Queensland Police union’s call to name and shame serious child criminals who kill people

Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers says child criminals who kill people should be named and shamed and courts should be open to the media.

Fraser Coast nurse Sheree Robertson, Reach Church pastor Michale Chandler and teen Kelsie Davies were killed in the horror crash in Maryborough.

Serious child criminals who kill people should be named and shamed and courts should be open to the media, Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers has argued in the wake of Maryborough’s triple fatal.

There should also be a Judicial Complaints Commission that holds the judiciary to account, he said.

Three women were killed and another woman is in a serious condition after a car, allegedly driven by a teenager and stolen, crashed into the back of a vehicle at Maryborough on Sunday night.

Queensland Police have charged a 13-year-old boy.

Speaking generally and not specifically about this case, Mr Leavers on Thursday said teenagers who kill people should be treated as adults.

“That means we should be looking at open courts, the public have a right to know this,” he said.

“And I believe it is in the public interest that this information is publicly available.

“We are not talking about a minor crime...”

Queensland Police Union President, Ian Leavers. Picture: Daniel Shirkie

When the 13-year-old faced court on Tuesday, multiple media organisations made applications to sit in court as the matter went before Maryborough Children’s Court in Queensland’s Fraser Coast region.

Magistrate John Milburn denied the applications and said it could be prejudicial for the child if the mention went into the details that were more than just administrative.

Speaking generally, Mr Leavers said the open court measures should be introduced for the most serious offenders.

“You kill someone, you lose any right that you should have,” he said.

“The public does not know this exists.

“They need to know for ... recidivist serial offenders who are committing very serious crimes like murder ... the public deserves to know.

“When people are killed, the media should have a right to go into the courtroom and be able to report the facts. The only time I would say there should be a suppression, if it is detrimental to the victim. Because the victim I think is something that we all forget about from time to time.”

Fraser Coast nurse Sheree Robertson, 52, Reach Church pastor Michale Chandler, 29, and Kelsie Davies, 17, were killed in a horror crash in Maryborough.

Mr Leavers also called for a Judicial Complaints Commission.

“Because the only people who are not held to account in society are those in the judiciary,” he said.

“If they are not doing their job and meeting community expectations, they need to be held to account.

“Every other occupation has that, the judiciary do not.

“What I do see, we see governments of all persuasions bring in legislation, they increase the maximum penalty, but at the end of the day the courts don’t administer that.

“So if the courts aren’t doing their job, I think the public have a right to make a complaint and it needs to be dealt with and dealt with accordingly.”

Earlier this week Mr Leavers also called for children to be sentenced as adults.

He also called for parents and caregivers to be held more accountable in incidents involving youth offenders, suggesting they should have their welfare (payments) docked.

Queensland Police Union president, Ian Leavers has called for children who commit serious crimes to be named and shamed and for the introduction of a judicial complaints commission. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Mr Leavers said the tragedy also showed why the criminal age of responsibility should not be raised to 14.

“I cannot envisage delivering a death message to a family saying your loved one has been killed but the offender is (underage) and there is nothing we can do as police,” he said.

“They are now out walking the streets, they cannot be arrested, they cannot be diverted, there is nothing we can do.

“I suggest to the do-gooders, the lefties, and all those who want to sympathise and say that person has had a terrible upbringing, or a judicial officer, you go and deliver the death message. You see the pain that the families go through. The police officers I represent are dealing with victims day in and day out and they see the pain and the frustration that people go through.”