Watchdog must probe 'culture of police violence' in wake of video of handcuffed man being bashed
A 'WIDE culture of police violence' needs to be investigated by the new head of the Crime and Misconduct Commission 'as his major priority'.
Australian Council of Civil Liberties president Terry O'Gorman made the call this morning after viewing shocking video, obtained by The Courier-Mail, of an alleged prisoner bashing in the basement of the Surfers Paradise police station last month.
Mr O'Gorman said police brutality was continuing despite the presence of CCTV cameras. "If police are doing this when the CCTV cameras are on, what are they doing away from the cameras?" he said.
"They are committing what the cameras show - excessive violence, and in some cases grossly excessive violence, against people who are already restrained."
Mr O'Gorman said a number of cases of police brutality had not been satisfactorily dealt with, including the bashing of three tourists at Airlie Beach police station. He said while one officer had been jailed over the assaults, others who were present and were 'clearly liable' had not been punished.
And the Queensland Police Service, while releasing video of the incidents, had refused to release the audio showing the full brutality involved.
Mr O'Gorman said police had also escaped criminal prosecution for the bashing of homeless man Bruce Rowe in the Queen St Mall, and lawyers had to mount a civil prosecution on his behalf.
New CMC boss Ross Martin SC needed to urgently tackle police violence, Mr O'Gorman said. "In our view, the new head of the CMC has to deal with the issue of police violence both on the streets, and against people in custody, as his major priority," he said.
"The examples that we're seeing speak to a wide culture of police violence that even the Police Commissioner (Bob Atkinson) has acknowledged."
SOURCE
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Video shows shock police bashing of young father
Most of the Gold Coast cops seem to be sheer animals. There has been great unrest about them previously
WHEN Noa Begic clocked off after another long night at work he never imagined he soon would be lying handcuffed in his own blood in the basement of a Gold Coast police station.
The 21-year-old father had just finished a long shift as a chef at a Surfers Paradise restaurant shortly before midnight on January 28 when he decided to head out with friends for a few drinks.
Less than three hours later, after "a few beers and a few shots", he left popular Irish pub Waxy's in high spirits and started singing a song from US hard rockers Rage Against the Machine, when he was approached by police officers on patrol.
"The song is called Take the Power Back," Mr Begic told The Courier-Mail. "I don't know why I was singing it, but it's not even one of their controversial songs and there was no swearing. "But these police officers came over and asked to look at my driver's licence. "Then they just cuffed me."
He said he was led to a police car and repeatedly punched on the short drive back to the Surfers Paradise police station, nestled between kebab shops and strip clubs on Orchid Avenue in the heart of the nightclub strip. When they arrived in the police station basement, Mr Begic, whose only previous encounter with the law was a drink-driving charge, knew he was in trouble.
"Even in the back of the car I got hit in the head about seven times and they were making racist comments about me and then when we ended up in that basement I knew there was more on the way," he said. "It was like those movies where you see stuff like that. "It was very intimidating so of course I was pretty worried and then they ripped in to me again."
Closed-circuit TV footage obtained by The Courier-Mail shows the officers slamming Mr Begic face-first to the ground.
He is then struck with a flurry of knees, elbows and fists before being dragged to his feet and ushered into the back of a nearby police wagon. A short time later, an officer opens the back of the wagon and delivers a series of further punches. A senior officer, present for most of the incident, then pours a bucket of water over the ground to wash away the victim's blood.
Mr Begic said the beating was brutal, the treatment grossly excessive. "It's not like I was fighting back or trying to run away," he said. "I was handcuffed and there were four of them. "I was in some serious pain and really only running on adrenalin to get me through it."
He spent the night in the Southport watchhouse and faced court on charges of public nuisance and obstructing police, to which he plead not guilty. He will face Southport Magistrates Court on April 4.
While he escaped serious physical injury, Mr Begic said he had been depressed and withdrawn since the attack.
But he was gaining courage from making a formal complaint against the police. "When I got let out of the watchhouse a couple of the officers even looked at me and went, 'whoa, did you want to make a complaint?' "And at the time I thought there was no point.
"But the more people I have spoken to about what happened to me, the more stories I have heard about it happening to other people. "It might make them think twice next time they try it with someone else."
Police yesterday said the Ethical Standards Command was investigating a complaint of excessive use of force alleged to have occurred at the Surfers Paradise police station on January 29. The investigation is continuing.
Police told AAP the Ethical Standards Command was investigating a complaint of excessive force alleged to have occurred at the Surfers Paradise police station on January 29 and no further comment would be made. Comment has been sought from Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson.
Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said it would be inappropriate to comment because charges against Mr Begic were still before the courts. "However, the police union fully supports all police involved and we look forward to the chance to make public all facts of this matter in due course," he said in a statement to AAP.
Queensland Council for Civil Liberties spokesman Terry O'Gorman said the incoming chairman of the Crime and Misconduct Commission should investigate the excessive force claim and a culture of impunity in the police service.
"The first thing we will be asking him to do is review throughout the state the procedures for dealing with complaints where people say they have been bashed by police," Mr O'Gorman told the ABC. "There is a culture of impunity amongst a significant number of police who know they can assault people in custody and get away with it."
SOURCE
Most of the Gold Coast cops seem to be sheer animals. There has been great unrest about them previously
WHEN Noa Begic clocked off after another long night at work he never imagined he soon would be lying handcuffed in his own blood in the basement of a Gold Coast police station.
The 21-year-old father had just finished a long shift as a chef at a Surfers Paradise restaurant shortly before midnight on January 28 when he decided to head out with friends for a few drinks.
Less than three hours later, after "a few beers and a few shots", he left popular Irish pub Waxy's in high spirits and started singing a song from US hard rockers Rage Against the Machine, when he was approached by police officers on patrol.
"The song is called Take the Power Back," Mr Begic told The Courier-Mail. "I don't know why I was singing it, but it's not even one of their controversial songs and there was no swearing. "But these police officers came over and asked to look at my driver's licence. "Then they just cuffed me."
He said he was led to a police car and repeatedly punched on the short drive back to the Surfers Paradise police station, nestled between kebab shops and strip clubs on Orchid Avenue in the heart of the nightclub strip. When they arrived in the police station basement, Mr Begic, whose only previous encounter with the law was a drink-driving charge, knew he was in trouble.
"Even in the back of the car I got hit in the head about seven times and they were making racist comments about me and then when we ended up in that basement I knew there was more on the way," he said. "It was like those movies where you see stuff like that. "It was very intimidating so of course I was pretty worried and then they ripped in to me again."
Closed-circuit TV footage obtained by The Courier-Mail shows the officers slamming Mr Begic face-first to the ground.
He is then struck with a flurry of knees, elbows and fists before being dragged to his feet and ushered into the back of a nearby police wagon. A short time later, an officer opens the back of the wagon and delivers a series of further punches. A senior officer, present for most of the incident, then pours a bucket of water over the ground to wash away the victim's blood.
Mr Begic said the beating was brutal, the treatment grossly excessive. "It's not like I was fighting back or trying to run away," he said. "I was handcuffed and there were four of them. "I was in some serious pain and really only running on adrenalin to get me through it."
He spent the night in the Southport watchhouse and faced court on charges of public nuisance and obstructing police, to which he plead not guilty. He will face Southport Magistrates Court on April 4.
While he escaped serious physical injury, Mr Begic said he had been depressed and withdrawn since the attack.
But he was gaining courage from making a formal complaint against the police. "When I got let out of the watchhouse a couple of the officers even looked at me and went, 'whoa, did you want to make a complaint?' "And at the time I thought there was no point.
"But the more people I have spoken to about what happened to me, the more stories I have heard about it happening to other people. "It might make them think twice next time they try it with someone else."
Police yesterday said the Ethical Standards Command was investigating a complaint of excessive use of force alleged to have occurred at the Surfers Paradise police station on January 29. The investigation is continuing.
Police told AAP the Ethical Standards Command was investigating a complaint of excessive force alleged to have occurred at the Surfers Paradise police station on January 29 and no further comment would be made. Comment has been sought from Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson.
Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said it would be inappropriate to comment because charges against Mr Begic were still before the courts. "However, the police union fully supports all police involved and we look forward to the chance to make public all facts of this matter in due course," he said in a statement to AAP.
Queensland Council for Civil Liberties spokesman Terry O'Gorman said the incoming chairman of the Crime and Misconduct Commission should investigate the excessive force claim and a culture of impunity in the police service.
"The first thing we will be asking him to do is review throughout the state the procedures for dealing with complaints where people say they have been bashed by police," Mr O'Gorman told the ABC. "There is a culture of impunity amongst a significant number of police who know they can assault people in custody and get away with it."
SOURCE
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson caught speeding on Story Bridge, fined $133
POLICE Commissioner Bob Atkinson has been caught speeding on the Story Bridge – a blunder he has revealed two days after police and The Courier-Mail launched a road safety campaign.
Mr Atkinson was caught on February 3 and was believed to be travelling at 70km/h in a 60km/h zone. He will lose one demerit point and pay a fine of $133.
Mr Atkinson said he was embarrassed because of his position and because he had just been promoting the road safety message to media. "I feel as though I've let you down, I feel as though I've let my colleagues down (and) I feel as though I've let the community down," he told reporters in Brisbane.
He has blamed the offence on a lapse in concentration. He told reporters that he did not see the speed camera flash while he was driving with a colleague to police headquarters. "It was brought to my notice that there might be an issue last Friday," he said.
It's not the first time the police chief been nabbed for driving too fast. Mr Atkinson said he received a ticket for a similar speeding offence in 2009 while holidaying in NSW. He said he was also caught speeding in 1998 when he was an assistant commissioner in far north Queensland based at Cairns. In 2004, he rear-ended another vehicle while driving a police car and was deemed to have been following the car too closely.
Mr Atkinson said the latest infringement was the only speeding ticket he had received in Queensland in the 11 years that he has been police commissioner.
On Monday, Traffic Hot Spots: You Drive the Change was launched, a campaign encouraging motorists to report bad driving and dangerous roads via The Courier-Mail’s website.
Speeding is listed as one of the Fatal Four, which contribute to the state's road toll.
In a statement posted online, Mr Atkinon said said he accepted responsibility for this infringement and had paid the fine.
"I was aware that the section of roadway was a 60kph zone but was not consciously or deliberately exceeding the speed limit," he said. He blamed a "lapse of concentration". "The detection was from a fixed speed camera. I was aware of its existence in that area.
I sincerely regret this occurrence and apologise to my colleagues and the community. I also acknowledge the support of the media to myself and the QPS in our combined efforts to reduce the road toll.
"The most important issue for me is that those efforts and that work continue unabated. "Despite this breach I am and remain genuinely committed to reducing the road toll and also hope to stay involved in that area after I retire from the QPS."
SOURCE
POLICE Commissioner Bob Atkinson has been caught speeding on the Story Bridge – a blunder he has revealed two days after police and The Courier-Mail launched a road safety campaign.
Mr Atkinson was caught on February 3 and was believed to be travelling at 70km/h in a 60km/h zone. He will lose one demerit point and pay a fine of $133.
Mr Atkinson said he was embarrassed because of his position and because he had just been promoting the road safety message to media. "I feel as though I've let you down, I feel as though I've let my colleagues down (and) I feel as though I've let the community down," he told reporters in Brisbane.
He has blamed the offence on a lapse in concentration. He told reporters that he did not see the speed camera flash while he was driving with a colleague to police headquarters. "It was brought to my notice that there might be an issue last Friday," he said.
