{{Short description|British police officer}} {{Infobox police officer | name = Ronald Gregory | honorific_suffix = {{Post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|CBE|QPM|DL}} | image = Ronald Gregory.jpg | caption = Gregory in 1980 | birth_date = 23 October 1921 | birth_place = Preston, Lancashire, England | death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|9 April 2010|23 October 1921}} | death_place = | service_label = Force | service = {{hlist|Plymouth City Police|Devon and Cornwall Police|West Yorkshire Constabulary|West Yorkshire Police}} | service_years = 1941–1983 | rank = Chief Constable | module = {{Infobox military person |embed = yes |allegiance = United Kingdom |branch = Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve <br /> Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve |unit = Fleet Air Arm |service_years = 1942–1944 (RAFVR) <br /> 1944–1946 (RNVR) |rank = Flying officer <br /> Sub-lieutenant |battles = Second World War |awards = }} }} '''Ronald Gregory''', {{Post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|sep=,|CBE|QPM|DL}} (23 October 1921 – 9 April 2010), was a British police officer who served as chief constable of West Yorkshire Constabulary and then West Yorkshire Police from 1969 to 1983. He was head of the police force during its five-year manhunt for the Yorkshire Ripper, Peter Sutcliffe.
Having been born in Preston, Lancashire, Gregory served in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and the Fleet Air Arm, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during the Second World War. Having returned to civilian life in 1946, he served as a police officer and detective in his home town of Preston. In 1962 or 1963, he was appointed deputy chief constable of Blackpool. He was then chief constable of Plymouth City Police before becoming deputy chief constable of the newly created Devon and Cornwall Police. In 1969, he became chief constable of West Yorkshire Constabulary, where he would spend the rest of his career.
==Early life== Gregory was born on 23 October 1921 in Preston, Lancashire, England.<ref name="obit G">{{cite news |last1=Wainwright |first1=Martin |title=Ronald Gregory obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/apr/18/ronald-gregory-obituary |access-date=26 September 2023 |work=The Guardian |date=18 April 2010}}</ref> He came from a family of policemen: his father, grandfather and great-grandfather had been officers.<ref name="obit Tele">{{cite news |title=Ronald Gregory |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/law-obituaries/7598699/Ronald-Gregory.html |access-date=26 September 2023 |work=The Telegraph |date=16 April 2010 |language=en}}</ref> He was educated at Harris College, known for its vocational and technical courses.<ref name="obit G" /><ref name="WWW" />
===Military service=== In 1942, at the age of 20, Gregory volunteered to join the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) to serve in the Second World War.<ref name="WWW">{{cite web |title=Gregory, Ronald, (23 Oct. 1921–9 April 2010), DL; Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Metropolitan Police, 1974–83 |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U18133 |website=Who Was Who |publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=26 September 2023 |language=en |date=1 December 2016}}</ref> He then underwent aircrew training in South Africa.<ref name="obit Tele" /> On 18 December 1943, having reached the rank of leading aircraftman, he was granted an emergency commission as a pilot officer on probation in the RAFVR.<ref name="LG 36378">{{London Gazette |issue= 36378 |date= 11 February 1944 |pages= 782-784 |supp= y |city= |title= |quote=}}</ref> On 18 June 1944, his commission was confirmed and he was promoted to flying officer (war substantive).<ref name="LG 36629">{{London Gazette |issue= 36629 |date= 25 July 1944 |pages= 3515-3516 |supp= y |city= |title= |quote=}}</ref>
