Parents Succeed in Unlawful Arrest Claim Against Police

Two parents, Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine, have settled a claim against Hertfordshire Constabulary arising from their unlawful arrest and detention earlier this year. The Constabulary’s offer of £20,000 was, it said, significantly above what was required by the case-law.

Mr Allen and Ms Levine are represented by Cian Murphy, instructed by Luke Gittos of Murray Hughman Solicitors.

The parents were arrested on suspicion of harassment, malicious communications, and causing a nuisance on school property, allegations which arose after they had made inquiries about the recruitment process for a Head Teacher at their daughter’s school, and subsequently posted about the school response in a private social media group. 

Mr Allen is a former Governor of the school and a producer at Times Radio.

The arrests took place a week after the parents moved their daughter, who lives with epilepsy and is neurodivergent, to a different school. Six officers attended the family home and arrested both parents in front of one of their children. 

The Constabulary has now accepted that the legal criteria for the arrest were not met. The Constabulary has also accepted that the arrests were in violation of Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The Police’s acceptance of liability has been widely covered in the BBC, on Radio 4, The Guardian, The Independent, The Telegraph, The Times (including an editorial), and elsewhere.