It's not the first time the police chief been nabbed for driving too fast. Mr Atkinson said he received a ticket for a similar speeding offence in 2009 while holidaying in NSW. He said he was also caught speeding in 1998 when he was an assistant commissioner in far north Queensland based at Cairns. In 2004, he rear-ended another vehicle while driving a police car and was deemed to have been following the car too closely.
Mr Atkinson said the latest infringement was the only speeding ticket he had received in Queensland in the 11 years that he has been police commissioner.
On Monday, Traffic Hot Spots: You Drive the Change was launched, a campaign encouraging motorists to report bad driving and dangerous roads via The Courier-Mail’s website.
Speeding is listed as one of the Fatal Four, which contribute to the state's road toll.
In a statement posted online, Mr Atkinon said said he accepted responsibility for this infringement and had paid the fine.
"I was aware that the section of roadway was a 60kph zone but was not consciously or deliberately exceeding the speed limit," he said. He blamed a "lapse of concentration". "The detection was from a fixed speed camera. I was aware of its existence in that area.
I sincerely regret this occurrence and apologise to my colleagues and the community. I also acknowledge the support of the media to myself and the QPS in our combined efforts to reduce the road toll.
"The most important issue for me is that those efforts and that work continue unabated. "Despite this breach I am and remain genuinely committed to reducing the road toll and also hope to stay involved in that area after I retire from the QPS."
SOURCE
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Queensland cops harass tennis ace
He believes it is because of his Yugoslav ethnicity. Knowing some of the characters in the Qld. police, I can believe it. In the Qld. police you can kill a black man in custody and then be promoted to Inspector
LAWYERS for tennis ace Bernard Tomic will seek out Queensland's top cop to resolve an ugly dispute over a series of $300 traffic tickets.
The 19-year-old, who last week made the fourth round of the Australian Open, was driving his orange BMW sports car when he was pulled over twice in quick succession on Australia Day and issued with traffic infringement notices for driving contrary to the conditions of his licence.
P-platers would ordinarily not be allowed to drive a high-performance vehicle but the world No.38 has been granted an exemption for circumstances relating to his career as a professional tennis player.
After an extraordinary stand-off with police at his parents' Southport home on Thursday, Tomic yesterday engaged top Queensland defence lawyer Chris Nyst, who has represented high-profile clients from football stars to the postcard bandit Brenden Abbott.
The saga made national headlines and went berserk on social networking sites.
Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser yesterday bought in to the debate, declaring no one was above the law.
Mr Nyst yesterday emerged from a meeting with fellow solicitor Jason Murakami and the Tomic family, saying he could not see what the rising star had done wrong and that he would seek a meeting with the office of Queensland Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson.
"I can't see that there has been any wrong done, from what I have been told," he said. "We will speak to the Commissioner about that and see what we make of it."
A spokesman for the Department of Transport and Main Roads said P-platers could be eligible for a certificate of exemption to drive a high-powered vehicle, particularly if it was needed for work.
Between July 2010 and April 2011, the department granted 544 such certificates.
SOURCE
He believes it is because of his Yugoslav ethnicity. Knowing some of the characters in the Qld. police, I can believe it. In the Qld. police you can kill a black man in custody and then be promoted to Inspector
LAWYERS for tennis ace Bernard Tomic will seek out Queensland's top cop to resolve an ugly dispute over a series of $300 traffic tickets.
The 19-year-old, who last week made the fourth round of the Australian Open, was driving his orange BMW sports car when he was pulled over twice in quick succession on Australia Day and issued with traffic infringement notices for driving contrary to the conditions of his licence.
P-platers would ordinarily not be allowed to drive a high-performance vehicle but the world No.38 has been granted an exemption for circumstances relating to his career as a professional tennis player.
After an extraordinary stand-off with police at his parents' Southport home on Thursday, Tomic yesterday engaged top Queensland defence lawyer Chris Nyst, who has represented high-profile clients from football stars to the postcard bandit Brenden Abbott.
The saga made national headlines and went berserk on social networking sites.
Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser yesterday bought in to the debate, declaring no one was above the law.
Mr Nyst yesterday emerged from a meeting with fellow solicitor Jason Murakami and the Tomic family, saying he could not see what the rising star had done wrong and that he would seek a meeting with the office of Queensland Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson.
"I can't see that there has been any wrong done, from what I have been told," he said. "We will speak to the Commissioner about that and see what we make of it."
A spokesman for the Department of Transport and Main Roads said P-platers could be eligible for a certificate of exemption to drive a high-powered vehicle, particularly if it was needed for work.
Between July 2010 and April 2011, the department granted 544 such certificates.
SOURCE
Monday, December 26, 2011
Qld. police politics ruin murder investigation
This looks very much like a coverup of police links with criminals
THE investigation of a brutal double murder on the Gold Coast was compromised by internal police politics, a former detective who worked the case claims.
A jury took just three hours in September to acquit two men of the 1999 murders in Springbrook of Ann-Maree Kropp and Christopher Nancarrow after a month-long trial - the culmination of 12 years of police work and two separate investigations - leaving the victims' families in despair.
Paddy Fenely, a former Gold Coast CIB detective sergeant, said he and a colleague were just weeks away from making arrests in January 2007 when they were "raided" by officers from homicide, who ordered them to drop the case and have no further contact with the victims' families.
Two men were arrested nine months later, leading to their trial and acquittal this year. "As far as I'm concerned they've just blown it," Mr Fenely told The Courier-Mail.
DNA alleged to be from the suspects was found at the scene, but no motive was established.
However, Mr Fenely said promising lines of inquiry suggesting the murdered couple had been recruited by a drug ring linked to Nomads bikies planning to supply methamphetamine to truck drivers in Murwillumbah appeared not to have been pursued by the officers who took over the case. "I had four people independently tell me the same story," Mr Fenely said. "We were never given the chance to look at that."
Mr Fenely said that, on January 23, 2007, a group of homicide officers "raided our office, with a direction that the investigation had been determined to be a cold case and files were to be handed over to homicide and we were to have no further involvement".
Mr Fenely claims there had been no grounds to declare a cold case and the move was driven by a push to use a controversial strategy in which police directly befriend criminals and get them to admit to former crimes. This is instead of the traditional method of using informants to introduce undercover police to existing criminal networks.
"I said 'righto, we'll go along with your system'," Mr Fenely said. "[But] I was against it. "Their system wasn't working after about six months, it got nowhere, so we said 'righto, let's wrap it up, we know who our two suspects are, work towards going and locking them up'.
"We argued that 'you've had your time, the families need closure, we know who the suspects are, we've identified them', and they wanted to continue to run, which they still did - continue their covert strategies - after we got the boot.
"I said 'these families have waited long enough and they don't need to wait any longer' and they said 'well they've waited this long and they can wait longer again'."
One of the officers who took over the case, Detective Sergeant David Nicoll, told the Brisbane Magistrates Court in 2008 that Gold Coast CIB had been removed from the investigation because of concerns they may have failed to fully probe the possible involvement of a former colleague who lived next door to the murdered couple.
The man, an ex-Gold Coast CIB detective, pleaded guilty to corruption charges and was jailed less than a month after the Springbrook murders.
Calls made on the day the couple are thought to have been killed from the former officer's house to the home and business of one of the men accused of the murders have never been explained.
One highly placed police source said homicide had taken over the investigation because of "sensitive issues that remain within the service". "There was a whole range of reasons, (the corrupt officer) was one of them," the source said.
The parents of Ann-Maree Kropp wrote to Commissioner Bob Atkinson in 2007 demanding to know why the Gold Coast officers had been removed. Then-Deputy Commissioner Dick Conder replied simply: "Members of the Homicide Investigation Unit have carriage of this investigation following previous extensive inquiries conducted by (the Gold Coast detectives)."
Changes to Queensland's double-jeopardy rules in 2007 mean people acquitted of murder can be retried if "fresh and compelling" evidence emerges.
SOURCE
This looks very much like a coverup of police links with criminals
THE investigation of a brutal double murder on the Gold Coast was compromised by internal police politics, a former detective who worked the case claims.
A jury took just three hours in September to acquit two men of the 1999 murders in Springbrook of Ann-Maree Kropp and Christopher Nancarrow after a month-long trial - the culmination of 12 years of police work and two separate investigations - leaving the victims' families in despair.
Paddy Fenely, a former Gold Coast CIB detective sergeant, said he and a colleague were just weeks away from making arrests in January 2007 when they were "raided" by officers from homicide, who ordered them to drop the case and have no further contact with the victims' families.
Two men were arrested nine months later, leading to their trial and acquittal this year. "As far as I'm concerned they've just blown it," Mr Fenely told The Courier-Mail.
DNA alleged to be from the suspects was found at the scene, but no motive was established.
However, Mr Fenely said promising lines of inquiry suggesting the murdered couple had been recruited by a drug ring linked to Nomads bikies planning to supply methamphetamine to truck drivers in Murwillumbah appeared not to have been pursued by the officers who took over the case. "I had four people independently tell me the same story," Mr Fenely said. "We were never given the chance to look at that."
Mr Fenely said that, on January 23, 2007, a group of homicide officers "raided our office, with a direction that the investigation had been determined to be a cold case and files were to be handed over to homicide and we were to have no further involvement".
Mr Fenely claims there had been no grounds to declare a cold case and the move was driven by a push to use a controversial strategy in which police directly befriend criminals and get them to admit to former crimes. This is instead of the traditional method of using informants to introduce undercover police to existing criminal networks.
"I said 'righto, we'll go along with your system'," Mr Fenely said. "[But] I was against it. "Their system wasn't working after about six months, it got nowhere, so we said 'righto, let's wrap it up, we know who our two suspects are, work towards going and locking them up'.
"We argued that 'you've had your time, the families need closure, we know who the suspects are, we've identified them', and they wanted to continue to run, which they still did - continue their covert strategies - after we got the boot.
"I said 'these families have waited long enough and they don't need to wait any longer' and they said 'well they've waited this long and they can wait longer again'."
One of the officers who took over the case, Detective Sergeant David Nicoll, told the Brisbane Magistrates Court in 2008 that Gold Coast CIB had been removed from the investigation because of concerns they may have failed to fully probe the possible involvement of a former colleague who lived next door to the murdered couple.
The man, an ex-Gold Coast CIB detective, pleaded guilty to corruption charges and was jailed less than a month after the Springbrook murders.
Calls made on the day the couple are thought to have been killed from the former officer's house to the home and business of one of the men accused of the murders have never been explained.
One highly placed police source said homicide had taken over the investigation because of "sensitive issues that remain within the service". "There was a whole range of reasons, (the corrupt officer) was one of them," the source said.
The parents of Ann-Maree Kropp wrote to Commissioner Bob Atkinson in 2007 demanding to know why the Gold Coast officers had been removed. Then-Deputy Commissioner Dick Conder replied simply: "Members of the Homicide Investigation Unit have carriage of this investigation following previous extensive inquiries conducted by (the Gold Coast detectives)."
Changes to Queensland's double-jeopardy rules in 2007 mean people acquitted of murder can be retried if "fresh and compelling" evidence emerges.
SOURCE
Saturday, December 24, 2011
A case that should worry all Queenslanders
THE tacky, disturbing and totally unnecessary case of Bruce Rowe versus misplaced authority came to an end in the District Court on Monday. Well, it could have, although Constable Benjamin Arndt, who was found guilty of assaulting Rowe in 2006 in Brisbane's Queen Street Mall, could appeal to the Supreme Court or, conceivably, beyond.
The immovable Rowe, who turned 71 on Sunday, was a comparative stripling of 65 when he crossed paths with Arndt and a bunch of other police about 9 o'clock on the night of July 9, five-and-a-half years ago.
