Across all five areas, IBAC identified areas for improvement, which have informed this reports key findings and recommendations. In that matter the complainant sought compensation for property damage during the execution of a search warrant, and alleged that female occupants were not allowed to cover up at the time of entry, in accordance with their religious beliefs. However, the higher substantiation rate for allegations investigated by PSC may be due in part to the fact that matters retained by PSC for investigation are more likely to result in charges or other discipline action if substantiated. Victoria Police is a contemporary and agile workplace and supports flexible working arrangements. However, the audit also identified concerns with how PSC handles complaints, including files that suggest there is room to improve the reporting culture among police officers, a failure to consistently document reasons for decisions about possible disciplinary action, and a range of uses for the C1-0 work file classification which appear to extend well beyond the stated purpose of undertaking preliminary enquiries. As shown in Figure 2, of these 22 files, a member of the public was the primary complainant in 14 matters. Material saved in the document container attached to the investigation was not named consistently. If no: What was the primary reason for delay in investigation? A total of 43 police staff in the Australian state of Victoria have been stood down from duty and could face being fired after they failed to comply with a Covid-19 vaccine mandate, Victoria . Descriptions of these allegations recorded in ROCSID included sexual offence rape, receiving/handing stolen goods, threats to kill, interference in investigation, information misuse, drug use, assault and criminal associations. Following the arrest of the subject officer for unrelated alleged sex offences four years later, local management provided details of the 2011 matter to PSC. one file recommended that the complainant be notified in writing but did not attach a copy of correspondence to confirm that this occurred. The audit identified only one file where the investigators complaint history suggested a pattern of issues relevant to the file they were investigating. Although these should have been included, they were not likely to alter the determination. However, auditors also considered that the nature of the allegations (which are recorded in ROCSID) were clarified in a further 14 work files that were not reclassified. Numerous phone calls were made between the victim and the subject officer (the senior constable) following the burglary. Both matters involved allegations of assault by off-duty intoxicated police officers.55 In both matters investigators noted that: the victim was injured but did not wish to press criminal charges; the allegations were reportable offences within the meaning of Schedule 4 of the Victoria Police Act; and section 127(2) requires that the Assistant Commissioner PSC consult with the OPP before charging the police officer with a breach of discipline. mentioned human rights in some way but failed to identify human rights issues relevant to the file (14 files), failed to address human rights issues at all, including human rights issues relevant to the file (three files).
New team to investigate Victoria Police employees accused of family service of a show cause notice as to why the officer should remain employed by Victoria Police, drug testing (without any formal interview or statement). A file that listed one allegation of duty failure but failed to list an allegation of improper conduct. Following an investigation in which an officer stopped for erratic driving was found to have attempted to dissuade junior officers from conducting a preliminary breath test (PBT), the investigator recommended no further action. This included instances where workplace guidance was recommended, when the auditors assessed that a more serious action was warranted. If no: Reason for disagreeing with reclassification. While none of allegations listed above were substantiated, the officers complaint history should have been considered in its entirety, rather than processing each new complaint in isolation. In one file audited by IBAC, the investigator identified this drug testing of specific work units as an organisational issue, noting that RSD is responsible for maintaining the security and integrity of all criminal records and warrant documentation, and that an employee with a substance abuse issue could be compromised, thus creating a significant security risk for Victoria Police. The department acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the Traditional Custodians of the land and acknowledges and pays respect to their Elders, past and present. https://www.vic.gov.au/terms.html, Department of Justice and Community Safety. While both resulted in workplace guidance for other substantiated allegations, as a matter of procedural fairness, a subject officer should be advised of all substantiated findings to allow them the opportunity to respond. The matter was reported to PSC by the local Criminal Investigation Unit (CIU) responsible for investigating the burglary. The majority of PSC investigations involve situations where the investigator is attached to another unit and is not, therefore, a current colleague of the officer who is the subject of the complaint. the witnesses unwillingness to be involved (three files), the