Mr Maxwell received the Queen’s Police Medal in 2008 North Yorkshire Police’s chief constable has been given a final written warning after admitting disreputable conduct.
Grahame Maxwell helped a relative gain unfair advantage in a police recruitment drive for 60 jobs.
A hotline received 200,000 calls – but it was found Mr Maxwell helped a relative bypass the busy phones.
The police authority and Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) were involved in the hearing.
Lawyers for Mr Maxwell confirmed he had received a final written warning to remain in force for 18 months and “accepts that his conduct has been discreditable to the force and amounts to gross misconduct”.
A statement issued by the legal team said he had “admitted an allegation that he had breached professional standards and thereby brought discredit upon and undermined public confidence in the police service”.
It said Mr Maxwell had at no time “intended to breach” professional standards and did not “intend to confer any improper advantage on another person.”
“He is sincerely sorry and saddened that a very difficult week resulted in errors of judgment, but continues to lead the North Yorkshire Police and wishes only to focus on doing his best for the force in his position as its chief constable.”
Mr Maxwell became North Yorkshire’s chief constable in 2007, joining from South Yorkshire Police, where he had been a deputy since 2005.
He is thought to be the first chief constable to have faced gross misconduct charges in more than 30 years.
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