AUSTRALIA: CROOKED POLICE AND PROSECUTORS TO BE INVESTIGATED

A rare but long overdue move

The wrongful imprisonment of Andrew Mallard for almost 12 years for a murder he did not commit is to be examined by a special commissioner. Mr Mallard was cleared last year of murdering Perth jeweller Pamela Lawrence, who was bludgeoned to death in 1994.

WA's Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) has begun investigating allegations of misconduct by police and prosecutors involved in Mr Mallard's case. Attorney-General Jim McGinty said today he would appoint a special commissioner to oversee the investigation. ``Andrew Mallard spent 12 years in jail for a crime that police now admit he did not commit so there are important questions of legal principle and integrity that must now be answered,'' Mr McGinty said. ``The appointment of a special commissioner to focus solely on this inquiry will ensure that no stone is left unturned in this terrible tale of injustice.'' Mr McGinty said he hoped it would be the final chapter for Mr Mallard and the family of Ms Lawrence.

Mr Mallard was convicted in November 1995. He appealed his conviction without success and a subsequent petition for mercy was declined. However, the case went back to the Court of Criminal Appeal in 2002 after new material was submitted and made it to the High Court in 2005 where his conviction was quashed. Mr Mallard was released from jail last year just months before a police cold-case review found sufficient evidence to implicate convicted killer Simon Rochford in Ms Lawrence's murder. Rochford committed suicide in Albany Prison in May 2006, a week after police questioned him about Mrs Lawrence's death. The CCC hopes to begin its public hearing into the Mallard case within the next five months.

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BONEHEADED BRITISH COPS

Award for wrongly accused fireman

A firefighter who accused police of injuring him as he was wrongfully arrested for drug dealing has been awarded 15,000 pounds in compensation. John James, 37, of Oldbury, West Midlands, was arrested and handcuffed while queuing in a restaurant with his six-year-old son. The Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue worker said he suffered numerous injuries in the incident.

A West Midlands Police spokesman said the officer involved had resigned. In a statement the force said: "The police officer involved in this case resigned prior to any misconduct considerations. "The matter is not in dispute and a compensation order has been made."

Mr James' solicitor said he had been queuing with his son in a McDonald's restaurant in June 2004 when he was accused of drug-dealing. He had his arm twisted behind his back and was forced to his knees before being taken away. He was held in custody for an hour. Several days after his release he had to be treated in hospital after collapsing.

He said: "I couldn't believe the treatment I received. "The police officers were informed a black man was selling drugs from a blue car in the car park of McDonald's. "I was in the queue waiting to be served, standing with my son, when I was approached by the policeman intent on arresting me." The firefighter denied any wrongdoing and the Crown Prosecution Service dropped the case a year later. Mr James said he wanted to highlight the fact there "are small pockets in the police force which think they are above the law".

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