A couple in the United Kingdom say they were arrested in front of their young daughter and kept in a police cell for 11 hours after making “disparaging” comments about her school.
Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine claim Hertfordshire Constabulary officers came to their home after Cowley Hill Primary School, in Borehamwood, took issue with their criticisms.
The parents were questioned on suspicion of harassment, malicious communications, and causing a nuisance on school property. However, after a five-week investigation, the police dropped all charges.
Hertfordshire Police defended their actions, stating they were responding to allegations of “harassment and malicious communications.” A complaint about the arrests was reviewed by the Professional Standards Department, but the officers’ actions were deemed appropriate.
The couple, who have a younger daughter named Francesca, had already been banned from attending events at their nine-year-old daughter Sascha’s school. They say this happened after comments made in a WhatsApp group were interpreted as “casting aspersions” on the school’s chair of governors.
Allen, a 50-year-old producer for Times Radio, said he and Levine were blocked from attending Sascha’s parents’ evening and her Christmas play. Sascha has epilepsy, is neurodivergent, and is registered as disabled.
“It was absolutely nightmarish. I couldn’t believe this was happening, that a public authority could use the police to close down a legitimate inquiry,” Allen said to the Standard. “We’d never used abusive or threatening language, even in private, and always followed due process. Yet we have never even been told what these communications were that were supposedly criminal, which is completely Kafkaesque.”
According to the couple, they had not been on school property since July and were never given a clear explanation of the allegations against them.
Levine, 46, recalled her shock when the police arrived. “I saw six police officers standing there. There were two cars and a police van. My first thought was that Sascha was dead. I could not think of any other reason why six police officers would be at my door,” she said.
“My heart was thumping, thinking something terrible had happened. So when I was placed under arrest, in a weird way I was briefly relieved. And then I started to think, ‘What on earth? What the hell is going on?’ Francesca was cowering in the corner, she was terrified.”
The couple was taken to Stevenage Police Station, where they were held for 11 hours.
Reports indicate that WhatsApp messages from the couple included accusations that others were “spies and control freaks.” An officer warned them in December and advised them to remove Sascha from the school, which they did the following month—one week before their arrest.
Allen said, “I believe the school tried to use the police to close down legitimate inquiries, and for some reason, the constabulary played along.”
A spokesperson for Cowley Hill Primary School told The Times, “We sought advice from the police following a high volume of direct correspondence and public social media posts from two parents, as this was becoming upsetting for staff, parents, and governors. We’re always happy for parents to raise concerns, but we do ask that they do this in a suitable way, and in line with the school’s published complaints procedure.”
Hertfordshire Constabulary also defended the arrests, stating, “Following reports of harassment and malicious communications, which are criminal offences, a man and a woman from Borehamwood, both aged in their 40s, were arrested on Wednesday 29 January. The arrests were necessary to fully investigate the allegations as is routine in these types of matters. Following further investigations, officers deemed that no further action should be taken due to insufficient evidence.”
Regarding the complaint about their police visit on December 20, the department said, “It was deemed that the service provided by officers was appropriate.”