He transferred to the Fleet Air Arm as an officer of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) on 21 November 1944.<ref name="obit Tele" /><ref name="LG 36882">{{London Gazette |issue= 36882 |date= 5 January 1945 |pages= 268-269 |supp= y |city= |title= |quote=}}</ref> He was granted the rank of temporary sub-lieutenant (A) with seniority from 18 December 1943.<ref name="LG 36859">{{London Gazette |issue= 36859 |date= 26 December 1944 |page= 5921 |supp= |city= |title= |quote=}}</ref> With the RNVR, he saw active service in the Far East.<ref name="obit YP">{{cite news |title=Obituaries: Ronald Gregory |url=https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/obituaries/ronald-gregory-1978366 |access-date=26 September 2023 |work=The Yorkhisre Post |date=16 April 2010}}</ref> He flew Hellcats and Corsairs while being based on the aircraft carriers {{HMS|Ameer|D01}} and {{HMS|Empress|D42}}.<ref name="obit Tele" /> In July 1945, he was shot down over Phuket Island by the Japanese: after an emergency landing offshore, the injured Gregory swam out to sea while under heavy fire, before being rescued by a Walrus flying boat.<ref name="obit Tele" /> He was demobilised in 1946.<ref name="WWW" />
==Police career== Gregory began his policing career as a police cadet with the Blackpool borough force before joining Preston borough police as a constable in 1941.<ref name="obit YP" /><ref name="obit Tele" /> After completing his probationary period, he left the police to serve in the military for the rest of the Second World War.<ref name="obit G" /><ref name="obit Tele" /> He was demobilised in 1946 and returned to Preston to continue his police career.<ref name="obit YP" /> He became a detective, and rose through the ranks of CID until he was a detective chief inspector.<ref name="obit Tele" />
In 1962 or 1963, he became a chief officer, having been appointed deputy chief constable of Blackpool.<ref name="obit G" /><ref name="obit Tele" /> He became chief constable of Plymouth City Police in 1965.<ref name="WWW" /> However, only two years later, the city police was merged with its neighbouring forces into Devon and Cornwall Police; he became deputy chief constable of the new force in 1967 or 1968.<ref name="obit G" /><ref name="obit Tele" />
In 1969, Gregory began his final police appointment: as chief constable of West Yorkshire Constabulary.<ref name="WWW" /> Due to government restructuring, the city constabularies of Leeds and Bradford were merged into the wider county force in 1973, enlarging his constabulary and remit: this new force was called the West Yorkshire Metropolitan Police.<ref name="obit G" /> This amalgamation created tensions and split loyalties throughout the force in the early years, and were cited as a major cause of issue relating to the hunt for the 'Yorkshire Ripper'.<ref name="obit Tele" /> He introduced a number of innovations to the force, including armed response mobile units, VASCAR speed detectors in patrol cars, and a motorway patrol unit.<ref name="obit YP" /><ref name="obit Tele" />
On 30 October 1975, Peter Sutcliffe killed the first of his 13 known victims: 28-year-old Wilma Mary McCann from Scott Hall, Leeds.<ref name="obit G" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Yorkshire Ripper death: People 'should focus on victims' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-54930118 |website=BBC News |access-date=26 September 2023 |date=13 November 2020}}</ref> Sutcliffe would not be arrested until January 1981, after which he confessed to 13 murders.<ref name="obit Tele" /> Gregory directly contributed to the delay in finding Sutcliffe through his support of the 'Wearside Jack' cassette tape and letters; these were later revealed to be a hoax but diverted detectives for two years into chasing a non-existent lead.<ref name="obit G" /><ref name="obit Tele" /> The associated press and poster campaign which was fronted by Gregory himself cost the inquiry almost £1 million.<ref name="obit G" /> That line of inquiry produced "100 per cent rubbish",<ref name="obit Tele" /> and, in July 1979, Sutcliffe was interviewed for the fifth time but was dismissed as a suspect because his voice and handwriting did not fit 'Wearside Jack'.<ref name="CCC">{{cite web |last1=Summers |first1=Chris |title=Peter Sutcliffe, the Yorkshire Ripper |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/crime/caseclosed/yorkshireripper1.shtml |website=Crime Case Closed |publisher=BBC |access-date=27 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060822111149/http://www.bbc.co.uk/crime/caseclosed/yorkshireripper1.shtml |archive-date=22 August 2006}}</ref> Sutcliffe would go on to kill at least three more women.<ref name="CCC" /> He was finally arrested on 2 January 1981 by a neighbouring force for a traffic offence, although further investigation of the scene the following day revealed a hammer and knife: the 'Yorkshire Ripper' had been found and Sutcliffe readily confessed to 13 murders.<ref name="obit Tele" /><ref name="CCC" /> Gregory swiftly called a triumphant press conference, stating that he was "delighted with developments at this stage" and announcing the immediate scaling-down of the Ripper manhunt.<ref name="obit Tele" /> This would become known as the "laughing policeman" press conference,<ref name="obit YP" /> and he was criticised for both his jubilant behaviour and the possibility of prejudicing Sutcliffe's future trial.<ref name="obit Tele" /><ref name="obit YP" />
