BBC South Investigations & BBC News
A police officer who was sacked over his arrest of a teenager has said he was “panicking” about his own safety.
PC Lorne Castle was dismissed without notice for gross misconduct following his detention of a 15-year-old boy in Bournemouth in January 2024.
Dorset Police has since released body-worn camera footage of the incident, in which the officer shouted and swore, telling the boy: “Stop resisting or I’m going to smash you.”
Speaking to the BBC after his dismissal, the 46-year-old father of three said he faced an unknown risk from a suspect who was wearing a mask to hide his identity.
During the arrest the former officer pinned the teenager to the ground, shouting at him to stop resisting.
In the video, the teenager can be heard shouting and crying “What have I done?” and “What did I do?” before the officer shouts “Stop screaming” and calls him an abusive name.
Mr Castle said: “I never swear like that, I never talk like that, and it is embarrassing to have that played nationally over the internet.”
He continued: “In a perfect world, I can look back and say ‘I hold my hands up’ and say ‘That’s not the me I want everyone to see’.
“I’m not proud of it. But at the time it came out of fear. It was said, whether it was right or wrong, in an effort to keep everyone safe.”
The former officer added: “You don’t know what the reaction’s going to be, you don’t know what they have or what they don’t have.
“At the time, I was panicking, I was scared… There was fear of the unknown, fear of the people around.”
Dorset Police said at the time officers had no reason to believe the boy was armed, but he was later issued with an out of court disposal for possessing a knife.
Dorset Police said the independent disciplinary panel found Mr Castle did not treat the teenager with courtesy or respect.
It said the body worn video showed him “behaving aggressively and inappropriately from the outset”.
A police statement said: “His shouting, swearing, finger pointing, taking hold of the boy’s face and throat and suggested use of leg restraints was not necessary, reasonable or proportionate.”
However, it said the panel found no fault with the force used to take him to the ground.
Former Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Martyn Underhill – a former police officer – told BBC Radio Solent the force was becoming “too woke”.
Mr Underhill, who served an independent PCC from 2012 to 2021, said the officer should not have been dismissed.
He said: “This officer overreacted, used bad language – that’s about it. I think we’re becoming too woke. I think Dorset Police have got this massively wrong.
“The officer did the right thing, he took the suspect to the ground but he then lost it, there’s no doubt about that. The officer was out of control. Do I think he deserved to lose his job? Absolutely not.”
The Police Federation, which represents officers, criticised the decision to release the footage “without also providing context or balance”.
Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Farrell previously told the BBC the force shared the video to be transparent and address misinformation.
Current PCC David Sidwick declined to provide a new comment, but previously said Mr Castle’s behaviour had been reported by fellow officers.
Mr Castle, who admitted misconduct but denied gross misconduct, said he wanted to appeal against the panel’s decision.
An online appeal set up for him by a retired police officer has so far raised more than £68,000.
