‘I make no apologies’: Patton warns police to behave as misconduct complaints rise

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton says he makes no apologies for cracking down on police behaviour and wants those found guilty of misconduct pushed from the force.

Patton issued a warning to the force’s employees that “no one in this organisation is above the law” in an internal email on Wednesday.

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton. Credit: Justin McManus

He said he was compelled to draw a line in the sand after noticing a rise in the number of police officers facing disciplinary hearings for misconduct, including family violence, drink-driving, and releasing confidential police information.

“With this power comes great responsibility. Whether you are police officer, PSO or Victorian public service employee, we are all here to serve the community and set a positive example for our great organisation,” the email read.

“That is why I will not tolerate misconduct of any kind from our employees.”

During a press conference on Thursday, Patton said officers engaging in serious misconduct should expect to be sacked except in very limited circumstances.

“I don’t step away from this. I make no apologies,” he told reporters. “It sounds severe, but it is severe because we as an organisation can’t afford to have our reputation tarnished by a very small few, and I know that the police officers, the vast majority, are very much behind me on this.”

Patton said it was about ensuring the community retained its confidence in the police, particularly when it came down to its handling of sensitive personal information.

“We need the public’s trust, and we need the public’s confidence in us. We need our members to have trust and confidence in each other,” he said.

There were about 100 disciplinary hearings involving the force’s 18,000 police and PSOs in the past year. In 2022, Victoria Police dismissed a total of 17 police officers found to have engaged in serious misconduct, and an additional 30 resigned before the disciplinary process concluded.

Patton said that was a slight increase from previous years but could not provide figures exact figures.

I don’t know how you get to go out and lock someone for being a drug user if you’re on the gear yourself.

Chief Commissioner Shane Patton

The chief commissioner attributed the rise to increased reporting of misconduct among employees, improved workplace culture, more frequent alcohol and drug testing of staff, and Victoria Police’s growing workforce.

“We’ve got more people than ever before, we’ve represented now the community, and we will have some people who are bad apples that’s the reality,” Patton said.

“What this shows is that we’re prepared to investigate we’re prepared to hold them to account.”

However, data from the force’s annual reports indicates the force shrunk in size for the first time since 2018 last year, losing a total of 384 employees, including 128 police officers and 24 protective services officers.

Victoria Police has been struggling to retain and recruit new officers at a time when public trust in law enforcement has slumped to a record low.

Patton said the vast majority of employees caught doing the wrong thing would be fired, but he conceded those caught behind the wheel only slightly over the legal alcohol limit wouldn’t necessarily lose their jobs.

He said the increase in misconduct reports did not indicate a need to bolster the force’s recruitment process, and he was “very comfortable” with the current vetting process.

Police Association of Victoria secretary Wayne Gatt backed Patton’s decision to caution employees, telling 3AW on Thursday morning it was not unusual for employers to talk to their staff about their expectations.

“Overwhelmingly when there are breaches of criminality, most people do ultimately lose their jobs,” Gatt said. “But they are very small in number in the overall number of things that the discipline system looks at.”

He said disciplinary hearings most often dealt with “misgivings, mistakes, and errors made”.

Premier Daniel Andrews also spoke in support of Patton, telling reporters on Thursday the email was part of Victoria Police’s work to address cultural issues.

“There’s a lot there’s a lot written and a lot said about police culture, whether it be Victoria Police or any other police force, right across our country and indeed across the world,” he said.

“I would have thought it was a wholly good thing that the chief commissioner the head of our police force is out there reminding everyone both sworn and non-sworn they are not above the law.”

Andrews said it was not appropriate for him to comment on whether officers caught misbehaving should be immediately sacked.

The Professional Standards Command, the body within Victoria Police that deals with allegations of misconduct, is currently in the process of reforming the handling of complaints.

Information about the nature of the changes, which will be launched before the end of the year, remains scant but would require police to seek changes to the current legislation.

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