{"id":30223,"date":"2026-01-03T08:11:58","date_gmt":"2026-01-03T13:11:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/?p=30223"},"modified":"2026-01-03T08:11:58","modified_gmt":"2026-01-03T13:11:58","slug":"officer-committed-misconduct-over-mushroom-foraging-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/2026\/01\/03\/officer-committed-misconduct-over-mushroom-foraging-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Officer committed misconduct over mushroom foraging report"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A police officer involved in a controversy sparked by efforts to sanction a woman for mushroom foraging has been found to have committed gross misconduct.<\/b><\/p>\n

In November 2024, Louise Gather travelled from her home in Derby to Bradgate Park, Leicestershire, in search of magpie inkcaps – a rare kind of fungus.<\/p>\n

The 39-year-old told the BBC she did not pick any mushrooms, but despite this, former PC Christopher Vickers later attended her property and issued a community resolution order.<\/p>\n

However, the misconduct panel found he had issued the paperwork to her husband and then lied when updating an official police database – claiming to have spoken directly to Mrs Gather.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Magpie<\/picture><\/span>Mrs Gather had travelled to Bradgate Park in search of magpie inkcaps – a rare kind of fungus (Image: Louise Gather)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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The misconduct panel said he would have been sacked over the incident if he had not already left the force.<\/p>\n

It was found Mr Vickers’s actions had been dishonest, deliberate, and had the potential to damage police confidence.<\/p>\n

A report issued by Leicestershire Police following the hearing said the case could have caused Mrs Gather “significant” harm.<\/p>\n

“She ultimately could have lost her job had the CR [community resolution] remained on her enhanced DBS checks,” the report added.<\/p>\n

Community resolution orders are an informal agreement between a complainant and an alleged offender.<\/p>\n

For one to be valid, the alleged offender should be spoken to directly, accept responsibility and sign the relevant paperwork.<\/p>\n

The report concluded Mr Vickers did not follow this policy when issuing the resolution.<\/p>\n

Mrs Gather previously said the order had included agreeing not to take items from the park in the future, and looking into Bradgate Park’s status as a designated site of special scientific interest (SSSI).<\/p>\n

Picking mushrooms is illegal in sites of special scientific interest, which are protected areas of land or water.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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