Police watchdog wins gun fight
Australian, Page: 2. Wednesday, 12 March, 2008
Investigators from Victoria‘s police corruption watchdog have been given the green light to carry guns, but the Brumby Government has backed away from other forecast increases to its powers.
Under legislation being introduced into parliament this week, Office of Police Integrity officers will be able to carry firearms, batons and capsicum spray, and wear bullet-proof vests.
But Police Minister Bob Cameron said yesterday there would be no watering down of independent scrutiny of the OPI by the Special Investigations Monitor, which deals with complaints about the use of the watchdog’s coercive powers.
Judges would also still be able to order that subpoenaed OPT documents he produced in criminal cases, if it were considered necessary, Mr Cameron said.
A leaked cabinet submission from the Department of Justice revealed last month that senior government bureaucrats were opposed to plans to remove the STM ‘s oversighting role of the OPT, arm the watchdog’s officers without prior approval of Victoria Police and stop its files from being subpoenaed.
In the cabinet briefing note, the department warned the changes could lead to “friendly fire” incidents between police and undercover OPT agents and create a “significant risk” of the watchdog’s agents acting corruptly or improperly.
The SIM, retired judge David Jones, also criticised the proposed changes, which would have seen scrutiny of the OPT handed entirely to the Victorian Ombudsman. The outgoing OPT director, George Brouwer, is also the Ombudsman and is set to continue in that role.
The ability to carry weapons and other enhanced powers had been sought by the OPT under a review of the watchdog’s role under new stand-alone laws.
An OPT spokesman welcomed the changes yesterday, saying it would equip the office to carry out its job more effectively.
Mr Cameron said the STM’s oversighting role would be strengthened. Those wishing to complain about the OPT’s use of its coercive powers during hearings would have 90 days to do so, rather than the current three.
Complaints about the OPT not relating to its coercive powers to force witnesses to answer incriminating questions would still be handled by the Ombudsman.
Mr Cameron said the lack of power to carry weapons had meant the OPT had been unable to conduct a small number of high-risk operations.
He said Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon was “supportive” of the decision to allow OPT operatives to carry weapons.
But Victoria ‘s powerful police union, a trenchant critic of the OPT and what it claims have been abuses of its powers, questioned the need for its operatives to carry guns and renewed its calls for the watchdog to be scrapped.
Association spokesman Senior Sergeant Greg Davies said the OPT needed to be replaced with a broad-ranging anti-corruption body with the powers to investigate not only police but all public officials, including politicians.
Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu described the changes as “tinkering around the edges” and said it was inevitable Victoria would eventually get a broad-based anticorruption commission.
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