Reforming Queensland's police complaints system: recent inquiries and the prospects of a best practice model

Tim Prenzler; Michael Maguire

doi:10.1080/10345329.2023.2210791

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Reforming Queensland's police complaints system: recent inquiries and the prospects of a best practice model

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Reforming Queensland's police complaints system: recent inquiries and the prospects of a best practice model

Tim Prenzler and Michael Maguire

Current Issues in Criminal Justice, Vol.35(3), pp.324-339

2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10345329.2023.2210791

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Abstract

civilian oversight of police

complaints against police

mediation of complaints against police

police accountability

police integrity

police misconduct

This paper critiques three recent inquiries and recommended changes in practice around the management of complaints against police in the state of Queensland, Australia, with a view to advancing a best practice model internationally. A civilian oversight system, closely aligned to a 'civilian control' model, was introduced in Queensland as part of a reform program following the 1989 Fitzgerald Inquiry into police corruption. However, external control of complaints was almost completely eroded over a 30-year period. The resumption of police control resulted in recurring scandals and widespread stakeholder disaffection. These issues came to a head and were addressed to varying degrees through three inquiries across 2022: the Review of Culture and Accountability in the Queensland Public Sector ('Coaldrake Review'), the Commission of Inquiry relating to the Crime and Corruption Commission ('Fitzgerald and Wilson Inquiry') and, in particular, the Commission of Inquiry into Queensland Police Service Responses to Domestic and Family Violence ('Richards Inquiry'). The combined findings and recommendations demonstrated the need for rigorous institutional independence and transparency in the processing of complaints, along with a range of complementary integrity management strategies to ensure adequate accountability of police.

Details

Title: Reforming Queensland's police complaints system: recent inquiries and the prospects of a best practice model
Authors: Tim Prenzler (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast
Michael Maguire (Author)
Publication details: Current Issues in Criminal Justice, Vol.35(3), pp.324-339
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Date published: 2023
DOI: 10.1080/10345329.2023.2210791
ISSN: 2206-9542
Copyright note: This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s)or with their consent.
Organisation Unit: University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Law and Society
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99728797102621
Output Type: Journal article

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Web Of Science research areas: Criminology & Penology

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#16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

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