Sunday, 10 March 2013

Legal twists and turns !

Once again the police are accused of using excessive force - and once again it is the availability of a camera-phone in the hands of the public that has brought them undone.    There was some sort of scuffle at the Sydney Gay Mardi Gras and police arrested an out of control youth.   After the prisoner was handcuffed, he apparently upset one office and was violently thrown to the ground and had a police boot slammed into the middle of his back.  The police told the crowd to stop photographing - something they have no right to demand.

Those pictures went viral in the media and senior police have called for an investigation of the incident - but once again we are seeing the old story of police investigating police.    The entire justice system is based on an independent and unbiased judgement being made in every event where a breach of the law may have occurred.    This " investigation " has the power to prevent this matter reaching court.  If the police decide the incident was minor and decline to send the matter to the prosecutor, that is where it ends.

By and large, we are well served by the justice system, but there is no doubt that it needs fine tuning constantly to keep abreast of changing times.   In some parts of the world the police can not be separated from the bandits that prey on society.   Even in law abiding Australia, there have been incidents where police commissioners have been sacked for corruption and entire police divisions found to be guilty of accepting bribes to allow criminals to go about their business unchecked.

We need police oversight looking over the cop's shoulders, and that can never be satisfactory when complaints against police are investigated only by other police.

There is also no doubt that strange " deals " are done when negotiating guilty pleas between prosecutors and criminals.   A case that comes to mind involved a drug dealer who pulled a gun when arresting police cornered him - and started shooting.    He managed to wound a detective in the arm, but a shot from another police member fatally hit this same detective before the gunman surrendered.

The gunman has expressed remorse and offered apologies to the family of the slain policeman - and has pleaded guilty to " manslaughter on the grounds of excessive defence ".    It is hard to see how a charge of manslaughter can be maintained when it was not this person who fired the fatal shot, but obviously this has been part of a " deal " arraigned between the police, the defence and the judiciary.

The police have a difficult job to do and they sometimes tend to be heavy handed.  We need to keep excessive force within bounds and that can only be achieved by having each and every incident investigated by a completely independent assessor.   The police know they can get away with it if the investigators are fellow police who have good reason to try and maintain the good reputation of the police force.

Sooner or later, if the present situation remains unchecked there will be a glaring incident that screams for justice and gets mega media publicity - and the public outcry will make change inevitable.   Until then, " incidents " will continue to be sanitised and dismissed !

No comments:

Post a Comment