In an incident that was widely seen on TV (and is still out there on YouTube), Rowe was arrested, charged and convicted of obstructing police and failing to obey a police order after a disagreement that began in the public toilets and ended with him being held down by four officers and kneed by another.
It dragged through the Magistrates Court, the District Court and the Court of Appeal. The first court convicted Rowe, the second confirmed the conviction but the third overturned it.
The rematch came in the Magistrates Court in February when Rowe launched a private prosecution resulting in Arndt being found guilty of assaulting Rowe, fined $1000 and ordered to pay him $2250 court costs, although no conviction was recorded.
The established forces of investigation or law and order were conspicuous by their absence.
Then Arndt disputed the magistrate's findings but this week Judge Brian Devereaux tossed out the appeal. Watch this space.
The appeal largely revolved around claims that magistrate Linda Bradford-Morgan had relied on information extraneous to the case.
Arndt argued that the wrongful consideration of extraneous materials constituted a substantial miscarriage of the Magistrates Court trial, justice was not seen to be done and the trial was not conducted according to law.
Judge Devereaux was sympathetic to a point but decided it was open to the magistrate to convict Arndt on the original evidence without the distraction of the extraneous material.
He watched the distasteful video "many times" and declared: "It is unnecessary to say I reach precisely the same conclusions ... having due regard to the findings and conclusions of the magistrate but mindful of the errors I have found in her honour's reasoning, I have formed my own conclusion that the force used in the application of the four knee strikes was not authorised or justified or excused by law. "It was unlawful because it was not reasonably necessary and was unjustified in the circumstances."
How did it all come to this and why did it take so long to resolve?
Had Rowe been just another homeless, friendless and vulnerable man it might have been a simple issue resolved in court just after the morning drunks' parade.
In nine cases out of 10, that might have happened. However Rowe, although grieving and troubled, was also a stubborn and courageous man who refused to take a step backwards in the face of what he perceived as injustice.
He ultimately turned out to be more than capable of looking after himself and seeking justice. Perhaps, it is the other nine out of 10 cases we should be worried about.
At the time of Arndt's assault case, Police Union president Ian Leavers expressed concern that the conviction had "dire consequences for all police officers doing their job". "I am very, very concerned now that police officers across the state will be reluctant to do their job and the community will suffer," Leavers said.
It is a seductive sentiment for those who haven't the wit or the humility to ever imagine themselves in Rowe's shoes. However, it is ultimately even more harmful to the community to pretend that police cannot do their job without breaking the law.
And it is an affront to the thousands of police who do manage to do their difficult jobs without breaking the letter or the spirit of the law and apply the police motto of "With honour we serve" to all citizens, regardless of their station or their situation.
Equally worrying is that justice was delivered despite, not because of, the Police Ethical Standards Command and the Crime and Misconduct Commission, which found there was insufficient evidence to charge any of the police officers over the incident.
Subsequent court findings that Rowe was not only innocent but had been unlawfully roughed up must raise questions about the quality and diligence of both investigations.
Had it not been for the toughness and pigheadedness of Rowe, whose "age and slight frame" were noted by the magistrate, a serious wrong would have gone unpunished.
Had it not been for the video evidence, his might have been the feeble voice of an ordinary man who had fallen on hard times against that of police.
The inadequacies of the investigations into this event - and similar failings and inconsistencies in many others - are hardly likely to inspire confidence among the public or the police, who have an equal entitlement to justice.
The Roman poet Juvenal is credited with asking "Who will guard the guardians?" We are yet to adequately answer that, but surely it is not a 71-year-old man.
SOURCE
THE tacky, disturbing and totally unnecessary case of Bruce Rowe versus misplaced authority came to an end in the District Court on Monday. Well, it could have, although Constable Benjamin Arndt, who was found guilty of assaulting Rowe in 2006 in Brisbane's Queen Street Mall, could appeal to the Supreme Court or, conceivably, beyond.
The immovable Rowe, who turned 71 on Sunday, was a comparative stripling of 65 when he crossed paths with Arndt and a bunch of other police about 9 o'clock on the night of July 9, five-and-a-half years ago.
In an incident that was widely seen on TV (and is still out there on YouTube), Rowe was arrested, charged and convicted of obstructing police and failing to obey a police order after a disagreement that began in the public toilets and ended with him being held down by four officers and kneed by another.
It dragged through the Magistrates Court, the District Court and the Court of Appeal. The first court convicted Rowe, the second confirmed the conviction but the third overturned it.
The rematch came in the Magistrates Court in February when Rowe launched a private prosecution resulting in Arndt being found guilty of assaulting Rowe, fined $1000 and ordered to pay him $2250 court costs, although no conviction was recorded.
The established forces of investigation or law and order were conspicuous by their absence.
Then Arndt disputed the magistrate's findings but this week Judge Brian Devereaux tossed out the appeal. Watch this space.
The appeal largely revolved around claims that magistrate Linda Bradford-Morgan had relied on information extraneous to the case.
Arndt argued that the wrongful consideration of extraneous materials constituted a substantial miscarriage of the Magistrates Court trial, justice was not seen to be done and the trial was not conducted according to law.
Judge Devereaux was sympathetic to a point but decided it was open to the magistrate to convict Arndt on the original evidence without the distraction of the extraneous material.
He watched the distasteful video "many times" and declared: "It is unnecessary to say I reach precisely the same conclusions ... having due regard to the findings and conclusions of the magistrate but mindful of the errors I have found in her honour's reasoning, I have formed my own conclusion that the force used in the application of the four knee strikes was not authorised or justified or excused by law. "It was unlawful because it was not reasonably necessary and was unjustified in the circumstances."
How did it all come to this and why did it take so long to resolve?
Had Rowe been just another homeless, friendless and vulnerable man it might have been a simple issue resolved in court just after the morning drunks' parade.
In nine cases out of 10, that might have happened. However Rowe, although grieving and troubled, was also a stubborn and courageous man who refused to take a step backwards in the face of what he perceived as injustice.
He ultimately turned out to be more than capable of looking after himself and seeking justice. Perhaps, it is the other nine out of 10 cases we should be worried about.
At the time of Arndt's assault case, Police Union president Ian Leavers expressed concern that the conviction had "dire consequences for all police officers doing their job". "I am very, very concerned now that police officers across the state will be reluctant to do their job and the community will suffer," Leavers said.
It is a seductive sentiment for those who haven't the wit or the humility to ever imagine themselves in Rowe's shoes. However, it is ultimately even more harmful to the community to pretend that police cannot do their job without breaking the law.
And it is an affront to the thousands of police who do manage to do their difficult jobs without breaking the letter or the spirit of the law and apply the police motto of "With honour we serve" to all citizens, regardless of their station or their situation.
Equally worrying is that justice was delivered despite, not because of, the Police Ethical Standards Command and the Crime and Misconduct Commission, which found there was insufficient evidence to charge any of the police officers over the incident.
Subsequent court findings that Rowe was not only innocent but had been unlawfully roughed up must raise questions about the quality and diligence of both investigations.
Had it not been for the toughness and pigheadedness of Rowe, whose "age and slight frame" were noted by the magistrate, a serious wrong would have gone unpunished.
Had it not been for the video evidence, his might have been the feeble voice of an ordinary man who had fallen on hard times against that of police.
The inadequacies of the investigations into this event - and similar failings and inconsistencies in many others - are hardly likely to inspire confidence among the public or the police, who have an equal entitlement to justice.
The Roman poet Juvenal is credited with asking "Who will guard the guardians?" We are yet to adequately answer that, but surely it is not a 71-year-old man.
SOURCE
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Judge upholds cop's conviction for assault
Why was no criminal conviction recorded against this scum? It is a sad day when citizens (such as Mr Rowe and Miss Eaves) have to launch private prosecutions to prove police misbehaviour. The police brass obviously believe there is a degree of assault by police that should be permitted. That is however an entirely extra-legal view.
The Commissioner himself is tainted by his inaction in these cases -- even more so since he used taxpayer funds to defend the erring officers and take their cases to appeal
One can only hope that there will now be disciplinary action against Arndt after the failure of his appeal confirms what garbage he is
A policeman who was found guilty of assaulting a homeless man in a Brisbane mall has had his appeal against the verdict dismissed.
Constable Benjamin Arndt was fined $1000 in February, with no conviction recorded, for assaulting 65-year-old Bruce Rowe in Brisbane's Queen St Mall in 2006.
He was one of four officers who restrained Mr Rowe after he failed to obey a cleaner's request to leave a public toilet in Brisbane's Queen St Mall where he was getting changed.
Security video of the incident, which attracted national media attention, formed the basis of Mr Rowe's assault complaint. He had originally been found guilty of obstructing police and disobeying a lawful direction, but the decision was overturned on a second appeal. Mr Rowe then launched a successful private prosecution for common assault against Const Arndt.
In documents lodged in the Brisbane District Court, Const Arndt argued the magistrate erred by considering the previous court cases between Mr Rowe and Const Arndt when making her decision in the latest case.
Const Arndt also alleged evidence was improperly led during the private prosecution and claimed the magistrate had failed to make sufficient rulings on a number of pertinent issues including the lawfulness of a "move on" direction given to Mr Rowe before the incident.
Judge Brian Devereaux dismissed these claims in Brisbane's Court of Appeal on Monday. He found the magistrate had erred by considering previous court cases but that the guilty verdict stood.
"Mindful of the errors I have found in her Honour's reasoning, I have formed my own conclusion that the force used in the application of the four knee strikes was not authorised or justified or excused by law," the judge said.
The Police Ethical Standards Command and Crime and Misconduct Commission had found there was insufficient evidence to charge any of the police officers over the incident.
SOURCE
Why was no criminal conviction recorded against this scum? It is a sad day when citizens (such as Mr Rowe and Miss Eaves) have to launch private prosecutions to prove police misbehaviour. The police brass obviously believe there is a degree of assault by police that should be permitted. That is however an entirely extra-legal view.
The Commissioner himself is tainted by his inaction in these cases -- even more so since he used taxpayer funds to defend the erring officers and take their cases to appeal
One can only hope that there will now be disciplinary action against Arndt after the failure of his appeal confirms what garbage he is
A policeman who was found guilty of assaulting a homeless man in a Brisbane mall has had his appeal against the verdict dismissed.
Constable Benjamin Arndt was fined $1000 in February, with no conviction recorded, for assaulting 65-year-old Bruce Rowe in Brisbane's Queen St Mall in 2006.
He was one of four officers who restrained Mr Rowe after he failed to obey a cleaner's request to leave a public toilet in Brisbane's Queen St Mall where he was getting changed.
Security video of the incident, which attracted national media attention, formed the basis of Mr Rowe's assault complaint. He had originally been found guilty of obstructing police and disobeying a lawful direction, but the decision was overturned on a second appeal. Mr Rowe then launched a successful private prosecution for common assault against Const Arndt.
In documents lodged in the Brisbane District Court, Const Arndt argued the magistrate erred by considering the previous court cases between Mr Rowe and Const Arndt when making her decision in the latest case.
Const Arndt also alleged evidence was improperly led during the private prosecution and claimed the magistrate had failed to make sufficient rulings on a number of pertinent issues including the lawfulness of a "move on" direction given to Mr Rowe before the incident.
Judge Brian Devereaux dismissed these claims in Brisbane's Court of Appeal on Monday. He found the magistrate had erred by considering previous court cases but that the guilty verdict stood.
"Mindful of the errors I have found in her Honour's reasoning, I have formed my own conclusion that the force used in the application of the four knee strikes was not authorised or justified or excused by law," the judge said.
