resign. Panel chairman Arwel Jones said Day's conduct could be seen as "harassing and offensive," and the panel concluded that he should be barred from rejoining the force.
The ruling follows earlier controversy in Day's career. He was dismissed by Sussex Police in 2012 for gross misconduct after an incident in Brighton in which he was accused of kicking a man in the head during an arrest. Day was acquitted of assault at court and later appealed his dismissal to the Home Office; his reinstatement to the force followed that appeal.
At Monday's hearing, panel members considered the content and context of the 2021 messages, the power dynamics between a supervisor and a junior colleague, and Female A's account of feeling intimidated by the exchange. The panel found those factors sufficient to amount to gross misconduct and to justify a lifetime bar from police service.
Sussex Police declined to provide further comment beyond the disciplinary outcome. The decision leaves Day unable to return to policing with Sussex and effectively prevents him from serving with other forces where the lifetime bar is noted.
The case highlights disciplinary scrutiny of officers' conduct in communications with colleagues, particularly where a supervisory relationship exists. The panel's written findings emphasised that behaviour deemed "harassing and offensive" can breach professional standards even when criminal charges are not pursued or are previously dismissed.
No criminal charges arising from the 2021 messages were reported at the disciplinary hearing. The panel's determination was administrative, addressing fitness to serve rather than criminal liability.