The later inquiry into the manhunt's failings was highly critical of Gregory's decision to appoint George Oldfield as senior investigating officer: he only undertook the role part-time in addition to his duties as assistant chief constable (crime), and he was not considered to have had the professional competence and charisma to effectively lead such a large inquiry.<ref name="staring">{{cite news |title=The Ripper truth was staring them in the face |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/the-ripper-truth-was-staring-them-in-the-face-mpdncrp0gzj |access-date=27 September 2023 |work=The Times |date=27 September 2023 |language=en}}</ref> In addition, when Oldfield took ill in 1979, Gregory was found to have not acted swiftly enough to ensure a clear replacement was appointed.<ref name="staring" />
Gregory retired early from the police in 1983, two years after Sutcliffe was apprehended.<ref name="obit Tele" /> He sold his memoirs to the ''Mail on Sunday'' for a reported £40,000.<ref name="obit G" /> This was widely criticised with the families of Sutcliffe's victims describing it as "blood money", Leon Brittan, the Home Secretary, called it "deplorable", and the ''Police Review'' called him a hypocrite.<ref name="obit G" /><ref name="obit YP" /> One survivor of an attack by Sutcliffe was only awarded £17,000 in compensation after a long legal fight,<ref name="Shadow">{{cite news |last1=O’Neill |first1=Sean |title=The Long Shadow: the drama that gives a voice to the Yorkshire Ripper's victims |url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/the-plan-from-the-outset-was-that-we-wanted-to-use-him-as-little-as-possible-pqjkst2qt |access-date=27 September 2023 |date=27 September 2023 |language=en}}</ref> and as chief constable he had banned his officers from speaking to the press.<ref name="obit Tele" />
==Personal life== In 1942, Gregory married Grace Ellison. Together they had two sons.<ref name="WWW" />
Gregory spent much of his retirement living in Portugal.<ref name="obit Tele" /> He died on 9 April 2010, aged 88.<ref name="WWW" />
==Honours== In the 1971 New Year Honours, Gregory was awarded the Queen's Police Medal for Distinguished Service (QPM) in recognition of his work as chief constable of West Yorkshire Constabulary.<ref name="LG 45262">{{London Gazette |issue= 45262 |date= 31 December 1970 |page= 28 |supp= y }}</ref> In 1977, he was made a Deputy Lieutenant (DL) to the Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire.<ref name="LG 47343">{{London Gazette |issue= 47343 |date= 6 October 1977 |page= 12589 |supp= }}</ref> In the 1980 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in recognition of his work as chief constable of West Yorkshire Metropolitan Police.<ref name="LG 48212">{{London Gazette |issue= 48212 |date= 13 June 1980 |page= 8 |supp= y }}</ref>
==In popular culture== Gregory is portrayed by Michael McElhatton in ''The Long Shadow'' (2023).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hibbs |first1=James |title=The Long Shadow cast: Full list of actors in ITV true crime drama |url=https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/long-shadow-itv-cast/ |website=Radio Times |access-date=22 December 2023 |date=25 September 2023}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
{{authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Gregory, Ronald}}
Category:1921 births Category:2010 deaths Category:Chief Constables of West Yorkshire Police Category:Military personnel from Preston, Lancashire Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Category:English recipients of the Queen's Police Medal Category:Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II Category:Royal Air Force airmen Category:Royal Air Force officers Category:Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II Category:Fleet Air Arm personnel of World War II Category:Alumni of the University of Lancashire Category:Deputy lieutenants of West Yorkshire Category:Royal Navy officers of World War II