A 41-year-old married father of two is exonerated of misbehavior after being accused of having sex with a woman who “jumped on him in his patrol car.”
Former policeman Lee Cocking offered a woman a ride home on Christmas Eve 2017 after a nightclub ejected her.
Ex-police officer said he was in a state of total terror when she ‘jumped on him’ in his car.
The 41-year-old officer, who has since retired, faced criminal charges but was exonerated by a jury last year.
Avon and Somerset Police expressed “disappointment” but acknowledged the verdict.
A former police officer who was accused of having sex with a lady who ‘jumped on him in his patrol car’ has been cleared of misconduct.
Former sergeant Lee Cocking, 41, was the acting inspector in charge of policing in Weston-super-Mare in 2017 when he gave the woman a lift home after she was ejected from the ‘Skinny Dippers’ nightclub on Christmas Eve for causing disturbance.
Last year, a jury acquitted him of misconduct in public office charges related to the incident for which he had been charged criminally.
Mr. Cocking denied any culpability and stated that the woman jumped onto him from the passenger seat.
The former officer was accused of violating rules of professional conduct that, if proven, would have constituted serious misconduct.
During a two-week police misconduct hearing, he told the panel that he felt numb and went into a “total panic” when she unzipped his pants and attempted to have sex with him.
The panel was never able to hear from the woman since she declined to participate.
Mr. Cocking retired from the force in July after being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following the death of a little girl in a deadly accident in 2015.
After being accused of having sex with a lady who ‘jumped on him in his patrol car’, former police officer Lee Cocking (pictured) was cleared of misconduct.
At the Portishead headquarters of Avon and Somerset Police, Deputy Chief Constable Nikki Watson expressed “disappointment” but respect for the verdict.
“The hearing was presided over by a legally qualified chair who was not affiliated with the police.”
“We fully accept the chair’s authority, but are sorry that, after carefully weighing all the evidence, they determined that the claims of dishonesty and discreditable behavior were not proven.”
Police officers and personnel are always expected to uphold the greatest levels of professionalism.
“We have always maintained that the former officer’s actions on December 24, 2017 fell short of these standards and were not what the public would expect from their police department.”
Since 2017, we have devoted considerable time and resources to both a criminal and misconduct inquiry.
The involved officer no longer works for Avon and Somerset Police.
Ex-sergeant Lee Cocking was giving the woman a ride home in his unmarked patrol car (pictured) on Christmas Eve, 2017, after she was kicked out of Skinny Dippers nightclub for causing trouble.
The panel’s reasons for exonerating Mr. Cocking were not disclosed by the panel’s chair, Anna Vigars, but a statement explaining the judgment is scheduled to be released soon.
She stated that they would have no more comment until they had seen the full statement from the panel explaining why he had been exonerated of misconduct.
Ms. Vigras continued, “We do not find misbehavior with respect to Mr. Cocking.” Importantly, we understand that these proceedings have been challenging for all parties involved, and we are appreciative for the civil manner in which they have been conducted.’
In 2018, after an 11-day trial, a jury acquitted Mr. Cocking of a felony allegation of misconduct related to the 2017 event.
An earlier Cirencester jury trial had failed to reach a verdict.
The woman told the jury that she had consumed “three pints of cider followed by a lot of gin and tonics” and was extremely intoxicated, but she knew they had sex in his car.
She told the court that she suffered a friction burn on her skin while attempting to have sex in the automobile, adding, ‘All I can remember is battling in the car.’
I sat on top of him with my back on the steering wheel as he was driving. My leg was beside the door, and we left to engage in sexual activity. There was total darkness.
During the trial, Ray Tully QC, who defended Mr. Cocking, suggested that the woman had straddled the officer and encouraged him to “man up” and be a man in order to have sex with her.
As they approached Knightstone Island in Weston-super-Mare, he advised to the woman that he slow down because she had requested to be left off there.
During the police misconduct case, the panel was informed that the woman never alleged the former officer sexually abused her and that the sex was consensual.
The panel denied Mr. Cocking’s attorney Ray Tully’s request to waive her anonymity so she could be identified publicly.
It was alleged that Mr. Cocking had’sexual relations with a vulnerable member of the public while on duty’ and gave ‘untruthful answers to a police detention sergeant’ regarding his medical history, which, if proven, would have constituted gross misconduct.
The woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was ejected from Skinny Dippers nightclub prior to meeting Mr. Cocking in his car.
In his trial before the Gloucester Crown Court last year, he wept after being exonerated by the jury.
The woman accepted his offer of a ride home in the unmarked silver Vauxhall Astra police car, the court heard.
She had been expelled from the Skinny Dippers nightclub and was causing trouble outside of the establishment.
When the woman abruptly thrust herself upon him, he described it as a “out-of-body experience.”
Mr. Cocking, who suffered from PTSD, claimed he lacked the mental strength to refuse the woman’s sexual approaches.
She undid her pants and underwear, opened his fly, and then “straddled” him in the driver’s seat.
Mr. Cocking, who had served as a police officer for twenty years, pled not guilty to misconduct in a judicial or public office by willfully misusing his position.
His attorney stated that Mr. Cocking believed he had been the victim of a sexual assault.
He stated that she unexpectedly touched the side of his left leg while he was driving, then apologized.
She yelled for me to halt just prior to the old toll road. I arrived expecting her to simply exit the vehicle.
‘
She appeared to be leaning in for a kiss as she leaned towards me with her head cocked forward and lips pursed.
I raised my hand to stop her. I told her she could not do that because I would be in trouble if she did.
This jolted me, and my anxiety levels spiked.
I was terrified since so many of my colleagues had their lives ruined by similar accusations. I just wanted to get her home so that I could also go home.
While he continued to drive, her demands grew “louder and louder.”
He stated that his mind was “racing” and if he stopped, “she would file a complaint.”