The Police Ethical Standards Command and Crime and Misconduct Commission had found there was insufficient evidence to charge any of the police officers over the incident.
SOURCE
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Lazy Qld. cops give embezzler a pass
FAKE Tahitian prince Joel Morehu-Barlow fled to Australia after a complaint was made to New Zealand police about an alleged criminal offence seven years ago. The revelation will embarrass the Crime and Misconduct Commission, police and Queensland Health, which last year dismissed a complaint about Barlow without a proper investigation.
The Sunday Mail has discovered Barlow's childhood "castle" was really an ageing weatherboard home with a tin roof in Thames, on New Zealand's North Island. His mother the "Queen", Andre Barlow, was last year convicted in the Wellington District Court of stealing almost $25,000 from her lesbian partner's inheritance funds to pay her bills.
Barlow, who was charged last week with embezzling $11 million from Queensland Health, was a child when he began lying about his links to royalty, schoolmates said. "He went on a bit about how he was famous," former Thames High School pupil Michael Barrett said. "He would carry around a staff."
Further details of the criminal allegations against Barlow cannot be published due to legal reasons, but it can be revealed he was a cross-dressing chameleon obsessed with his appearance.
He was a frequent customer in Brisbane spas and beauty clinics where he would get spray tans, eyebrow shaping and Botox. He was often seen in drag at The Sportsman Hotel in Spring Hill, patrons said. "When he was dressed as a man he shouted everyone, but when he was in drag everyone shouted him," one said.
He was fond of throwing lavish parties, including a massive $130,000 bash for his birthday.
Barlow had lived in a Vernon Tce apartment in the inner-Brisbane suburb of Teneriffe since about 2004 and in the early days was often seen dressed as a woman.
He worked for the Children's Commissioner in NZ and also for the NZ Inland Revenue.
The CMC is investigating Queensland Health and police over the fiasco, but a spokeswoman confirmed the watchdog also would look at its own role, amid serious questions about its handling of complaints.
The CMC referred last year's complaint to Queensland Health, but retained oversight and accepted an inadequate investigation that did not even question Barlow.
SOURCE
FAKE Tahitian prince Joel Morehu-Barlow fled to Australia after a complaint was made to New Zealand police about an alleged criminal offence seven years ago. The revelation will embarrass the Crime and Misconduct Commission, police and Queensland Health, which last year dismissed a complaint about Barlow without a proper investigation.
The Sunday Mail has discovered Barlow's childhood "castle" was really an ageing weatherboard home with a tin roof in Thames, on New Zealand's North Island. His mother the "Queen", Andre Barlow, was last year convicted in the Wellington District Court of stealing almost $25,000 from her lesbian partner's inheritance funds to pay her bills.
Barlow, who was charged last week with embezzling $11 million from Queensland Health, was a child when he began lying about his links to royalty, schoolmates said. "He went on a bit about how he was famous," former Thames High School pupil Michael Barrett said. "He would carry around a staff."
Further details of the criminal allegations against Barlow cannot be published due to legal reasons, but it can be revealed he was a cross-dressing chameleon obsessed with his appearance.
He was a frequent customer in Brisbane spas and beauty clinics where he would get spray tans, eyebrow shaping and Botox. He was often seen in drag at The Sportsman Hotel in Spring Hill, patrons said. "When he was dressed as a man he shouted everyone, but when he was in drag everyone shouted him," one said.
He was fond of throwing lavish parties, including a massive $130,000 bash for his birthday.
Barlow had lived in a Vernon Tce apartment in the inner-Brisbane suburb of Teneriffe since about 2004 and in the early days was often seen dressed as a woman.
He worked for the Children's Commissioner in NZ and also for the NZ Inland Revenue.
The CMC is investigating Queensland Health and police over the fiasco, but a spokeswoman confirmed the watchdog also would look at its own role, amid serious questions about its handling of complaints.
The CMC referred last year's complaint to Queensland Health, but retained oversight and accepted an inadequate investigation that did not even question Barlow.
SOURCE
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Aggressive Gold Coast cop harasses tennis champion
This is very reminscent of the Renee Eaves case on the Gold Coast. The cop had better watch out that he doesn't end up the same way
GOLD Coast tennis star Bernard Tomic is claiming police harassment after being pulled over for allegedly hooning in his $150,000 high-powered sports car.
Tomic, Australia's top-ranked male tennis player, says he is being victimised by a 'jealous' Coast traffic cop who has pulled him up several times while out and about in his distinctive bright orange BMW M3. The 19-year-old P-plater has a special Department of Transport exemption allowing him to drive the V8-powered vehicle.
Tomic alleged he was being targeted by the officer, who he refused to name, and said he was 'scared'. "He doesn't like me for some reason ... he's always on my tail," the teenager said. "I think it's really bad. I haven't done a thing wrong - I just go about my business as a tennis player."
Tomic said he was pulled up on Sunday night in Surfers Paradise after he was allegedly seen hooning on the Southport Spit. He said he was pulled up at traffic lights and denied he had broken the law. "I didn't speed, I didn't do any of that stuff," he said.
"The car's very loud but I don't know what he (the police officer) defines as hooning.
"It (being pulled over) scared me a bit, to be honest. He's pulled me over a few times but now it's starting to get a little bit more aggressive."
Police said the special licence exemption allowed Tomic to drive the BMW to and from training at Southport's Queens Park tennis centre. But Tomic, who this year became the youngest man to make the Wimbledon quarter-finals, said he understood he was entitled to drive at any time in the course of his professional duties.
"I've got training, gym, massages and meetings I have to go to ... my days are very busy getting ready for the summer (tennis season)," he said.
"I don't know what it is - jealousy or whatever - but this policeman seems to have it in for me. If I did the wrong thing, he would charge me, but he hasn't. "I know he has a job to do but so do I."
However, Tomic said he did not plan to lodge an official complaint about the officer. "If he wants to keep pulling me over, there's nothing I can do about it," he said.
"I just hope it stops."
SOURCE
This is very reminscent of the Renee Eaves case on the Gold Coast. The cop had better watch out that he doesn't end up the same way
GOLD Coast tennis star Bernard Tomic is claiming police harassment after being pulled over for allegedly hooning in his $150,000 high-powered sports car.
Tomic, Australia's top-ranked male tennis player, says he is being victimised by a 'jealous' Coast traffic cop who has pulled him up several times while out and about in his distinctive bright orange BMW M3. The 19-year-old P-plater has a special Department of Transport exemption allowing him to drive the V8-powered vehicle.
Tomic alleged he was being targeted by the officer, who he refused to name, and said he was 'scared'. "He doesn't like me for some reason ... he's always on my tail," the teenager said. "I think it's really bad. I haven't done a thing wrong - I just go about my business as a tennis player."
Tomic said he was pulled up on Sunday night in Surfers Paradise after he was allegedly seen hooning on the Southport Spit. He said he was pulled up at traffic lights and denied he had broken the law. "I didn't speed, I didn't do any of that stuff," he said.
"The car's very loud but I don't know what he (the police officer) defines as hooning.
"It (being pulled over) scared me a bit, to be honest. He's pulled me over a few times but now it's starting to get a little bit more aggressive."
Police said the special licence exemption allowed Tomic to drive the BMW to and from training at Southport's Queens Park tennis centre. But Tomic, who this year became the youngest man to make the Wimbledon quarter-finals, said he understood he was entitled to drive at any time in the course of his professional duties.
"I've got training, gym, massages and meetings I have to go to ... my days are very busy getting ready for the summer (tennis season)," he said.
"I don't know what it is - jealousy or whatever - but this policeman seems to have it in for me. If I did the wrong thing, he would charge me, but he hasn't. "I know he has a job to do but so do I."
However, Tomic said he did not plan to lodge an official complaint about the officer. "If he wants to keep pulling me over, there's nothing I can do about it," he said.
"I just hope it stops."
SOURCE
Friday, December 2, 2011
Another thug cop gets off lightly
Why wasn't he charged with assault?
A QUEENSLAND police officer demoted for the wrongful arrest of a female officer, with whom he was romantically linked, has won an application to have his disciplinary period halved.
The Queensland Court and Administrative Tribunal has allowed serving police officer Mark McKenzie's appeal to reduce his demotion, from sergeant to senior constable, from two years to one year.
QCAT president Justice Alan Wilson and judicial member James Thomas, QC, in a just published 10-page decision, allowed Constable McKenzie's appeal against disciplinary action taken against him by acting Queensland Police Commissioner Tony Wright.
Commissioner Wright found Constable McKenzie, a sergeant at the time of the incident, had "inappropriately and forcibly detained" fellow Mount Isa officer Constable Jane Moran on March 1, 2008.
Justice Wilson and Mr Thomas’s decision means Constable McKenzie would not have to incur an expected impost of $23,000 lost in wages.
In February this year The Courier-Mail revealed Constable McKenzie lost an application to overturn an early 2009 decision to demote him after an internal disciplinary investigation and hearing.
QCAT member Joanne Browne, in a 21-page decision released in November last year, said: "Investigations have identified that whilst off duty you (McKenzie) became involved in an incident at police accommodations at Stanley Street, Mount Isa, where you detained Ms Moran."
She said he grabbed Ms Moran, forced her face-down on to a bed, handcuffed her and told her that she was being detained for domestic violence.
"Your actions resulted in Jane Sonya Moran sustaining injuries, including a fracture of the right eye socket," Ms Browne said.
"The QPS having found the charge (of inappropriately and forcibly detaining Ms Moran) to be substantiated, ordered McKenzie be reduced in rank from sergeant . . . to senior constable for a period of two years, effective from February 2010."
Constable McKenzie applied to QCAT to review the QPS findings and his demotion, on the grounds that it was manifestly excessive.
QCAT was told both officers became involved in a romantic relationship while living in separate QPS units at Mount Isa.
The tribunal heard conflicting versions of the March, 2008, incident, in which it was alleged Constable McKenzie feared Ms Moran might stab him after being awoken by her while he was asleep in his unit.
He said he then tried to subdue Ms Moran using police handcuffs to restrain her.
But Ms Browne, in her findings, said she agreed with the QPS determination and sanction, with his conduct not meeting community standards.
"The tribunal finds . . . the conduct of SC McKenzie is of such a nature as to erode public confidence in the police service and the sanction imposed was therefore appropriate," she said.
In September Justice Wilson and Mr Thomas, in reducing Constable McKenzie’s disciplinary period, said the original "penalty was too harsh."
"Regard should ... (have been given) to the fact that the (Constable McKenzie) has performed good service both before and after the incidents," he said.
"There does not seem to be any realistic chance, or discernible risk, of any repetition of the incident in question.
"All things considered we are persuaded that the present penalty was too heavy and that, in the interests of consistency, it should be replaced with a reduction in rank from Sergeant … to Senior Constable … for a period of one year."
SOURCE
Why wasn't he charged with assault?
A QUEENSLAND police officer demoted for the wrongful arrest of a female officer, with whom he was romantically linked, has won an application to have his disciplinary period halved.
The Queensland Court and Administrative Tribunal has allowed serving police officer Mark McKenzie's appeal to reduce his demotion, from sergeant to senior constable, from two years to one year.
QCAT president Justice Alan Wilson and judicial member James Thomas, QC, in a just published 10-page decision, allowed Constable McKenzie's appeal against disciplinary action taken against him by acting Queensland Police Commissioner Tony Wright.
Commissioner Wright found Constable McKenzie, a sergeant at the time of the incident, had "inappropriately and forcibly detained" fellow Mount Isa officer Constable Jane Moran on March 1, 2008.
