The police officer convicted of the manslaughter of Dalian Atkinson had been previously found by a police disciplinary hearing to have committed gross misconduct but was allowed to remain an officer and given a stun gun, it has been revealed. PC Benjamin Monk was convicted of the manslaughter of Atkinson last week after firing a stun gun into him for 33 seconds, and then kicking him twice in the head after a clash in August 2016. On Monday at Birmingham crown court a sentencing hearing was told that Monk had two criminal cautions for drunkenness and theft before he joined the police but that they had not been disclosed when he applied to be an officer. The prosecutor, Alexandra Healy QC, told the court Monk had applied to join the police in 2001. He was cautioned for theft in 1997 while an employee at a Woolworths store. In 1999, Healy told the court, Monk was cautioned after he was found drunk. Neither was disclosed and Monk became an officer with the West Mercia force. In 2010 Monk went through another vetting process, Healy told the court, and the criminal cautions were discovered by his bosses. Monk faced a police disciplinary hearing charged with gross misconduct, which can lead to dismissal. He was found guilty of the disciplinary charge, which amounted to “discreditable conduct”, Healy told the court. Instead of being dismissed Monk was given a final written warning. The hearing heard that Monk had no criminal convictions. Judge Melbourne Inman QC is listening to prosecution and defence arguments about the length of sentence Monk should face after he killed Atkinson. The crown has suggested a starting point of 12 years. During the trial, the jury had noticed that Monk was not offering evidence of his good character. In a note sent to the judge, they queried why this was the case and were told to focus only on the evidence before them. West Mercia police have refused to answer repeated inquiries from the Guardian about Monk’s past and why he was allowed to remain in their service. Monk, 43, last week became the first British police officer to be convicted by a jury of manslaughter during the course of his duties. He was called to attend a disturbance in Telford, Shropshire, in August 2016, when Atkinson was suffering an acute mental health crisis. Atkinson’s behaviour was erratic and out of character, the trial heard. Atkinson was kicked with such force during the six-minute clash that his blood was found on the laces of Monk’s boots, the trial heard. At the time, Monk had been an officer for 12 years with West Mercia police. He joined the force in January 2002, having applied in 2001, the court heard. Monk was authorised to have a stun gun and served in the force’s operation support unit, and told the jury that meant mainly dealing with traffic issues. By 2013 he was a frontline officer based in Telford. The hearing heard of the impact of the death on Atkinson’s loved ones. In a victim impact statement, his sister Otis said the loss was “devastating” and that her brother was “kind and loving”. His brother Kenroy said he had been left “traumatised” and no longer felt safe. Dalian’s partner, Karen Wright, said she had “regular nightmares” and said: “I have lost my friend as well as my partner.” The judge said he needed time to consider the six weeks of evidence heard during the trial and would pass sentence on Tuesday. Monk had been on bail since his conviction, but Inman told him: “You know it is a prison sentence.” Ending the hearing on Monday, the judge remanded the police officer in custody.