Suffolk councillor stood down as JP before she was sacked
Dr Si�n Dawson
A Suffolk councillor stood down as a magistrate before she could be sacked by the Lord Chancellor, it has emerged.
Dr Sian Dawson, who was elected as Conservative councillor for Hadleigh North on Babergh council last May, resigned as a magistrate in July.
She had sat on the bench in west London. In the 2005 general election she was the unsuccessful Tory candidate for Bath.
Before she resigned from as a magistrate, Dr Dawson – who has a PhD degree – was the subject of an investigation by the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office.
It looked into allegations that she had twice tried to use her position as a magistrate for personal advantage.
You may also want to watch:
A statement from the JCIO said: “A Disciplinary Panel recommended that Dr Dawson be removed from the judiciary, but she resigned before the disciplinary process had been formally concluded.
“Her resignation took effect from 20 July 2015. Had she not resigned, the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice would have removed her from judicial office.”
Most Read
- 1 Man in 20s dies in collision between lorry and pedestrian on A14
- 2 Suffolk estate which featured on TV show on the market for £1.25m
- 3 Ipswich Town transfer rumours: Blues linked with goalkeeper and coaching move for former loanee
- 4 Car on its side in middle of roundabout after crash outside Haverhill Tesco
- 5 Van's roof torn off as it gets stuck under Suffolk bridge
- 6 'Next season we'll have a right go' - Roberts on Fleetwood win and Chambers' future
- 7 Matchday Recap: Lightning start for Town secures Fleetwood win
- 8 Biker breaks collarbone in swerve to avoid car on wrong side of road
- 9 'Masterpiece' modernist home with panoramic sea views for sale for £850,000
- 10 Joy as council reverses ban on motorhomes in car parks
No one from the office was prepared to comment further on the case but it was made clear this was not a criminal issue.
Dr Dawson described the issue as “a domestic matter.”
She said it arose out of a dispute with a tradesman who had done some work on the floor at her home. She said she would be seeking a review of the decision by the JCIO.
“It is just a housekeeping matter,” she said.
Dr Dawson runs the Queen Street Foot Care Clinic in Hadleigh and there had been speculation that she could seek the Conservative nomination to fight the town’s county council seat next year.
However Dr Dawson said she would not be putting her name forward when the party selects its candidate over the next few weeks.
