Victoria Police 'deficiencies' found in IBAC report on internal reviews

Victoria's anti-corruption watchdog says there are "concerning deficiencies" in the way Victoria Police reviews serious incidents, including those that kill or injure members of the public.

IBAC found police failed to consider evidence that should have been included, such as witness statements, in more than half of the cases.

About two-thirds of the reviews also failed to address human rights, while almost a third were not adequately supervised.

The audit also found Victoria Police failed to notify IBAC of 16 deaths and nine serious injuries resulting from police contact.

"The audit identified concerning deficiencies in Victoria Police's oversight, which require immediate attention," IBAC commissioner Robert Redlich QC said in a statement.

"Police have significant powers, the community rightly expects them to use these powers responsibly and perform their duties fairly, impartially and in accordance with the law."

A review is held when a member of the public dies or is seriously injured after contact with police to see if it was preventable.

The watchdog also looked at how thoroughly incidents were investigated, whether reviews were impartial and whether conclusions were justified.

It found a "general overreliance" on police statements and a failure to critically examine the accuracy of police accounts by seeking independent statements or CCTV recordings.

Drunk person found dead after being taken home by police

In one instance, an individual was taken home by police after they were discovered intoxicated, sitting on a public bench.  The police officers decided to take them home after discovering that they were not drunk enough to be arrested.

The individual was discovered hours later dead on their front lawn after falling through a glass frame near their front door.

IBAC found police CCTV inside the police van did not record the incident, and there were inconsistencies in the statements provided by the two police officers who drove the person home.

"The deceased's next of kin expressed concerns about the transparency and truthfulness of the police investigation of the incident," the report said.

It found conflicts of interests were often poorly identified and managed and more than a third of reviews took longer than they should have.

One case IBAC investigated included an alleged family violence incident where a person killed themselves in the days after police involvement in the matter.

The review file was allocated to the same region where the incident took place and the person overseeing the review admitted to having known one of the officers involved "since childhood".
Despite the admission, the review officer did not disqualify themselves from the case.

IBAC recommended giving officers more information and training on human rights, and suggested improvements in how conflicts of interest are managed.

"We have worked closely with IBAC throughout this process and this has allowed us to make good progress in acquitting the recommendations, all of which we accept," Victoria Police said in a statement.

"The Victorian community should be assured that Victoria Police welcomes the work IBAC undertakes in conducting audits of this kind.

"We want to be challenged, and will always act on opportunities to improve."

Victoria Police said it had introduced new conflict of interest forms and compliance measures, as well as new processes to ensure IBAC was notified immediately whenever there was a death or serious injury.

<a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-27/victoria-police-ibac-report-concerning-deficiencies/9591044">SOURCE</a>