Justice Wilson and Mr Thomas’s decision means Constable McKenzie would not have to incur an expected impost of $23,000 lost in wages.
In February this year The Courier-Mail revealed Constable McKenzie lost an application to overturn an early 2009 decision to demote him after an internal disciplinary investigation and hearing.
QCAT member Joanne Browne, in a 21-page decision released in November last year, said: "Investigations have identified that whilst off duty you (McKenzie) became involved in an incident at police accommodations at Stanley Street, Mount Isa, where you detained Ms Moran."
She said he grabbed Ms Moran, forced her face-down on to a bed, handcuffed her and told her that she was being detained for domestic violence.
"Your actions resulted in Jane Sonya Moran sustaining injuries, including a fracture of the right eye socket," Ms Browne said.
"The QPS having found the charge (of inappropriately and forcibly detaining Ms Moran) to be substantiated, ordered McKenzie be reduced in rank from sergeant . . . to senior constable for a period of two years, effective from February 2010."
Constable McKenzie applied to QCAT to review the QPS findings and his demotion, on the grounds that it was manifestly excessive.
QCAT was told both officers became involved in a romantic relationship while living in separate QPS units at Mount Isa.
The tribunal heard conflicting versions of the March, 2008, incident, in which it was alleged Constable McKenzie feared Ms Moran might stab him after being awoken by her while he was asleep in his unit.
He said he then tried to subdue Ms Moran using police handcuffs to restrain her.
But Ms Browne, in her findings, said she agreed with the QPS determination and sanction, with his conduct not meeting community standards.
"The tribunal finds . . . the conduct of SC McKenzie is of such a nature as to erode public confidence in the police service and the sanction imposed was therefore appropriate," she said.
In September Justice Wilson and Mr Thomas, in reducing Constable McKenzie’s disciplinary period, said the original "penalty was too harsh."
"Regard should ... (have been given) to the fact that the (Constable McKenzie) has performed good service both before and after the incidents," he said.
"There does not seem to be any realistic chance, or discernible risk, of any repetition of the incident in question.
"All things considered we are persuaded that the present penalty was too heavy and that, in the interests of consistency, it should be replaced with a reduction in rank from Sergeant … to Senior Constable … for a period of one year."
SOURCE
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Public trust hit by spate of rogue police officers
Only a nong would trust the Qld. wallopers anyway
DISCIPLINARY problems among Gold Coast police and declining public trust have been exposed in internal briefings obtained by The Courier-Mail.
Thirty Gold Coast officers were subject to internal disciplinary hearings in 2010-11 as part of a crackdown that followed a rise in complaints.
One officer was dismissed after being investigated for "stealing from a social club". Eight others, probed for a range of more serious offences including fraud, perjury, supplying drugs, sexual misconduct with a witness and forgery, resigned.
A further four officers were stood down and two suspended. Five of the matters were dealt with by the courts.
Twelve other officers were fined, demoted or reprimanded for discipline breaches, including using a police vehicle to buy alcohol and falsifying rosters, according to documents obtained under the Right To Information laws.
The Crime and Misconduct Commission's widely publicised Operation Tesco corruption probe into Gold Coast police in June mentioned just three unnamed officers.
The investigations came amid a rising trend in complaints about Gold Coast officers, who since 2007 have attracted complaints at twice the rate as the QPS as a whole.
The Courier-Mail revealed in August that more than 20 QPS officers had quit in the previous 18 months, after being investigated over serious incidents, from corruption and favouritism to sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviour.
Revelations of misconduct appear to have eroded public trust in police. Surveys conducted for the QPS show that statewide in 2010-11, seven out of 10 people agreed with the proposition "most police are honest", down from eight out of 10 in 2007-08. Only six out of 10 people surveyed on the Gold Coast agreed.
A Queensland Police Union spokesman said public perceptions of police were no different to those for other public servants, including politicians. "There's no doubt that in all areas of public service there is increasing cynicism," he said.
Gold Coast district chief Supt Paul Ziebarth told top brass earlier this year that assaults and use of excessive force by officers were continuing concerns but there had been a drop in complaints. Supt Ziebarth said a "lack of practical discipline investigation skills" was holding up reports on bad behaviour so he planned more training.
Ethical Standards Command identified nine officers as being "at risk" and they were given counselling and performance management. One constable was transferred away from a "high risk" location.
Complaints substantiated against police in the Gold Coast district more than doubled, from less than one in every 20 complaints in the second half of 2009 to more than one in 10 a year later.
SOURCE
Only a nong would trust the Qld. wallopers anyway
DISCIPLINARY problems among Gold Coast police and declining public trust have been exposed in internal briefings obtained by The Courier-Mail.
Thirty Gold Coast officers were subject to internal disciplinary hearings in 2010-11 as part of a crackdown that followed a rise in complaints.
One officer was dismissed after being investigated for "stealing from a social club". Eight others, probed for a range of more serious offences including fraud, perjury, supplying drugs, sexual misconduct with a witness and forgery, resigned.
A further four officers were stood down and two suspended. Five of the matters were dealt with by the courts.
Twelve other officers were fined, demoted or reprimanded for discipline breaches, including using a police vehicle to buy alcohol and falsifying rosters, according to documents obtained under the Right To Information laws.
The Crime and Misconduct Commission's widely publicised Operation Tesco corruption probe into Gold Coast police in June mentioned just three unnamed officers.
The investigations came amid a rising trend in complaints about Gold Coast officers, who since 2007 have attracted complaints at twice the rate as the QPS as a whole.
The Courier-Mail revealed in August that more than 20 QPS officers had quit in the previous 18 months, after being investigated over serious incidents, from corruption and favouritism to sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviour.
Revelations of misconduct appear to have eroded public trust in police. Surveys conducted for the QPS show that statewide in 2010-11, seven out of 10 people agreed with the proposition "most police are honest", down from eight out of 10 in 2007-08. Only six out of 10 people surveyed on the Gold Coast agreed.
A Queensland Police Union spokesman said public perceptions of police were no different to those for other public servants, including politicians. "There's no doubt that in all areas of public service there is increasing cynicism," he said.
Gold Coast district chief Supt Paul Ziebarth told top brass earlier this year that assaults and use of excessive force by officers were continuing concerns but there had been a drop in complaints. Supt Ziebarth said a "lack of practical discipline investigation skills" was holding up reports on bad behaviour so he planned more training.
Ethical Standards Command identified nine officers as being "at risk" and they were given counselling and performance management. One constable was transferred away from a "high risk" location.
Complaints substantiated against police in the Gold Coast district more than doubled, from less than one in every 20 complaints in the second half of 2009 to more than one in 10 a year later.
SOURCE
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Gold Coast cop fined over bikie's death
Speeding doesn't deserve the death penalty
A GOLD Coast policeman has been fined more than $13,000 for misconduct relating to the death of a bikie during a high-speed police chase.
Senior-Constable Stephen Chapman was originally fined $400 in February by Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Wilson but the Crime and Misconduct Commission stepped in and lodged an appeal.
Yesterday the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal found the original penalty was "manifestly inadequate" and ordered Sen-Const Chapman to pay the fine off at $128 a week for the next two years.
The misconduct relates to a pursuit involving Craig Robert Shepherd, 26, a member of the Odins Warriors motorcycle gang, who died after his bike hit a rock wall on a tight bend at Beechmont Rd on June 16, 2006. His passenger suffered permanent brain damage when the bike landed on top of her.
A coronial inquest in 2008 found that moments before the crash, Mr Shepherd was being pursued by a police car being driven by Sen-Constable Chapman at speeds of up to 160km/h.
Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Wilson had found Sen-Constable Chapman guilty of being untruthful during follow-up interviews and not complying with policies regard pursuits.
Sen-Constable Chapman, 48, had admitted contravening pursuit policies but contested the untruthfulness charge. He was fined $200 for each breach.
The CMC lodged an appeal with the tribunal on the grounds the penalty was manifestly inadequate and sought Sen Const Chapman's dismissal from the police service.
Sen-Constable Chapman and three other officers on duty the night Mr Shephard died also appealed against Mr Wilson's findings that they were untruthful in interviews by not declaring phone calls made about the incident.
While the officers were cleared of untruthfulness, in their QCAT judgment, Judicial Member James Thomas, QC, and Senior Member Richard Oliver ruled Sen-Constable Chapman's breaches were "serious" and while not serious enough to deserve his dismissal, a $200 fine was manifestly inadequate. Instead, the tribunal ordered Sen-Constable Chapman's pay be cut for two years.
"He had an exemplary record of service prior to the incident, and pleaded guilty to the only charge upon which he has been subsequently found guilty," the judgment found. "Notwithstanding this early plea, he has had the stress of five years' delay before determination.
"Taking into account all these factors, including the need to ensure that the police pursuit policy is respected, and attempting to maintain some consistency, we consider the appropriate sanction is the loss of two pay points for a period of two years."
SOURCE
Speeding doesn't deserve the death penalty
A GOLD Coast policeman has been fined more than $13,000 for misconduct relating to the death of a bikie during a high-speed police chase.
Senior-Constable Stephen Chapman was originally fined $400 in February by Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Wilson but the Crime and Misconduct Commission stepped in and lodged an appeal.
Yesterday the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal found the original penalty was "manifestly inadequate" and ordered Sen-Const Chapman to pay the fine off at $128 a week for the next two years.
The misconduct relates to a pursuit involving Craig Robert Shepherd, 26, a member of the Odins Warriors motorcycle gang, who died after his bike hit a rock wall on a tight bend at Beechmont Rd on June 16, 2006. His passenger suffered permanent brain damage when the bike landed on top of her.
A coronial inquest in 2008 found that moments before the crash, Mr Shepherd was being pursued by a police car being driven by Sen-Constable Chapman at speeds of up to 160km/h.
Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Wilson had found Sen-Constable Chapman guilty of being untruthful during follow-up interviews and not complying with policies regard pursuits.
Sen-Constable Chapman, 48, had admitted contravening pursuit policies but contested the untruthfulness charge. He was fined $200 for each breach.
The CMC lodged an appeal with the tribunal on the grounds the penalty was manifestly inadequate and sought Sen Const Chapman's dismissal from the police service.
Sen-Constable Chapman and three other officers on duty the night Mr Shephard died also appealed against Mr Wilson's findings that they were untruthful in interviews by not declaring phone calls made about the incident.
While the officers were cleared of untruthfulness, in their QCAT judgment, Judicial Member James Thomas, QC, and Senior Member Richard Oliver ruled Sen-Constable Chapman's breaches were "serious" and while not serious enough to deserve his dismissal, a $200 fine was manifestly inadequate. Instead, the tribunal ordered Sen-Constable Chapman's pay be cut for two years.
"He had an exemplary record of service prior to the incident, and pleaded guilty to the only charge upon which he has been subsequently found guilty," the judgment found. "Notwithstanding this early plea, he has had the stress of five years' delay before determination.
"Taking into account all these factors, including the need to ensure that the police pursuit policy is respected, and attempting to maintain some consistency, we consider the appropriate sanction is the loss of two pay points for a period of two years."
SOURCE
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Stupid Qld. cops think pointing an empty gun at someone is attemped murder
A DISABILITY pensioner who was charged with attempted murder after he pointed an empty gun at a former friend and pulled the trigger, pleaded guilty to the far lesser crime of common assault, today.
Robert John Anforth , 62, spent six months in custody on remand and was to face a trial today of attempting to murder Paul Asher last year.
However, prosecutor Jacob Robson told the Supreme Court in Brisbane, the Crown would no longer proceed with the attempted murder but would present another indictment charging Anforth with common assault.