witnesses involvement in potential criminal offence (three files). To date, identified opportunities for improvement have included increased random drug testing as part of PSC investigations, and the centralised coordination of all targeted drug testing. Professional Standards Command - Contacts and Services Directory (Victoria Online), The fastest way to find local, state and federal government information and services, You are here: IBACs audit did not identify any systemic delays in the classification of files by PSC PCU or allocation of files to PSC Investigations Division. The file indicates the managers of both the DAU and the Investigations Division agreed that the subject officer had a case to answer at a discipline hearing. One minor misconduct complaint (C2-1) did not contain any notes to indicate why the subject officer was not advised of the outcome. nine files that did not correctly identify or list all identified subject officers, seven files that recorded an invalid determination, three files that recorded invalid actions or failed to record all the actions recommended in the file. 22 Victoria Police Act 2013, s 169(2) and (3) in relation to misconduct and the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission Act 2011, s 57(2) and (3) in relation to corrupt conduct or police personnel misconduct. requiring investigation plans to be completed and attached to complaint files, noting that this is particularly relevant for the serious and complex matters that PSC primarily handles, requiring that the official conflict of interest form is completed for all investigation files, noting that PSCs independence from other Victoria Police work areas does not negate the need to identify and manage an investigators actual, potential and/or perceived conflict of interest in relation to a specific matter, reviewing the system of determinations to reduce and simplify determination categories, to help ensure clarity for investigators, complainants and subject officers. Ten warranted classification as a criminality or corruption complaint (C3-3 or C3-4) from the outset. The Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) audited 59 investigations run by Victoria Police's Professional Standards Command (PSC) from 2015 and 2016. Twenty-two were classified as work files or corruption complaints (C1-0 or C3-4) on closure which according to the VPMG means outcome advice to the subject officer is not required. not appearing to record a determination in the file, while ROCSID recorded determinations of substantiated or not finalised (two files). It is anticipated that the new procedure of notifying work files will allow IBAC to independently consider those allegations in a timely manner. 64 C1-0 work files and C3-4 corruption complaints. Rather, the sample of 59 files includes all available C1-0 and C3-4 files and at least 10 per cent of the available C3-3, C3-2 and C2-1 files closed by PSC between 1 July 2015 and 30 June 2016 (selected on the basis that those files contained an assault allegation). Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) Tel (general enquiries): 1300 369 711. In the final report, the investigator noted that unauthorised disclosure of police information is a Schedule 4 offence which would require consultation with the OPP to proceed by way of discipline notice, however if the AC PSC determines that the matter be appropriately dealt with by means of admonishment or workplace guidance, consultation with the OPP is not required. Both audits found that human rights were not addressed in the majority of files audited and that those that did discuss human rights frequently failed to identify clear human rights issues, did not address rights in sufficient detail, or demonstrated a poor understanding of human rights by mischaracterising complaint issues as relevant rights. The file was closed as a work file after 500 days, with four allegations marked as unable to determine and three as unfounded. Broader issues relating to other complaint classifications have been highlighted in IBACs 2016 Audit of Victoria Police complaints handling systems at regional level and were not considered to warrant further examination in relation to PSC at this time. Were the final determinations appropriate? Case study 12 is an example of a matter where an investigators request for a DAT was declined for reasons that auditors did not consider appropriate. The victim admitted the burglary occurred the day after he hosted a two-day party at which cocaine and speed had been used, suggesting the offenders may have been looking for drugs. The final report acknowledged the original investigation would not have been considered adequate in the current environment. a significant number of total complaints (four files). IBAC also noted that this was concerning, given that the investigation appeared to suggest that a discipline charge was warranted. The guidelines also state that unless an investigation is classified as work file or a corruption complaint (C1-0 or C3-4), employees are to be informed in writing about the result of an investigation and the action taken or proposed to be taken unless to do so could jeopardise the investigation or future investigations.63. The absence of these documents and other material that records the reasoning behind key decisions hinders the auditing process and undermines the value of complaint files as a means of assisting police to improve practices and procedures.