|
|
|
| NEWS > 20 December 2007 |
Other related articles:
Four police officers under inv
Two Queensland police officers have been suspended and another two have been stood down as part of an investigation by the Crime and Misconduct Commission.
A police spokesman said the disciplinary action was taken this week against the four detectives, who are based in Brisbane and central Queensland.
The spokesman declined to provide further details as the investigation was ongoing.
A spokeswoman for the Crime and Misconduct Commission declined to comment, saying it was part of an ongoing ... Read more
|
 Article sourced from
|
|
Sydney Morning Herald - Sydney
20 December 2007
This article appeared in the above title/site.
To view it in its entirity click this link.
|
New South Wales Police
|
Australia: Police revolt at sh
FURIOUS police warn there will be uproar if their new Commissioner, Andrew Scipione, acts on a recommendation to sack some of the force's most respected officers after the Police Integrity Commission accused them of misconduct.
The commission's critical reports on three serving officers will be a big test for Mr Scipione, who must respond to the findings of the watchdog in the face of mounting anger that the commission has become overzealous in hunting police.
Mr Scipione elected not to face the media to answer questions about the police response to the reports released yesterday, leaving the job to his deputy of less than two months, Dave Owens. Mr Scipione was visiting country police stations.
The commission found consideration should be given to sacking the Detective Inspector Paul Jacob, who played a key role in the arrest of Gordon Wood, the man accused of killing the model Caroline Byrne at The Gap.
The commission accuses Mr Jacob of failing to act on information that suggested an association between a former police officer at Bathurst, Brad Hosemans, and a local woman's disappearance. It said it was "difficult to resist the conclusion" that Mr Jacob had written a deliberately misleading report.
Mr Jacob refused to comment yesterday but the Herald understands he has the support of senior police and detectives at the State Crime Command.
When asked yesterday about anger at the treatment of Mr Jacob, Mr Owens said: "I dispute that morale within the NSW Police Force is at rock bottom."
In a separate report, the PIC suggests Superintendent Adam Purcell, from Sutherland local area command, should face the sack and prosecution for his role in the investigation of the rape of a Finnish tourist after he gave information about the investigation to a witness, the rugby league player Bryan Fletcher.
The commission recommended that he be prosecuted for releasing confidential police information and for giving false and misleading evidence.
It also recommended that Detective Sergeant Alison Rachael Brazel - who was recently promoted - should be prosecuted for giving false and misleading evidence to the commission regarding Mr Purcell.
Mr Purcell, suspended on full pay, told the Herald he would fight any charge. He said he had never acted corruptly, unethically or criminally, and had always acted with the interests of the community at heart. "It is disgusting, it's inaccurate, it's biased and prejudiced," he said of the report. "I am a proud NSW police officer and I have the utmost faith in the organisation and the people who carry out its work."
One senior officer called the commission a "kangaroo court" yesterday. The former deputy police commissioner Clive Small said: "The NSW police can ill-afford to lose people of the calibre of Paul Jacob."
A detective suggested officers would consider industrial action if Mr Jacob - now working at the Sex Crimes Unit - was sacked. "Jacob is more respected
than anyone I know in the cops," he said. "God help them if they look at doing anything. There will be uproar."
The NSW Police Association intends to lodge a complaint with the Inspector of the Police Integrity Commission about its conduct in the two investigations, arguing some of the evidence should not have been publicly aired.
The commission was established after the Wood royal commission into police corruption to prevent and detect serious police misconduct. But many police argue it is pursuing trivial cases to justify its existence.
Mr Owens said the police executive had made no decisions on the recommendations. It would "sit down and digest" the reports. The officers would be entitled to "procedural fairness".
The report found there was no evidence to implicate Mr Hosemans in the disappearance of Janine Vaughan, 31, in Bathurst. But it did find he engaged in misconduct by providing false information about where he was when Ms Vaughan vanished.
Mr Hosemans, who was dismissed from the force over an unrelated allegation, described the investigation as a farce. "It's been an absolute waste of money," he told the Herald yesterday. "It's damaged careers and reputations, for what? Someone needs to pull this organisation into line." He is seeking legal advice. The commission found it difficult to believe Mr Jacob overlooked an inconsistency between telephone records and Mr Hosemans's alibi. It was "difficult to resist the conclusion" that he wrote a deliberately misleading report.
The commission said Mr Jacob should not be prosecuted but consideration should be given to sacking him. Tony Byrne, who worked with Mr Jacob during the investigation into his daughter's alleged murder, said: "I am greatly impressed by his honesty, integrity and compassion."
The commission found Mr Purcell should not be prosecuted for perverting the course of justice but believed he "engaged in police misconduct in respect of his actions in relation to the investigation", for which he should be prosecuted. It said it was inappropriate that he remain in the force.
It also accused him of giving information to a friend about a fraud investigation, leaking information about the Cronulla riots report to the media, and releasing details of a child sexual assault investigation to media.
He has reportedly been told he has lost the Commissioner's confidence.
|
| |
 EiP Comments:
|
|---|
|
| |
* We have no wish to infringe the copyright of any newspaper or periodical. If you feel that we have done so then please contact us with the details and we will remove the article. The articles republished on this site are provided for the purposes of research , private study, criticism , review, and the reporting of current events' We have no wish to infringe the copyright of any newspaper , periodical or other works. If you feel that we have done so then please contact us with the details and where necessary we will remove the work concerned.
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
 |
Ethics in Policing, based in the UK, provide information and advice about the following:
Policing Research | Police News articles | Police Corruption | International Policing | Police Web Sites | Police Forum | Policing Ethics | Police Journals | Police Publications |
|
| |
|
