Category Archives: Australian police and policing

Teen felt ‘degraded and belittled’ by former University of New England vice-chancellor, court told

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Prof Brigid Heywood has pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and offensive behaviour over an alleged incident in March 2022

A teenager who was allegedly assaulted and subjected to offensive behaviour by the former vice-chancellor of the University of New England at an International Women’s Day event last year has told a court that the incident left her feeling “ degraded and belittled”.

Prof Brigid Heywood, 65, a British-Australian biological scientist, is alleged to have wiped her saliva on a teenager’s face and commented on her skin colour at a council-run International Women’s Day event on 8 May 2022. She was a panellist at the event.

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Domestic violence advocates outraged over potential for ‘watered-down’ Queensland police integrity unit

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Expert says anything less than the ‘full implementation of an independent police integrity model’ will fail to prevent the continuation of misconduct

The daughter of a domestic violence murder victim, who a coroner found was systematically failed by Queensland police, is urging the state government to stamp out the practice of police investigating themselves.

Shayne Probert’s mother, Doreen Langham, was killed when her ex-partner set fire to her townhouse, south of Brisbane, in 2021.

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In Australia, the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. In the UK, call the national domestic abuse helpline on 0808 2000 247, or visit Women’s Aid. In the US, the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines may be found via www.befrienders.org

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Celine Cremer: waterfall and river to be searched for missing Belgian tourist in Tasmania

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Police say swift water will be examined on Tuesday ‘before we begin to scale back the search’

Police will search waterways as they continue looking for the Belgian tourist Celine Cremer, who has been missing for two weeks in remote Tasmanian wilderness.

Officers say they will examine the Philosopher Falls area more closely on Tuesday before scaling back the search.

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Children locked in cells for up to 23 hours at South Australia’s youth detention centre

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Child protection watchdog says distress at Kurlana Tapa caused by prolonged detention is leading to self-harm

Children are being locked in their cells for up to 23 consecutive hours partly due to staffing shortages at South Australia’s youth detention centre, with the system in crisis amid a spate of “shocking” self-harm incidents, the state’s guardian for young people says.

Shona Reid, the guardian and youth detention inspector, said children were becoming so distressed due to prolonged detention that they were harming themselves at the Kurlana Tapa Youth Justice Centre.

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Calls for Victorian government to scrap Covid fines as data shows minority groups more likely to be penalised

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Some community leaders say report is evidence of officers targeting people based on their ethnicity, which Victoria police rejects

African, Middle Eastern and Indigenous community leaders are calling for the Andrews government and Victoria police to review Covid fines after a report revealed ethnic minorities and First Nations people were more likely to receive infringements for breaching lockdown rules.

Released on Tuesday, the report revealed people of African and Middle Eastern appearance were four times more likely to receive fines for breaching the state’s lockdown rules in 2020, accounting for share of the population. Victoria police have rejected the allegation by the report’s lead researcher that officers targeted certain racial groups.

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Victoria police accused of racial profiling, as data shows minority groups more likely to receive Covid fines

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African, Middle Eastern and First Nations people up to four times more likely to be fined for Covid-19 breaches

Victoria police officers have been accused of racial profiling, with a report showing they disproportionately targeted people of non-Anglo appearance during the pandemic.

African, Middle Eastern and First Nations people were up to four times more likely to be fined for COVID-19 breaches, when considering their share of the state’s population.

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‘Very effective use of force’: Queensland police chief defends officer filmed punching crash driver

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Footage appears to show driver being repeatedly punched through a car window before he was Tasered

Queensland’s police commissioner has defended an officer’s actions after “confronting footage” emerged of him repeatedly punching a man involved in a head-on crash in Brisbane’s north.

The footage, first published by Nine, appears to show the officer repeatedly punching and hitting the driver through a car window before Tasering the man, on Thursday.

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NSW police removed mention of Taser and knife from first statement about Clare Nowland

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The 95-year-old died after she was Tasered during a confrontation with police at a nursing home in Cooma in May

Documents show New South Wales police removed mention of paramedics, a knife and a Taser in their first statement about the Tasering of a 95-year-old grandmother.

Clare Nowland was Tasered during a confrontation with police while walking with a frame and holding a steak knife at the Yallambee Lodge in Cooma on 17 May, according to subsequent police statements.

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Real-time reporting to monitor Aboriginal deaths in custody

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New data dashboard to provide up-to-date information supplied by states and territories

Governments will be held more accountable for their criminal justice systems with the launch of a new source of information on Indigenous deaths in custody.

Since the royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody released its report in 1991 there have been more than 540 First Nations deaths in custody.

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Climate protesters block coal shipments in three states as Minns warns against ‘dangerous’ situations

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Blockade Australia’s coordinated action targets ports in Newcastle, Brisbane and Melbourne

Climate protesters have disrupted coal shipments and motorway traffic at ports in Newcastle, Brisbane and Melbourne.

A climate protester has suspended herself from a rail bridge at the Newcastle coal ports, blocking trains, as coordinated protests were mounted at ports in Melbourne and Brisbane. The woman was livestreaming her solitary protest online and police were on site.

