Ex-Leicestershire Special Constable Jailed 12 Months for Misusing Police Footage

William Heggs, a former Leicestershire Police special constable, was sentenced to 12 months in prison for unlawfully taking and sharing photographs and videos from police body-worn footage showing victims and incidents he attended. Heggs took still images of the dying William Harty from bodycam footage and shared them on Snapchat, including with a colleague and his mother, despite acknowledging he should not have done so. The investigation revealed multiple breaches of data protection and computer misuse laws, including sharing confidential information about a traffic collision victim and other sensitive police material on his personal phone and social media. Heggs was suspended from the force following the discovery and later resigned, with the misconduct charge dropped after his guilty pleas to the data-related offences. The Independent Office for Police Conduct highlighted that despite Heggs' claims of neurodiversity and using the images to process his feelings, he was fully aware these actions violated police rules. The case underscores the serious consequences of mishandling sensitive police data and the impact on victims' dignity and privacy.