Police DV inquiry: Alarming report claiming lack of police action to be probed

An investigation has been launched into multiple domestic violence incidents detailed in an intelligence report that said victims were at risk of dying due to horrific abuse.

An investigation has been launched into multiple domestic violence incidents detailed in an intelligence report, which said victims were at risk of dying in the state’s far north because of a lack of police action.

An intelligence officer’s report given to the commission of inquiry into Queensland Police Service responses to domestic and family violence said police had not taken action against perpetrators after observing spouses with bloodied lips, swollen faces, black eyes and severe facial injuries from a glassing.

Victims also told police they had been hit deliberately by a vehicle or admitted to hospital with suspected rib fractures after an assault.

The June 2021 report, reviewing incidents in 2020-21, found it was likely a DV death would happen in the Torres Strait and Northern Peninsula because of the frequency and severity of DV.
Head injuries were the most common type of injury noted by the intelligence officer.

The intelligence officer suggested officers on Thursday Island were finalising DV jobs prematurely as “DV other action” and were avoiding charging respondents with domestic-violence-related criminal offences, the inquiry was told.

The report found 80 per cent of DV jobs involved recidivist offenders. Officers in one division had increased finalising jobs as “DV other” by 86 per cent, without providing protection to victims.
“Equally concerning was these finalised occurrences were deemed compliant with legislative and policy responsibilities at station and district level but clearly were contrary to community expectations and the aspirations of the Queensland Police Service,” the officer wrote.

“These D&FV occurrences with less than satisfactory outcomes when repeated over

multiple calls for service heighten the risk of further harm to the aggrieved spouse and named persons with possible fatal consequences.”

Assistant Commissioner Brian Codd

The state’s most senior domestic violence officer, Assistant Commissioner Brian Codd, said he had only been made aware of the “highly concerning” report last week, and had sought further clarifying information about it.

Counsel assisting the inquiry Ruth O’Gorman asked if an investigation would take place into a failure of duty of officers in the region, but Mr Codd said the matter was for the Ethical Standards Command and he would speak to investigators there.

When The Courier-Mail asked the police service if the Ethical Standards Command was investigating, or if officers subject to the report would face allegations of “failure of duty”, a spokeswoman said a “complaint has been generated”.
“The Queensland Police Service Ethical Standards Command can confirm a complaint has been generated and will be reported to the CCC (Crime and Corruption Commission), as is normal procedure for all complaints made to ESC.”

The intelligence officer suggested there was a belief among officers that threats to kill were not DV; that further violence was likely to be minimal if spouses lived apart; a failure to investigate if the incident was a one-off and that non-physical violence was not given enough weight.

Mr Codd said when he asked for feedback from the region on the report he was told by other officers it was a training tool only and an assumption of the intelligence officer only, who hadn’t consulted with investigating officers about why certain actions weren’t taken in DV investigations.

He said he was still seeking further information, but other officers in the region had disagreed with parts of the report and had been told that the intelligence officer didn’t have a DV background in policing.

Commissioner Deborah Richards said the intelligence report was an “extremely disturbing document” and said she hoped the officer would not be “hauled over the coals” given other officers had discredited the report.

“Really, the intelligence officer should be commended for taking the initiative to at least draw some of those matters to attention,” she said.