DV emergency: We can’t keep waiting for people to die

Not all domestic violence ends in death, but every single DV allegation should be treated seriously, because if it’s not there’s a big risk someone will die, write The Editor.

Not all domestic violence ends in death, but every single domestic violence allegation should be treated seriously – because the risk of not doing so is that somebody dies, as we have seen so tragically far too often in recent years.

The question therefore must be asked whether police were too quick to make up their mind about Curtis Shea Mickan, 34, the man now charged with the attempted murder of his wife after he allegedly set fire to her home early on Sunday morning. He had been arrested late on Saturday after a “high level” disturbance at the home. Mickan was taken into custody but released six hours later on a series of strict conditions. Police did not yet know the details of his alleged assaults on his wife.

Police now allege Mickan lit the fire in an attempt at domestic violence-related arson. Thankfully, his wife and her mother escaped the Wooloowin fire. But the question now is should Mickan have been charged and kept in custody until a magistrate instead of a police officer could rule on his release?

Curtis Shea Mickan. Picture: Supplied

Everything is easy in hindsight. But given the high-stakes nature of domestic violence allegations it is worth considering that if as a community we should demand that people being investigated over such claims should face stricter protocols than those that appear to be place.

This is far from an isolated case, of course. Many other Queensland women – including high-profile victims Hannah Clarke, Kelly Wilkinson, Tara Brown, Doreen Langham and Fabiana Palhares – have been killed by their partners following poor decisions by police.

In the Mickan case, Saturday night was the first time police had been called to the home – as Police Inspector Sean Cryer pointed out. And that is in contrast with most of these other cases. In Ms Langham’s case, for example, she had called police multiple times before she died in a housefire at the hands of her ex-partner.

But the Mickan case should serve as a warning. Police must be willing to now consider if their current procedures in dealing with domestic violence complaints are adequate.

Kelly Wilkinson.

Following the death of Ms Wilkinson allegedly at the hands of her ex-partner last month, Assistant Commissioner Brian Codd said it would be remiss of police not to immediately look for opportunities to learn from the tragedy. Conceding that police had failed Ms Wilkinson – whose ex-partner had received watch-house bail eight days before allegedly murdering her by setting her alight – Assistant Commissioner Codd said the circumstances around alleged offenders being granted bail would be reviewed and police would look at how they could improve systems of support for young officers to help in their decision-making: “It doesn’t matter that 999 times out of 1000 we get it right,” he said.

He was correct. That one case is worth the inconvenience of a few hours in detention for the others.

There is no absolute right to bail in our law. Police officers must use their discretion and judgment to weigh up risk factors, including the likelihood that the person they are deciding whether to release might endanger the welfare of the victim. But is it fair to expect a young police officer working the night shift at a watch-house to make the type of decisions usually reserved for magistrates, who have the benefit of hearing from both the defence and prosecution before granting bail.

Already our Bail Act and the police’s own operations manual tells officers they should consider domestic violence offences a risk factor when deciding whether to grant someone bail. But this is open to interpretation and recent events suggest these measures do not go far enough.

The inquests into the deaths of both Ms Brown and Ms Palhares officially concluded that frontline police failed to recognise the risks their ex-partners posed to them.

While Mickan had not been charged when released on Saturday night, it does appear – again, easy in hindsight – that another police officer has made a questionable decision about an alleged DV offender.

Therefore, Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman must urgently intervene. And Ms Fentiman should resist the urge to simply throw this issue of police release protocols into the mix for her current review into women’s experiences with the criminal justice system.

It is clear we are dealing with an emergency situation. That means it demands an immediate response.