A police officer who was fired after she made racist remarks in a takeaway has won and appeal to get her job back and will receive £15,000 ($19,800) in back pay.
Back in 2017, Katie Barratt was accused of using the terms 'fucking n*****' and 'fucking p***' at the Spice of Punjab takeaway in Newcastle while she was working for Northumbria Police.
Despite admitting that she said: "I wish these f****** p**** would hurry up with my pizza," Barratt denied using the word 'n*****' and disputed the statements made by her two colleagues who testified against her.
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According to The Sun, Barratt appealed the initial decision and an independent panel decided that it was wrong to sack her saying that other options should have been considered.
Northumbria Police Force's lawyer, Steven Reid, fought against her potential return claiming that the comments would 'seriously damage' the reputation of the force.
He added: "Sadly it confirms a stereotype that is unfortunately held in some communities about the police."
After two hours of deliberations the panel downgraded her punishment to that of a final warning. It will now be determined whether she can work within Asian communities.
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PC Barratt accepted that 'she knew she was being racist' and acknowledged that her 'prejudice on that evening leaked out'.
But her own lawyer, Guy Ladenburg, explained to the hearing that she didn't feel she should have been sacked 'because it is not the worst kind of racism'.
According to the BBC, PC Barratt has been ordered to complete additional equality and diversity training before resuming her role within the force.
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Detective Superintendent Sav Patsalos, head of Northumbria Police's professional standards department, said: "We acknowledge the decision of the independent panel and will now take some time to review its findings.
"It is important to recognise that the decision to dismiss PC Barratt was taken by an independent panel and it was within the officer's rights to appeal this decision.
"A second independent panel has today overturned the decision to dismiss the officer but they agreed the language she used was unacceptable and agreed with the finding of gross misconduct.
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"This was recognised by a colleague who rightly came forward to report the comments and this reflects the culture within the Force where people have the confidence to speak up and challenge this kind of behaviour.
"We expect officers and staff to maintain the highest levels of professionalism at all times and I want to assure the public that we are committed to taking positive action when individuals fall below the expected standards of behaviour."
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