July 16th 2024.
Dawn MacCormack was a dedicated prison officer at The Mount near Hemel Hempstead. However, it was alleged that she had been engaging in frequent communication with an inmate, Josh Moore, which was strictly forbidden by her contract. The 42-year-old was arrested and charged with misconduct as a public officer, and the trial at St Albans Crown Court was now underway.
According to the prosecutor, Mark Seymour, MacCormack had been in contact with Moore through phone calls and texts, some of which were highly inappropriate. Upon examining her phone, the police found two images of Moore, one with his torso exposed and the other with him wearing a t-shirt. It was clear that MacCormack had developed feelings for the inmate, who was serving an 8-year sentence, and had been violating her contract by having a social relationship with him.
Seymour explained to the jury that Moore had access to two illicit phones inside the prison, and had pleaded guilty to their possession. MacCormack, on the other hand, denied any misconduct as a public officer and the charges of unauthorised transmission of calls and texts between May and June 2019. The prosecutor also revealed that the phones had been recovered from Moore's cell, and the contact between him and MacCormack was extensive, with 85 calls and 4,100 texts in just 25 days on the first phone, and 7 calls and 272 texts in less than 48 hours on the second phone.
MacCormack's arrest had taken place on June 22, 2019, and it was discovered that the texts on her phone had been deleted. However, two images of Moore were found in the memory of her phone, indicating that there had been some form of relationship between them. When questioned by the police, MacCormack denied any wrongdoing and stated that she had never acted in a way that would display misconduct in her position as a prison officer. Nevertheless, she resigned from her job just days after her arrest.
Seymour stressed to the jury that MacCormack's behavior was highly inappropriate and a breach of her duties as a prison officer. It was a serious offense to have any form of communication with an inmate through a mobile phone, and MacCormack had not only failed to disclose Moore's possession of illicit phones but had also engaged in prolific contact with him. The prosecutor believed that MacCormack's actions were a clear indication of her inappropriate relationship with Moore.
As the trial continued, the jury was told that in November 2019, MacCormack had sent a message to a friend, defending her actions by stating that she was only human and that it all came down to having human emotions and feelings. This further supported the prosecution's argument that MacCormack had developed a personal relationship with Moore, which was a violation of her duties as a prison officer. The prosecutor concluded by stating that MacCormack's behavior was unacceptable and it was her responsibility to ensure the safety and security of the inmates, which she had failed to do.
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