Another a*hole with a badge

This time in Australia

PASSENGERS on a Melbourne tram [streetcar] this morning say there was nearly a riot after a burly tram inspector grabbed, shoved and threatened a slightly built schoolteacher as she tried to buy a ticket. The tram driver brought the peak-hour tram to a halt in Middle Park, south of the city, just after 9am as passengers erupted in outrage. Several male passengers stood to come to the woman's aid. Many others, including the tram driver watched on in shock at the physical confrontation between the 100kg inspector and the woman about half his weight.

It is understood the woman boarded the tram shortly before four inspectors got on and was heading to a ticket machine with change before being challenged. Bar manager Daniel Crescia, 33, sitting a few seats back said he watched in horror as the intimidating inspector pushed the woman into safety railing, shoved her into her seat and grabbed her by the wrists. "I was one of the first to stand and say, 'Get your hands off her'." "I just said touch her again, and you'll see what happens." "I found it absolutely repulsive. If he didn't have a badge on him, I would have decked him." "He was looking for trouble." "I told him, 'you shouldn't be in the job you're in'."

Mr Crescia said the inspector's behaviour was worse than some of the drunk patrons his bouncers had to deal with. "These people are there to defuse a situation, not aggravate it," Mr Cresia said.

Fellow passenger Brendan Matheson, 22, who was sitting across from the woman, had a similar story, describing the inspectors behaviour as "disgusting". "He basically just rammed her into the side as he told her she was under arrest." "I said to him, 'Call the police if you want to arrest her'." "Everyone was just screaming at him to let her go." "She was in tears."

While it is unknown whether the woman was issued with a ticket, the tram inspectors alighted from the tram without arresting the woman in the face of fury from other commuters. While one inspector tried to calm the passengers, another inspector seemed reluctant to take details of a complaint, writing down only the last three numbers of his mobile phone, he said. Many other tram passengers wrote down details of the incident.

Yarra Trams spokesman Colin Tyrus said it had not received any complaints through its customer complaint line, but any passengers with concerns about its staff should phone 1800 800 166. He said he was waiting to hear whether the chief tram inspector had been notified of any complaints.

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Australia: Crooked cops relegated

Hurrah!

FIVE senior officers involved in the investigation of wrongly convicted Andrew Mallard remain in limbo, but have officially been allocated non-police roles. WA Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan today said he would not take permanent action against the five officers before the release of a report by former NSW Supreme Court judge John Dunford, QC, next year. Until then, the officers will be involved in duties such as planning for an outbreak of the Avian Flu and other major disaster contingencies. They will perform these duties until the CCC inquiry findings are released, at this stage expected to be in April 2008 at the earliest. The officers are assistant police commissioners Mal Shervill and David Caporn, superintendent John Brandham, inspector Alan Carter and sergeant Mark Emmett.

Mr Dunford has been investigating allegations of misconduct by police and prosecutors in the case against Andrew Mallard, who was convicted in November 1995 of the 1994 murder of Pamela Lawrence in her Mosman Park jewellery store. Mr Mallard spent 12 years in jail before walking free last year. His conviction was quashed by the High Court in 2005, which declared a miscarriage of justice had occurred. Mr Dunford is conducting the inquiry for WA's powerful Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC). "My legal advice instructs that it would be `premature' and `unsafe' to pre-empt (Mr Dunford's) findings,'' Commissioner O'Callaghan said.

The officers would remain stood aside from police duties and work on Emergency Management Business Planning, he said. "Their skills can be put to good use until the CCC inquiry is completed, conducting major project work in areas such as planning for an outbreak of the avian flu pandemic and major disaster contingencies,'' the commissioner said. “These officers have high level skills and are being paid decent wages. "The public rightly expect a return on their investment and it would be untenable to have these officers sitting at home on full pay. “As Mr Jeremy Gormly (Counsel Assisting the inquiry) has stressed several times to Acting Commissioner Dunford, the submissions that are made by counsel assisting don't in any way amount to findings or opinions or assessments, they are simply submissions for Mr Dunford to consider.”

The Commissioner further stated that he would not be commencing any other internal inquiry or process attempting to analyse the very material that Acting Commissioner Dunford has been engaged to determine. Counsel assisting the inquiry Jeremy Gormly has recommended 11 adverse findings against Mr Caporn and nine against Mr Shervill. Police officers polished statements, planted evidence on Mr Mallard, removed and changed facts in witness statements, and rewrote their written accounts of interviews, the inquiry has been told. The officers have consistently denied any wrongdoing.

Commissioner O’Callaghan also advised that Detective Senior Sergeant Tony Dorosz and Detective Sergeant Jim Stanbury, both serving officers who were named by Mr Gormly as potentially being the subject of an adverse finding, can continue to perform operational policing duties. The Commissioner said that the submissions pertaining to these officers did not warrant allocating them non-operational duties. “Until such time as Mr Dunford publishes his report next year I have determined that that there is no purpose in me, or indeed other persons, speculating about what Mr Dunford is yet to conclude,” the Commissioner said. “I will not be making further statements about the CCC Mallard inquiry until Mr Dunford’s report is published and I have had an opportunity to consider it.”

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