Australian state police under fire after shredding rape victim’s statement
Guardian Australia reported on Friday that police conducted 59 internal investigations into computer hacking during a 13-month period, and took no further action in 52 of those cases
The Queensland police culture is now “way worse” than before the landmark reforms of the Fitzgerald inquiry, say advocates, who are preparing to launch a new independent group to highlight the state’s lack of oversight of police misconduct and corruption.
Guardian Australia revealed this week that Queensland police shredded the rape statement of a woman known as Lyla – without having previously spoken to her or investigating her claim – and then later told her they couldn’t “wave a magic wand and fix all of your problems”.
The police said on Thursday, immediately after The Guardian posted its story, that the shredding of Lyla’s statement would be investigated by their ethical standards command. Lyla lodged a formal complaint with the police on 23 July and had not been contacted yet.
The premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, and the police commissioner, Ian Stewart, were asked to comment on the case, amid growing concerns the state’s police and legal systems were failing to protect vulnerable women. The premier’s office did not respond, and the police said Stewart was unavailable.
The justice advocate Renee Eaves had her personal details accessed on the police database 1,400 times by about 400 officers. She now supports victims of police misconduct and has helped establish the new group, which will be launched this month.
“Things are way worse than they were pre-Fitzgerald. We are far worse,” Eaves said. “The aim behind the committee is to highlight the inadequate oversight of police misconduct and police corruption, to highlight nepotism and maladministration.