Attempted murder carries a maximum sentence of life in jail while common assault has a maximum penalty of three years jail.
Mr Robson said after careful anaylsis of the evidence it was apparent the Crown would have difficulty proving Anforth had an intent to kill and it accepted Anforth was trying to scare his victim.
He said the attitude of the victim had also changed and Mr Asher had not wanted the attempted murder trial to go ahead.
After hearing submissions, Justice George Fryberg agreed it was unlikely on the evidence he had seen a reasonable jury would have convicted Anforth of attempted murder.
However, Justice Fryberg said the matter went from police charging Anforth, to magistrates court hearing where Anforth was committed to stand trial on attempted murder, to various reviews where even 10 days ago an attempted murder trial was to go ahead.
Justice Fryberg said it wasn't until Mr Robson was given the brief 10 days ago someone had looked at it and realised the problems with an attempted murder charge.
Anforth pleaded guilty to the common assault on Asher, on July 30 last year.
The court heard Asher had been staying at Anforth's rural property at Minden, west of Ipswich, for about three months but things were strained and Asher was planning to move out.
Asher was loading wood onto a ute at the property when he saw Anforth who pulled a handgun out of his short pointed it at Asher and pulled the trigger. The gun was unloaded at that time.
The court heard Asher took cover and then heard a shot. He started running and heard another shot before fleeing to a nearby shop where he called police.
Mr Robson said the common assault had been the pointing of the unloaded gun at Mr Asher and it was compunded by the actual shots which were not directed at Mr Asher.
Barrister Sea Seaholme, for Anforth, said the Crown always faced problems with proving his client intended to injure Mr Asher and the two later shots had been fired in the air.
Justice Fryberg said it was a serious example of common assault as Anforth had terrorised his victim. But he said after taking into account the time already spent in custody and the guilty plea he would sentence Anforth to a wholly suspended 27 months jail.
SOURCE
A DISABILITY pensioner who was charged with attempted murder after he pointed an empty gun at a former friend and pulled the trigger, pleaded guilty to the far lesser crime of common assault, today.
Robert John Anforth , 62, spent six months in custody on remand and was to face a trial today of attempting to murder Paul Asher last year.
However, prosecutor Jacob Robson told the Supreme Court in Brisbane, the Crown would no longer proceed with the attempted murder but would present another indictment charging Anforth with common assault.
Attempted murder carries a maximum sentence of life in jail while common assault has a maximum penalty of three years jail.
Mr Robson said after careful anaylsis of the evidence it was apparent the Crown would have difficulty proving Anforth had an intent to kill and it accepted Anforth was trying to scare his victim.
He said the attitude of the victim had also changed and Mr Asher had not wanted the attempted murder trial to go ahead.
After hearing submissions, Justice George Fryberg agreed it was unlikely on the evidence he had seen a reasonable jury would have convicted Anforth of attempted murder.
However, Justice Fryberg said the matter went from police charging Anforth, to magistrates court hearing where Anforth was committed to stand trial on attempted murder, to various reviews where even 10 days ago an attempted murder trial was to go ahead.
Justice Fryberg said it wasn't until Mr Robson was given the brief 10 days ago someone had looked at it and realised the problems with an attempted murder charge.
Anforth pleaded guilty to the common assault on Asher, on July 30 last year.
The court heard Asher had been staying at Anforth's rural property at Minden, west of Ipswich, for about three months but things were strained and Asher was planning to move out.
Asher was loading wood onto a ute at the property when he saw Anforth who pulled a handgun out of his short pointed it at Asher and pulled the trigger. The gun was unloaded at that time.
The court heard Asher took cover and then heard a shot. He started running and heard another shot before fleeing to a nearby shop where he called police.
Mr Robson said the common assault had been the pointing of the unloaded gun at Mr Asher and it was compunded by the actual shots which were not directed at Mr Asher.
Barrister Sea Seaholme, for Anforth, said the Crown always faced problems with proving his client intended to injure Mr Asher and the two later shots had been fired in the air.
Justice Fryberg said it was a serious example of common assault as Anforth had terrorised his victim. But he said after taking into account the time already spent in custody and the guilty plea he would sentence Anforth to a wholly suspended 27 months jail.
SOURCE
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Police inspector stood down over leaving can of dog food on desk
The very idea that revelations of police misbehaviour are wrong is deeply offensive to the community
A CAN of dog food has landed a police inspector in hot water after allegations of inappropriate office behaviour.
The inspector from the Ethical Standards Command allegedly had a disagreement with a co-worker and afterwards left a can of dog food on the person's desk as an insult.
The 44-year-old inspector has been stood down from his position and reassigned to a non-operational area at Police Headquarters until an investigation into his alleged behaviour wraps up.
Queensland Police released a statement saying they expect all officers to perform their duties ethically and professionally.
Calling someone a dog is said to be the worst thing a police officer can call a co-worker because it means they are a snitch or have “dobbed” on them for doing something.
SOURCE
The very idea that revelations of police misbehaviour are wrong is deeply offensive to the community
A CAN of dog food has landed a police inspector in hot water after allegations of inappropriate office behaviour.
The inspector from the Ethical Standards Command allegedly had a disagreement with a co-worker and afterwards left a can of dog food on the person's desk as an insult.
The 44-year-old inspector has been stood down from his position and reassigned to a non-operational area at Police Headquarters until an investigation into his alleged behaviour wraps up.
Queensland Police released a statement saying they expect all officers to perform their duties ethically and professionally.
Calling someone a dog is said to be the worst thing a police officer can call a co-worker because it means they are a snitch or have “dobbed” on them for doing something.
SOURCE
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
An amusing -- but revealing -- defeat for the Queensland wallopers
On Sept. 15 I reported on the case of Eaves v. Donnelly in which Renee Eaves was awarded the sum of $93,000 against ex-cop Barry John Donnelly and the State of Queensland.
One would have thought that the Queensland Police Service would have been deeply embarrassed to find that a private prosecution was needed to establish the culpability of one of their officers after they had proclaimed that he had no case to answer.
Had there been any decency at the top one would have thought that prompt payment of the award accompanied by profuse apologies to Ms Eaves would be the order of the day.
Their actual response however established what low types run the Qld. cops. They say that fish rot from the head and it seems that the Qld cops are still in that category. The Fitzgerald enquiry put the Qld. police chief in jail so rottenness at the top is a reasonable expectation in Qld.
And that expectation would seem to be borne out in the Eaves vs. Donnelly matter. Instead of showing any contrition, the police decided to appeal the verdict. The scathing comments about them from Judge Samios were apparently like water off a duck's back. And that decision to appeal can only have come from somewhere close to the top if not the top itself.
But here's the amusing part: Their grounds for appeal were so weak that they had to back out of the appeal. They went to the Court of Appeal (a division of the Qld Supreme Court) but the court either point blank refused to hear them or they were quietly advised that they had no case.
What scum!
Needless to say, Renee is feeling in a very good mood at the moment after the failure of the appeal (though she still hasn't got the money) so she sent me some pix:
Renee's comment on the Pic above: "The boy's club army all to sort out one lil blonde single mum....... Chickens ... but expensive ones for the taxpayers. Sherman Oh is the Asian one and Mark Hinson the senior counsel is front right"
Renee in a place she now rather likes
A meditation
The amount the cops must have spent on legal services in the matter rather boggles the mind. It would have been MUCH cheaper for the taxpayer if they had settled out of court. But to do that would have required at least an implicit admission of fault and they were clearly not adult enough for that.
On Sept. 15 I reported on the case of Eaves v. Donnelly in which Renee Eaves was awarded the sum of $93,000 against ex-cop Barry John Donnelly and the State of Queensland.
One would have thought that the Queensland Police Service would have been deeply embarrassed to find that a private prosecution was needed to establish the culpability of one of their officers after they had proclaimed that he had no case to answer.
Had there been any decency at the top one would have thought that prompt payment of the award accompanied by profuse apologies to Ms Eaves would be the order of the day.
Their actual response however established what low types run the Qld. cops. They say that fish rot from the head and it seems that the Qld cops are still in that category. The Fitzgerald enquiry put the Qld. police chief in jail so rottenness at the top is a reasonable expectation in Qld.
And that expectation would seem to be borne out in the Eaves vs. Donnelly matter. Instead of showing any contrition, the police decided to appeal the verdict. The scathing comments about them from Judge Samios were apparently like water off a duck's back. And that decision to appeal can only have come from somewhere close to the top if not the top itself.
But here's the amusing part: Their grounds for appeal were so weak that they had to back out of the appeal. They went to the Court of Appeal (a division of the Qld Supreme Court) but the court either point blank refused to hear them or they were quietly advised that they had no case.
What scum!
Needless to say, Renee is feeling in a very good mood at the moment after the failure of the appeal (though she still hasn't got the money) so she sent me some pix:
Renee's comment on the Pic above: "The boy's club army all to sort out one lil blonde single mum....... Chickens ... but expensive ones for the taxpayers. Sherman Oh is the Asian one and Mark Hinson the senior counsel is front right"
Renee in a place she now rather likes
A meditation
The amount the cops must have spent on legal services in the matter rather boggles the mind. It would have been MUCH cheaper for the taxpayer if they had settled out of court. But to do that would have required at least an implicit admission of fault and they were clearly not adult enough for that.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
A letter to the Qld. CMC
Sent to me for publication by the author
I wish to submit a complaint about police officer Jamie Hurley, who also goes by the name of Jamie Joseph. Issues include:
• Using police computers to access private information about me without cause
• Using police computers to access legal information and publishing same on facebook
• Using the heroic death of a police officer as an excuse to get stress leave so that he could pursue an acting career
• Taking place in a film whilst on duty (Alien Sons, filmed in Jacobs Well)
• Attending acting classes with me and a certain movie producer and performing other personal errands whilst on duty and in uniform
• Leaving his police weapon on the coffee table with a civilian whilst he went up to his car – can describe it as a Colt, also displaying it to my father
• Using a police vehicle for private purposes, and taking photos of actors in the back of his police vehicle (details enclosed)
• Earning an income as an actor whilst on stress leave
• Displaying and discharging a taser on a civilian to display it’s effect whilst they were visiting his home (kept in police safe, was removed in my presence)
• Bringing a confiscated weapon (knife) to a film set, being photographed/filmed with it and later giving same to one of the crew – can offer it back as evidence
• Acting as a safety officer on film set whilst on duty (Alien Sons)
• Discharging his weapon without cause to “display it’s power” at Jacobs Well
• Using his badge to remove children from an area of a park to make space for filming even though he was off duty and there was no legal right for the crew to have the park to themselves
I realise that bringing an accusation against a police officer usually just results in even more harassment and no action, as he so succinctly pointed out himself, but a line has to be drawn somewhere, and I have had enough of a bad police officer abusing his privilege and making my life hell in the middle of it all.
