The government needs to stop illegal detention of older people [The Age]
This article originally appeared on The Age on 14 Dec 2020.
Excerpt:
Jeremy King, a solicitor who has sued the police for false imprisonment, has seen a court award $30,000 for 30 minutes of false imprisonment. He says: “In addressing the health concerns of COVID-19, it was imperative that a balance be struck between combating the virus and ensuring an individual’s basic civil liberties were protected. If those in aged care were simply locked away without lawful justification and/or without reference to the statutory health restrictions at the time, this is prima facie a case of false imprisonment.”
Police head-stomp victim speaks out about violent incident caught on video [ABC News]
This article originally appeared on The Age on 9 Dec 2020.
Link: https://www.abc.net.au/7.30/police-head-stomp-victim-speaks-out-about-violent/12968270
Excerpt:
Jeremy King commented: “There appear to be some pretty deep-seated issues within Victoria Police and I sincerely believe that will only ever change if we have proper and true and robust independent oversight of Victoria Police, which at the moment we don't have, simply because IBAC is critically under resourced and underfunded.”
Your Rights and Police Accountability
Victoria Police is the body charged with protecting Victorian citizens’ rights. With that power comes accountability mechanisms to ensure its proper exercise and consequences where the power has been misused.
If you believe you have been the subject of police misconduct, you have several options. First, you can submit a complaint to either the Independent Broad-Based Anti-Corruption Commission (IBAC), Victoria Police’s Police Conduct Unit (PCU) or directly through your local police station.
Lodging a complaint against the police could save you time and money. You can submit the complaints yourself online and they will then go through an investigation process. Be aware both the IBAC and the PCU provide online complaint forms, but these do not automatically save upon submission, so you should make sure to save a copy of your complaint for you own records.
IBAC will only investigate matters it deems as serious or systemic corruption and misconduct, and refer all others to the PCU for internal investigation. It can often be the case that investigations are finalised with limited action taken and limited reasoning given about the outcome, leaving many complainants dissatisfied.
In some cases, the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (VEOHRC) or the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) may be appropriate complaint bodies. These organisations focus on public awareness and non-litigious dispute resolution.
You may also have the option to pursue civil litigation against the police. As of 1 July 2014, Victoria Police operates under the Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) (‘the Act’). Section 74 of the Act says that the State of Victoria is liable for police misconduct, rather than the individual police members themselves.
In order to initiate civil proceedings, you must first have a cause of action. This means you must have a reason recognised by the law to bring court proceedings.
The following represent some causes of action common to police misconduct matters:
- Assault;
- Battery;
- False imprisonment (including wrongful arrest);
- Malicious prosecution;
- Misfeasance in public office; and
In order to establish you cause of action, you will have to prove a number of elements on a balance of probabilities. These elements differ for each cause of action.
Bear in mind that according to section 72(1) of the Act, the State will only accept liability for the police’s wrongdoing if it was committed in the ‘performance or purported performance of the officer’s duties’.
This is the first of our Police Accountability series. Stay tuned for future entries on how to establish each cause of action.
If you feel you or someone you know has been the subject of police misconduct, contact us on 9890 3321.