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Drowning of Indigenous man during police chase sparks call for water safety review

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Coroner makes recommendation following inquest into death of Brandon Clark, who fled into dangerous waters after vehicle stop

Police did everything they could to save the life of Indigenous man Brandon Clark who fled into dangerous river waters while evading officers and drowned, a coroner has found.

Clark had been pulled over by police during a vehicle stop when officers discovered an alleged breach of bail. He was also affected by illicit substances at the time.

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Police and crime researchers fear social media’s affect on crime in NSW and Victoria

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Data released in both states suggest online posts may have contributed to a rise in certain types of crime

Social media platforms allowing teenagers to brag about crimes might be contributing to an increase in youth offending in Australia’s most populous states, Victorian police and New South Wales’ crime statistics agency say.

In Victoria, data from the Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) released on Thursday reported that home burglaries committed by 10-to-14-year-olds increased by almost 87% in the 12 months to 31 March, compared with the prior year. This is despite youth offending being down by almost half, compared with a decade ago.

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Liberal MPs break ranks to call for inquiry into Brittany Higgins’ leaked text messages

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Andrew Bragg and Bridget Archer make call after Network Ten asks AFP to investigate alleged leaking of evidence in Bruce Lehrmann trial

Liberals Andrew Bragg and Bridget Archer have broken ranks to call for an inquiry into how Brittany Higgins’ text messages were leaked, with Bragg labelling debate in the Senate where the Coalition is pursuing Katy Gallagher “very ugly”.

The pair made the call after the finance minister denied misleading the Senate about her knowledge of Higgins’ allegation before it aired and Network Ten asked the Australian federal police to investigate how Higgins’ texts became public.

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Australian federal police abandon two alleged murder investigations into Ben Roberts-Smith

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The long-running investigations into murder allegations in Afghanistan will be replaced by new inquiries because of concerns about evidence

Two key criminal investigations into alleged murders involving Ben Roberts-Smith have been abandoned by the Australian federal police because of concerns over potentially inadmissible evidence.

The long-running investigations – into murder allegations at a compound codenamed Whiskey 108 and in the southern Afghan village of Darwan – will be replaced by new inquiries undertaken by a new joint taskforce, staffed by officials from the Office of the Special Investigator and federal police investigators not previously connected to the cases.

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Murder charges to be laid over death of Perth police officer dragged under car during arrest

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Constable Anthony Woods, 28, succumbed to his injuries on Sunday night, three days after he was run over by a car allegedly bearing stolen plates

Murder charges will be laid against the accused driver of a car that ran over and killed a West Australian police officer.

Constable Anthony Woods, 28, was in an induced coma at Royal Perth hospital after the incident on Thursday but WA police on Sunday night confirmed that he had succumbed to his injuries.

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Boy, 16, charged after woman and girl allegedly found stabbed in family tragedy in Queensland

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Police say emergency services found woman, 39, and girl, 11, with a number of wounds at home in Rosewood, west of Brisbane

A 16-year-old boy has been charged with attempted murder after a woman and a girl were allegedly found stabbed in a family tragedy in Queensland.

Queensland police said emergency services went to a home at Rosewood, west of Brisbane, on Thursday night, where they found the woman, 39, and the girl, 11, with a number of wounds to the abdomen.

In Australia, the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. In the UK, call the national domestic abuse helpline on 0808 2000 247, or visit Women’s Aid. In the US, the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines may be found via www.befrienders.org

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Indigenous deaths in custody at record high and public perception of police worst in 10 years, report finds

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Productivity Commission report on government services says 26% of Australia’s state-owned Indigenous housing is overcrowded

Indigenous deaths in custody are at their highest in the 15 years that records have been kept while public perceptions of the honesty and fairness of police officers has reached a 10-year low, according to new data from the federal Productivity Commission.

The Report on Government Services also found overcrowding in public housing is on the rise, while the number of public housing properties of an acceptable standard has sharply dropped.

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School bus driver and two camels killed in central Queensland crash

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The man was on his way to work when he crashed into the escaped animals in Livingstone, police say

A school bus driver has been killed after he crashed into two escaped camels in central Queensland.

Both camels were also killed in the crash on Emu Park Road in Livingstone, east of Rockhampton, shortly after 5am on Monday, police said.

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Father charged with the murder of his three-year-old son in Sydney

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The boy was found dead in a unit in Riverwood with his father, Nathan Vikatos, who was arrested in hospital after life-saving surgery on injuries

A father has been charged with murder over the death of his three-year-old son in Sydney’s south-west.

The toddler was found dead alongside his father, 45-year-old Nathan Vikatos, who had serious injuries, inside their Riverwood apartment on Wednesday afternoon, police said.

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‘Incredibly concerning’: new study highlights policing failures in deaths of Indigenous women by domestic violence

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Researcher found clear patterns when she identified how women were killed and how police and the justice system responded

A “damning” new study of the deaths of more than 150 First Nations women at the hands of their partner or former partner has found patterns of policing failures, with the lead researcher saying most were preventable.

The study by Monash University examined 151 coronial court investigations and inquests of First Nations women and girls who were killed by intimate partner violence over a 20-year period.

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