Sent to me for publication by the author
I wish to submit a complaint about police officer Jamie Hurley, who also goes by the name of Jamie Joseph. Issues include:
• Using police computers to access private information about me without cause
• Using police computers to access legal information and publishing same on facebook
• Using the heroic death of a police officer as an excuse to get stress leave so that he could pursue an acting career
• Taking place in a film whilst on duty (Alien Sons, filmed in Jacobs Well)
• Attending acting classes with me and a certain movie producer and performing other personal errands whilst on duty and in uniform
• Leaving his police weapon on the coffee table with a civilian whilst he went up to his car – can describe it as a Colt, also displaying it to my father
• Using a police vehicle for private purposes, and taking photos of actors in the back of his police vehicle (details enclosed)
• Earning an income as an actor whilst on stress leave
• Displaying and discharging a taser on a civilian to display it’s effect whilst they were visiting his home (kept in police safe, was removed in my presence)
• Bringing a confiscated weapon (knife) to a film set, being photographed/filmed with it and later giving same to one of the crew – can offer it back as evidence
• Acting as a safety officer on film set whilst on duty (Alien Sons)
• Discharging his weapon without cause to “display it’s power” at Jacobs Well
• Using his badge to remove children from an area of a park to make space for filming even though he was off duty and there was no legal right for the crew to have the park to themselves
I realise that bringing an accusation against a police officer usually just results in even more harassment and no action, as he so succinctly pointed out himself, but a line has to be drawn somewhere, and I have had enough of a bad police officer abusing his privilege and making my life hell in the middle of it all.
UPDATE: James Hurley has emailed me as follows:
I was a police officer for many years both in Victoria and Queensland. As a police officer, I NEVER did anything that was illegal or outside the boundaries of my position. I was given the opportunities to abuse my position by both police officers and criminals, yet I always refused and at times when necessary, reported the issue. I left the Qld service in 2013 suffering from PTSD. I am trying to get my life on track and recover from this illness and am succeeding now. The complaint placed on your blog was a totally fictitious complaint made up by a person wanted for impersonating a gynaecologist. This person and his partner blamed me for the QPS finding out who they were and they mdd it their goal to impact my life in a negative way. The part of this that really gets to me is the claim I used the death of my very good friend and colleague as a reason to get out of work. This really pisses me off. 90% of the rest of the complaint was discounted by investigation. i.e.: the downloading of the Taser to prove an activation had not occurred. There are a couple of things I can’t prove didn’t happen but believe when I say they didn’t. My request is, can you please remove this story from your blog? It is completely untrue and it does continue to haunt me.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Queensland Police crime figures flawed and unreliable, say criminologists
QUEENSLAND Police keep two sets of books on crime - only one of which they release to the public. The other they keep to themselves.
Queenslanders get district and regional figures, which criminologists say cannot be used to measure crime accurately because the reporting method is flawed and unreliable.
By contrast, residents in NSW can access crime statistics by suburb, collected by an independent body and published online.
Since 2006, the QPS has made 41 changes to police district boundaries, making "apples to apples" comparisons impossible.
In 2009 the Gold Coast police district shrank from 1140sq km to 374sq km after the QPS created a 3004sq km Coomera police district. Crimes figures for several Gold Coast crime categories declined as a result.
Police Minister Neil Roberts told The Courier-Mail that police had provided him with recent crime statistics on Gold Coast crime based on the old district boundaries but the QPS has declined to provide these to The Courier-Mail.
The minister's office has yet to respond to a request to supply this data.
Police also record "divisional" figures on a consistent basis but they are kept secret.
On the Gold Coast, divisional figures are collected for Coolangatta, Palm Beach, Broadbeach, Surfers Paradise, Southport, Runaway Bay, Mudgeeraba, Nerang, Coomera and Robina.
With the exception of Robina, boundaries for those areas had not changed during the past decade, a senior police source told The Courier-Mail.
The QPS said it could not release the divisional statistics because they had not been "verified" by their statistics unit. "We don't do anything further down than the districts," a spokeswoman said.
The QPS told The Courier-Mail it would have to make an application under Right To Information laws to see the divisional statistics, which also are routinely denied to academics.
"You have to go through a research committee and they are likely to refuse you," said leading criminologist Paul Wilson of Bond University, adding he knew of no researcher accessing the data.
Professor Wilson said of the police figures: "You can't get any consistent trends over time. They are quite inadequate."
A QPS spokeswoman said the geographic boundaries were "operational police boundaries and as such are amended over time to meet operational needs" such as when new housing estates were created.
LNP police spokesman John-Paul Langbroek said he had never been provided the divisional crime figures for the Gold Coast district he represents.
SOURCE
QUEENSLAND Police keep two sets of books on crime - only one of which they release to the public. The other they keep to themselves.
Queenslanders get district and regional figures, which criminologists say cannot be used to measure crime accurately because the reporting method is flawed and unreliable.
By contrast, residents in NSW can access crime statistics by suburb, collected by an independent body and published online.
Since 2006, the QPS has made 41 changes to police district boundaries, making "apples to apples" comparisons impossible.
In 2009 the Gold Coast police district shrank from 1140sq km to 374sq km after the QPS created a 3004sq km Coomera police district. Crimes figures for several Gold Coast crime categories declined as a result.
Police Minister Neil Roberts told The Courier-Mail that police had provided him with recent crime statistics on Gold Coast crime based on the old district boundaries but the QPS has declined to provide these to The Courier-Mail.
The minister's office has yet to respond to a request to supply this data.
Police also record "divisional" figures on a consistent basis but they are kept secret.
On the Gold Coast, divisional figures are collected for Coolangatta, Palm Beach, Broadbeach, Surfers Paradise, Southport, Runaway Bay, Mudgeeraba, Nerang, Coomera and Robina.
With the exception of Robina, boundaries for those areas had not changed during the past decade, a senior police source told The Courier-Mail.
The QPS said it could not release the divisional statistics because they had not been "verified" by their statistics unit. "We don't do anything further down than the districts," a spokeswoman said.
The QPS told The Courier-Mail it would have to make an application under Right To Information laws to see the divisional statistics, which also are routinely denied to academics.
"You have to go through a research committee and they are likely to refuse you," said leading criminologist Paul Wilson of Bond University, adding he knew of no researcher accessing the data.
Professor Wilson said of the police figures: "You can't get any consistent trends over time. They are quite inadequate."
A QPS spokeswoman said the geographic boundaries were "operational police boundaries and as such are amended over time to meet operational needs" such as when new housing estates were created.
LNP police spokesman John-Paul Langbroek said he had never been provided the divisional crime figures for the Gold Coast district he represents.
SOURCE
Friday, September 16, 2011
Constable Barry John Donnelly and State of Queensland to pay Renee Eaves, 35, damages for harrassment, intimidation
A QUEENSLAND traffic policeman and the State Government have been ordered to the pay a former model $93,000 in damages for harassment and intimidation more than five years ago.
Brisbane District Court judge Nick Samios ordered Constable Barry John Donnelly and the State of Queensland pay Renee Terri Eaves, 35, damages after she was arrested and falsely imprisoned amid allegations she drove while disqualified on March 16, 2009.
Judge Samios, in a 21-page written judgment, said he accepted Constable Donnelly demonstrated he "did not like'' Ms Eaves, then more than four months pregnant, when he led her away in handcuffs past fellow residents at her Vernon Tce apartments at Teneriffe.
Ms Eaves was seeking $200,000 in damages after she claimed Constable Donnelly arrested her despite her protestations that her partner had driven from the Royal Brisbane Hospital -- where she was treated for pregnancy-related nausea.
She claimed Constable Donnelly took her to the Brisbane Watchhouse and that she was denied medication or a container to vomit in and was abused by another female prisoner for being sick in the cell.
Ms Eaves, in her statement, alleged that before the arrest Constable Donelly had regularly parked outside her unit and called her intercom. She said he intercepted her on 15 to 20 occasions between May 2004 and March 2006. Ms Eaves was later found not guilty of unlicensed driving.
During a four day civil trial in the District Court early last month, Ms Eaves testified Constable Donnelly, after placing her in handcuffs about 5.45pm on March 16, had paraded her through her building, down a lift, past cafes, shops, people and neighbours.
"(Ms Eaves) said (that) along the way she was sick and she was dry-retching and then once in the police vehicle she felt sick and needed to vomit,'' Judge Samios said.
"(Ms Eaves) was then transported to the Roma Street Watchhouse where she was taken into custody ... charged with the offence of disqualified driving ... (and later) before a magistrate ... was found not guilty of the charge.''
The court was told Ms Eaves, who represented herself during the hearing, felt her arrest was a malicious act and that she was "really scared about being put in the lock-up while pregnant.''
Ms Eaves testified Constable Donnelly had subjected her to ongoing harassment prior to the 2006 incident, saying the officer had approached her on between "15 and 20 occasions.''
Constable Donnelly testified he had "rarely made mistakes in his working life'' as a police officer.
Under cross-examination by Ms Eaves, Constable Donnelly denied acting in a "spiteful'' manner at the time he arrested her. "(However Constable Donnelly) agreed there had been verbal slanging-matches between (Ms Eaves) and (himself) but he said it was from (Ms Eaves') side not from his,'' Judge Samios said.
The court was told Ms Eaves' "traffic history was appalling'' and that she had racked up 30 traffic offences between January 7, 2000 and October 26, 2004. Judge Samios said Ms Eaves finally regained her driver's licence on July 31, 2008, but was booked for speeding the following day and caught driving while using a mobile phone on September 5, 2008.
In handing down his findings, Judge Samios said: "I consider (Constable Donnelly) was not even-handed about (Ms Eaves) ... (and) appeared to be adverse to (her).'' "I find (Constable Donnelly) made a mistake when he identified (Ms Eaves) as the driver of the vehicle ... (and) I do not accept he made an honest mistake.''
Judge Samios said he accepted Ms Eaves to be a "truthful witness'' and in particular "her evidence about her past dealings'' with Constable Donnelly. "(Constable Donnelly) handcuffed her with her hands behind her back and laughed at her when she was vomiting,'' he said.
"I find (Constable Donnelly) guilty of false imprisonment of (Ms Eaves) ... (and) I find the (State of Queensland) vicariously liable.''
Judge Samios awarded Ms Eaves $30,000 in compensatory damages, $10,000 in exemplary damages, $20,000 in aggravated damages and $33,000 interest.
SOURCE
A QUEENSLAND traffic policeman and the State Government have been ordered to the pay a former model $93,000 in damages for harassment and intimidation more than five years ago.
Brisbane District Court judge Nick Samios ordered Constable Barry John Donnelly and the State of Queensland pay Renee Terri Eaves, 35, damages after she was arrested and falsely imprisoned amid allegations she drove while disqualified on March 16, 2009.
Judge Samios, in a 21-page written judgment, said he accepted Constable Donnelly demonstrated he "did not like'' Ms Eaves, then more than four months pregnant, when he led her away in handcuffs past fellow residents at her Vernon Tce apartments at Teneriffe.
Ms Eaves was seeking $200,000 in damages after she claimed Constable Donnelly arrested her despite her protestations that her partner had driven from the Royal Brisbane Hospital -- where she was treated for pregnancy-related nausea.
She claimed Constable Donnelly took her to the Brisbane Watchhouse and that she was denied medication or a container to vomit in and was abused by another female prisoner for being sick in the cell.
Ms Eaves, in her statement, alleged that before the arrest Constable Donelly had regularly parked outside her unit and called her intercom. She said he intercepted her on 15 to 20 occasions between May 2004 and March 2006. Ms Eaves was later found not guilty of unlicensed driving.
During a four day civil trial in the District Court early last month, Ms Eaves testified Constable Donnelly, after placing her in handcuffs about 5.45pm on March 16, had paraded her through her building, down a lift, past cafes, shops, people and neighbours.
"(Ms Eaves) said (that) along the way she was sick and she was dry-retching and then once in the police vehicle she felt sick and needed to vomit,'' Judge Samios said.
"(Ms Eaves) was then transported to the Roma Street Watchhouse where she was taken into custody ... charged with the offence of disqualified driving ... (and later) before a magistrate ... was found not guilty of the charge.''
The court was told Ms Eaves, who represented herself during the hearing, felt her arrest was a malicious act and that she was "really scared about being put in the lock-up while pregnant.''
