Stand him down: Domestic violence advocate on officers alleged remarks

DV groups want a Gold Coast cop accused of writing a “lot of sandwiches NOT getting made” on a DV rally post stood down. The Police Commissioner (pictured) is also appalled.

Queensland Police Commissioner Shane Chelepy. Picture: Archive.

The Queensland Police Service (QPS) is facing pressure to stand down a Gold Coast officer accused of making offensive online remarks about a domestic violence rally.

The Facebook comment on a Gold Coast Bulletin news post on May 11 said: “All I see is a lot of women sitting around...and a lot of sandwiches NOT getting made.”

The post was from an account which multiple police sources say is linked to a serving male detective.

It was about a gathering in Broadbeach, organised by grassroots organisation What Were You Wearing, as part of a national day of action in support of domestic violence victims. Included was a photo of two young women holding signs reading “We are the voices of the women who no longer have one” and “Walking home shouldn’t be a death sentence”.

A QPS spokesperson confirmed QPS was "aware of this matter which is subject to internal investigation”, the Bulletin revealed on Tuesday.

What Were You Wearing founder Sarah Williams. Picture: Supplied.

What Were You Wearing founder, Sarah Williams said on Wednesday: “The detective should have immediately been stood down pending the investigation.

“It’s just so scary to think someone with those misogynistic and sexist thoughts could be the officer attending a life or death situation. It creates an unsafe environment victim survivors. How do we know that the investigation hasn’t made him actually more angry and more distasteful to women?”

Police Commissioner Shane Chelepy labelled the comments “extremely disappointing” and said he expected better of his officers.

“That’s not the professional standards I expect. It’s not the attitudes I expect,” Mr Chelepy said.

“We work hard every single day of the week keeping our victims, victim survivors, safe in domestic and family violence incidents. We expect professional behavior.”

When asked whether he believed the matter should be investigated externally of the police service, the Commissioner said: “We work with triple-C (Crime and Corruption Commission) all the time. I really support the work our ethical standards command do.”

A QPS spokesperson refused to say whether the officer at the centre of the probe had been stood down or put on alternative duties.

The detective’s colleagues say he remains on duty.

Ms Williams, a DV survivor, said: “I was pretty appalled by how misogynistic and how dehumanising the comment was.

“It literally reinforces outdated sexist ideas that women belong in the kitchen and quite often that language is used to silence and belittle women who speak out. It goes to show that there’s still a desperate need for change in the culture of the Queensland Police Service.

“A lot of the people who gathered for the rallies were survivors and the families of women who have been murdered.”

The comment posted by the account allegedly belonging to a police officer.

The investigating Ethical Standards Command has long been criticised for a perceived lack of independence and effective oversight.

A 2022 Commission of Inquiry into the QPS responses to Domestic and Family Violence found ESC “is not sufficiently independent or effective to give QPS members comfort that, if they make a complaint, it will be dealt with fairly, transparently and in a way that is likely to lead to positive change”.

The Commission recommended an independent Police Integrity Unit (PIU) be established by early 2024 to end the practice of police investigating police. Despite committing to the PIU, it has never been implemented by the state government.

Originally published as Stand him down: Domestic violence advocate on officers alleged remarks