Top Queensland cop Katarina Carroll retains Annastacia Palaszczuk’s support

The Queensland Premier won’t sack top cop Katarina Carroll, despite a damning independent inquiry into the state police’s handling of domestic violence, misogyny and racism in its ranks.

Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll. Picture: Liam Kidston

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk will not sack the state’s top cop, Katarina Carroll, despite an independent inquiry declaring she allowed a police culture of misogyny, sexism and ­racism to flourish unchecked, hindering the policing of domestic violence.

In a scathing report, District Court judge Deborah Richards found Ms Carroll oversaw a culture of “fear and silence”, did not understand the police’s flawed ethical complaints system that was introduced under her watch, and failed to swiftly denounce ­misogynistic remarks by two ­senior male officers at professional events.

Ms Palaszczuk said she would not fire Ms Carroll three years into her five-year term as the state’s first female police commissioner because the state needed a “strong woman” to reform the ­organisation.

“That strong woman is Commissioner Katarina Carroll,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

She said Queensland police had been dealing with issues of ­racism and misogyny for “years if not decades”, not just under Ms Carroll’s reign.

“I cannot think of a more appropriate person (to bring about this change),” Ms Palaszczuk said.

Ms Carroll – a veteran police officer who overhauled the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services as commissioner – said she considered offering her resignation to Ms Palaszczuk after reading Judge Richards’ “extraordinarily difficult” report but she said the Premier and cabinet had confidence in her.

“I am the person that will enact reform, and change what you’ve read in the report,” she said.

“I have (an) extensive history of reform.”

Ms Carroll apologised to the public, victims of domestic violence and to her own officers. “It stops, and it stops now,” she said.

She continued, however, to deny the issues were “widespread” in the police, even though Judge Richards said the police leadership “must be willing to frankly acknowledge the breadth and depth of the organisation’s failings to date”.

The inquiry found there was “significant under-resourcing” of domestic violence policing, and a lack of understanding about the dynamics and power imbalances in violent relationships.

Judge Richards found Ms Carroll and police union president Ian Leavers initially protested against the suggestion there were cultural problems in the police.

It was also revealed that complaints against police officers were routinely brushed aside, while the complainants were shunned and punished; this attitude flowed on to some officers’ responses to survivors of domestic violence.

“It is a failure of the leadership of the organisation that this situation has been allowed to continue over many years un-checked,” Judge Richards’ report found.

She found Ms Carroll failed to take the opportunity to “set the ethical tone” for police leadership, and failed to properly carry out her legislative and contracted role to “promote a professional organisation characterised by ethical conduct”.

“Her lack of understanding of her organisation’s complaint ­system in circumstances where the system is supposed to monitor and control the ethical health of the membership reflects poorly on her leadership,” the inquiry found.

Ms Palaszczuk would not say whether she would renew Ms Carroll’s term when it expires.

Judge Richards did not formally recommend the commissioner – who is also a victim of sexual assault and harassment in the QPS – be replaced.

The government has agreed to implement all of the report’s 78 recommendations, including a major reform to replace the current internal police complaints system with an independent, ­civilian-led Police Integrity Unit in the Crime and Corruption Commission.

Police training will also be overhauled to dispel myths such as “women frequently make up allegations” of sexual and domestic violence.

The government will spend an extra $100m on reforms to address domestic violence, including 300 domestic and family violence workers in police stations. The funding does not cover the extra 1000 police the Queensland Police Union says are needed, on top of an extra 2000 more officers the government has previously promised.