Ms Eaves testified Constable Donnelly had subjected her to ongoing harassment prior to the 2006 incident, saying the officer had approached her on between "15 and 20 occasions.''
Constable Donnelly testified he had "rarely made mistakes in his working life'' as a police officer.
Under cross-examination by Ms Eaves, Constable Donnelly denied acting in a "spiteful'' manner at the time he arrested her. "(However Constable Donnelly) agreed there had been verbal slanging-matches between (Ms Eaves) and (himself) but he said it was from (Ms Eaves') side not from his,'' Judge Samios said.
The court was told Ms Eaves' "traffic history was appalling'' and that she had racked up 30 traffic offences between January 7, 2000 and October 26, 2004. Judge Samios said Ms Eaves finally regained her driver's licence on July 31, 2008, but was booked for speeding the following day and caught driving while using a mobile phone on September 5, 2008.
In handing down his findings, Judge Samios said: "I consider (Constable Donnelly) was not even-handed about (Ms Eaves) ... (and) appeared to be adverse to (her).'' "I find (Constable Donnelly) made a mistake when he identified (Ms Eaves) as the driver of the vehicle ... (and) I do not accept he made an honest mistake.''
Judge Samios said he accepted Ms Eaves to be a "truthful witness'' and in particular "her evidence about her past dealings'' with Constable Donnelly. "(Constable Donnelly) handcuffed her with her hands behind her back and laughed at her when she was vomiting,'' he said.
"I find (Constable Donnelly) guilty of false imprisonment of (Ms Eaves) ... (and) I find the (State of Queensland) vicariously liable.''
Judge Samios awarded Ms Eaves $30,000 in compensatory damages, $10,000 in exemplary damages, $20,000 in aggravated damages and $33,000 interest.
SOURCE
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Amazing case: Single mother sues slimy cop -- and wins
She represented herself in court against a range of top legal brains and beat them all
I have in front of me a copy of the District Court judgment of today's date in the matter of Eaves v. Donnelly in which Renee Eaves was awarded the sum of $93,000 against Barry John Donnelly and the State of Queensland.
Ms Eaves is a very attractive blonde model from whom (I surmise) constable Donnelly wanted sex. He apparently was such a low character that he thought he could coerce her into it. She did not oblige him.
So he launched a campaign of harassment against her, secure in the assumption that a dumb blonde could never do anything to touch a Queensland cop.
He arrested her repeatedly on trumped up charges, all of which were thrown out when they came to court.
It was then that Renee showed her steel. She was NOT just a pretty face but a woman determined to get justice against the scum concerned.
And she stuck at it for years. She of course complained to the CMC -- where police investigate police -- and they rejected her complaint.
She then began to get media coverage of the matter, hoping that would shake some action loose. It didn't but it stressed out the cop. He went on stress leave for a year and then resigned.
But Renee still felt that the police had to be held to account -- to discourage oppression of other women by police. So she launched a damages claim in the District Court, where she showed she is not only a steely blonde but a smart one. She repeatedly cross-examined successfully.
During her long battle to get into the District Court, however, Renee ran out of money. Everything about the law is expensive and her means were slender. She in fact ran out just before the matter was due to come up so it looked as if her long battle was going to be for nought.
At that point I stepped in and paid her legal costs from that point on. I had never even met her but I have had a loathing against scum police ever since the extraordinary Barry Mannix case -- where the corrupt police got off Scot-free.
The real villain in this case, however is not the scum cop but rather the police service and the CMC who did nothing to pull him into line or attempt to make amends for his deeds. Except for the extraordinary courage of Ms Eaves, the guilt of the cop in the matter would never have been established.
And in the end it is the taxpayer who will pay -- well over $100,000 all up when legal costs are included.
She represented herself in court against a range of top legal brains and beat them all
I have in front of me a copy of the District Court judgment of today's date in the matter of Eaves v. Donnelly in which Renee Eaves was awarded the sum of $93,000 against Barry John Donnelly and the State of Queensland.
Ms Eaves is a very attractive blonde model from whom (I surmise) constable Donnelly wanted sex. He apparently was such a low character that he thought he could coerce her into it. She did not oblige him.
So he launched a campaign of harassment against her, secure in the assumption that a dumb blonde could never do anything to touch a Queensland cop.
He arrested her repeatedly on trumped up charges, all of which were thrown out when they came to court.
It was then that Renee showed her steel. She was NOT just a pretty face but a woman determined to get justice against the scum concerned.
And she stuck at it for years. She of course complained to the CMC -- where police investigate police -- and they rejected her complaint.
She then began to get media coverage of the matter, hoping that would shake some action loose. It didn't but it stressed out the cop. He went on stress leave for a year and then resigned.
But Renee still felt that the police had to be held to account -- to discourage oppression of other women by police. So she launched a damages claim in the District Court, where she showed she is not only a steely blonde but a smart one. She repeatedly cross-examined successfully.
During her long battle to get into the District Court, however, Renee ran out of money. Everything about the law is expensive and her means were slender. She in fact ran out just before the matter was due to come up so it looked as if her long battle was going to be for nought.
At that point I stepped in and paid her legal costs from that point on. I had never even met her but I have had a loathing against scum police ever since the extraordinary Barry Mannix case -- where the corrupt police got off Scot-free.
The real villain in this case, however is not the scum cop but rather the police service and the CMC who did nothing to pull him into line or attempt to make amends for his deeds. Except for the extraordinary courage of Ms Eaves, the guilt of the cop in the matter would never have been established.
And in the end it is the taxpayer who will pay -- well over $100,000 all up when legal costs are included.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
More than 600 Queensland police officers caught breaking traffic laws in two years
A POLICE sergeant who let an unlicensed young woman drive his marked patrol car while he changed gears is one of more than 600 officers who have been caught breaking traffic laws in the past two years.
The officer from Dimbulah in far north Queensland was reported by a witness after the car swerved to miss a kangaroo and hit a tree, then drove off. He had been seen drinking at the Chillagoe Hotel, about 100km away, before the crash.
The Ethical Standards Command investigated the case, along with 44 others relating to police weaving through bus lanes, talking on mobile phones while driving, drink-driving on the job and even driving unlicensed.
Another 557 police were made to pay speeding or red-light offences out of their own pocket after it was found they had no valid excuse for breaking traffic laws.
In three more cases, the police service could not identify the driver and had to pay the "corporate" fine.
A Queensland Police Service spokesman said the infringements officers had to pay themselves amounted to "fewer than one a day".
He said police could only speed while responding to priority one or two jobs and go through a red light after stopping to ensure it was safe to do so.
Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said the fines showed police were treated no differently to others who broke traffic laws.
"If anything, police face more scrutiny and harsher treatment because of their role in the community," Mr Leavers said.
"Given there's more than 10,000 police in Queensland driving millions of kilometres a year, the numbers are really very small."
But Terry O'Gorman from the Queensland Council of Civil Liberties said it was appalling so many police were breaking traffic laws and escaping fines or disciplinary action.
Of the 45 cases investigated by ESC, 29 resulted in the lowest form of police discipline "managerial guidance" for the officers involved.
They included a motorcycle officer who drove at 146km/h in an 80km/h zone on the Sunshine Coast to catch another rider exceeding the speed limit by 28km/h.
A senior constable spotted talking on her mobile phone while escorting a long wide load was also given managerial guidance, as was an officer who used a police car for personal jobs, leaving his station and being unable to respond to an urgent case.
Mr Leavers said managerial guidance was a "valuable tool" in the disciplinary system.
Mr O'Gorman said their light-handed treatment reflected the attitude among police that there was "one law for them and another for the rest of us".
The Dimbulah sergeant was ordered to pay $9000 restitution to cover vehicle repairs and had his pay docked by about $40 a week.
SUBSTANTIATED
* A constable whose licence had been suspended by SPER was caught on camera speeding despite not being on the way to a job.
* A policewoman was spotted talking on her mobile phone while escorting a long-wide load.
* A policeman talking on his mobile while driving told a civilian who questioned him that police were exempt from traffic laws.
* An off-duty constable pulled over by police when he was seen talking on his mobile phone then blew a blood-alcohol reading of 0.051 per cent.
* A police officer on the way to a disturbance at Woorabinda hit a kangaroo and then recorded an alcometer reading of 0.057 per cent after reporting the incident.
* A police car struck a woman walking through Brunswick Street Mall and offered her no assistance.
* An officer who dobbed in a police recruit applicant for speeding was disciplined himself for doing 143 in a 70km/h zone in an unauthorised pursuit while off-duty.
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/officers-caught-in-road-law-breaches/story-e6freoof-1226133456822
A POLICE sergeant who let an unlicensed young woman drive his marked patrol car while he changed gears is one of more than 600 officers who have been caught breaking traffic laws in the past two years.
The officer from Dimbulah in far north Queensland was reported by a witness after the car swerved to miss a kangaroo and hit a tree, then drove off. He had been seen drinking at the Chillagoe Hotel, about 100km away, before the crash.
The Ethical Standards Command investigated the case, along with 44 others relating to police weaving through bus lanes, talking on mobile phones while driving, drink-driving on the job and even driving unlicensed.
Another 557 police were made to pay speeding or red-light offences out of their own pocket after it was found they had no valid excuse for breaking traffic laws.
In three more cases, the police service could not identify the driver and had to pay the "corporate" fine.
A Queensland Police Service spokesman said the infringements officers had to pay themselves amounted to "fewer than one a day".
He said police could only speed while responding to priority one or two jobs and go through a red light after stopping to ensure it was safe to do so.
Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said the fines showed police were treated no differently to others who broke traffic laws.
"If anything, police face more scrutiny and harsher treatment because of their role in the community," Mr Leavers said.
"Given there's more than 10,000 police in Queensland driving millions of kilometres a year, the numbers are really very small."
But Terry O'Gorman from the Queensland Council of Civil Liberties said it was appalling so many police were breaking traffic laws and escaping fines or disciplinary action.
Of the 45 cases investigated by ESC, 29 resulted in the lowest form of police discipline "managerial guidance" for the officers involved.
They included a motorcycle officer who drove at 146km/h in an 80km/h zone on the Sunshine Coast to catch another rider exceeding the speed limit by 28km/h.
A senior constable spotted talking on her mobile phone while escorting a long wide load was also given managerial guidance, as was an officer who used a police car for personal jobs, leaving his station and being unable to respond to an urgent case.
Mr Leavers said managerial guidance was a "valuable tool" in the disciplinary system.
Mr O'Gorman said their light-handed treatment reflected the attitude among police that there was "one law for them and another for the rest of us".
The Dimbulah sergeant was ordered to pay $9000 restitution to cover vehicle repairs and had his pay docked by about $40 a week.
SUBSTANTIATED
* A constable whose licence had been suspended by SPER was caught on camera speeding despite not being on the way to a job.
* A policewoman was spotted talking on her mobile phone while escorting a long-wide load.
* A policeman talking on his mobile while driving told a civilian who questioned him that police were exempt from traffic laws.
* An off-duty constable pulled over by police when he was seen talking on his mobile phone then blew a blood-alcohol reading of 0.051 per cent.
* A police officer on the way to a disturbance at Woorabinda hit a kangaroo and then recorded an alcometer reading of 0.057 per cent after reporting the incident.
* A police car struck a woman walking through Brunswick Street Mall and offered her no assistance.
* An officer who dobbed in a police recruit applicant for speeding was disciplined himself for doing 143 in a 70km/h zone in an unauthorised pursuit while off-duty.
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/officers-caught-in-road-law-breaches/story-e6freoof-1226133456822
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