A Napier police officer who criticised a national headquarters decision to prosecute a doctor speeding to an emergency is facing disciplinary action.
In a letter to the Hawke's Bay Today newspaper on Monday, Sergeant Stu Drew said as far as he and his colleagues were concerned the Northland doctor shouldnot be prosecuted for speeding.
He was critical of police "hierarchy" at National Headquarters — insisting they "have their heads in the sand ... something we on the frontline have been telling them (the public) for years".
Mr Drew also wrote that he and his fellow officers would expect a doctor to break the speed limit to come to their aid, and that common sense had clearly not prevailed in the Northland doctor's case.
"The inspector in charge of the Traffic Infringement Bureau obviously failed that part of his promotional exams."
His comments may have struck a supportive chord with his colleagues and members of the public (some of whom responded with their own letters to the editor yesterday) but they went down badly with police bosses.
While Mr Drew said he did not want to comment on the fallout, it was learned that disciplinary action was being taken against him — and it could hurt him financially.
It is understood his annual application for an outstanding rating, something he had been granted in the past and which meant a wage increase, would be ruled out this time.
The "counselling" he would receive (the formal telling off) would also be noted on his file and would remain there for at least two years.
