Britain’s first youth crime commissioner quit on Tuesday a week after her appointment following a row over offensive messages she had posted on Twitter.
Paris Brown, 17, had become embroiled in a media storm over the messages written between the ages of 14 and 16, which included terms such as “fag” and “pikey” as well as a reference to craving hash brownies.
Brown told a press conference in Maidstone, Kent, that she had “taken the decision to decline the offer of the position”, adding: “I am truly sorry for any offence I have caused.”
She had been picked from among 164 candidates for the £15,000-a-year position by local Crime Commissioner Ann Barnes in a bid to forge links between young people and the police.
But the Mail on Sunday then unearthed her past tweets, which included “I really wanna make a batch of hash brownies” and “Been drinking since half 1 and riding baby walkers down the hall at work oh my god I have the best job ever haha!!”
She had also praised her brother for punching someone, and said that people on the TV show Made in Chelsea looked like “fags”.
The tweets have since been deleted.
On Tuesday she said, “I strongly reiterate that I am not racist or homophobic. I have fallen into the trap of behaving with bravado on social networking sites. I hope this may stand as a learning experience for many other young people.”
Barnes, who was elected in November, said it was a “very, very sad day”.
“I was not recruiting an angel. I was not recruiting a police officer. I was recruiting a young person, warts and all,” she added.
The role of youth commissioner for Kent will be advertised again in summer, said Barnes.
Kent Police is now investigating whether any offences were committed through the messages, while Barnes admitted Brown’s social media accounts had not been vetted before her appointment.
Brown’s tweets have caused fierce debate, with some commentators condemning their contents while others said that teenagers should not be held responsible for messages written at such a young age.
Barnes said: “Posting messages is part of (teenagers’) everyday lives and I’m sure many people today would not have the jobs they are in if their thoughts in their teenage years were scrutinised.
“It’s a very sad world that Paris is now hostage to those comments she made… They should not shape her future. Everyone makes mistakes.”
UK's first youth crime commissioner quits over tweets
