Latest news with #policereform
ABC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Should recreational cannabis be legalised?
Policy researchers say now is the time to legalise recreational cannabis to eliminate the black market and free up police to tackle other crime. Alysia Thomas-Sam reports.
News.com.au
5 days ago
- Politics
- News.com.au
Surprising candidate in running for top police job
It's crunch time for the six candidates vying for a role many consider a 'poisoned chalice' – the NSW Police Commissioner. Interviews wrapped up this week and time will soon tell whether Premier Chris Minns has opted for a 'clean skin, dependable safe bet' to calm the storm after the force's turbulent recent history. In the running are hot favourite Mal Lanyon, as well as the current acting commissioner Peter Thurtell, Deputy Commissioner Paul Pisanos, former deputy Mick Willing and two assistant commissioners Peter Cotter and wildcard Rod Smith. The role has brought with it in recent years intense public scrutiny and relentless media attention, and the ever-present threat of misconduct scandals or mishandled critical incidents have created a perception that the job is exceptionally difficult and carries considerable reputational risk. Insiders have told the very dependable and well respected Mr Thurtell has excelled in the role since he took over from the state's first female Commissioner Karen Webb, and Mr Minns would be 'wise' to let him continue to 'steady the ship'. 'Thurtell has got a taste of the top job and knows he can do it,' one senior-placed NSW police officer said. 'Nothing negative has happened under his watch. Every major incident he has taken the lead, not waited or passed it on. 'If there is a critical incident the region commander has to take control but anything he should be in the public eye for, he has been and he's smashed it.' Mr Thurtell has appeared on television as part of a panel discussion on domestic violence and appeared in press conferences when issues arise. He's impressed the troops on the ground with his humble approach. 'He's been a region commander, he's got his battle scars, he has had everything thrown at him and he comes out with flying colours. You can't put him on the hop, if you try to trip him up you can't. 'And what's important is that those who know him absolutely trust him.' While Mr Thurtell might be popular among the troops, most believe Mr Lanyon is the Premier's favourite and a 'shoe in' for the job. 'He's been biding his time, networking with politicians and he's ready for his comeback,' one source said. Mr Lanyon has a long career in the police force, including heading the state crime command, and has been involved in disaster response and recovery, including leading flood recovery efforts in the Northern Rivers region in 2022. He missed out on the top job last time round – many say because of a night in February 2021 where he was found intoxicated, laying on the ground in Gouldburn by ambulance officers who later described him as argumentative and agitated. Mr Lanyon acknowledged his behaviour and sought to apologise personally. While he was publicly hauled over the coals for the incident he has since found new support in politicians and police alike, with many still saying 'he's the best one for the job'. 'You'd think the government might be worried though about the Merino incident coming up over and over again. The force has copped so much bad publicity, but a lot of cops think Mal knows what he's doing, is the most qualified, most media savvy and the best one for the job so I most think the Premier will back him and hope people have short memories.' Mr Lanyon will again go head to head with former sparring partner and fellow deputy Mr Willing. Both lost out to Ms Webb when Premier Dom Perrotet appointed her the state's first female commissioner. Mr Willing says he is an even better candidate today than he was three years ago, and believes he is the best fit to refocus the culture of the NSW Police Force. After being sacked by Ms Webb shortly after she took office, Mr Willing fought his own demons thanks to the sudden loss of identity but found a new purpose as head of Fortem Australia, a non-for-profit organisation devoted to helping first responders and their families. Police welfare is likely to be his key platform. Attracting fewer headlines than the other deputies is Mr Pisanos, best known for his work in regional youth crime. He's travelled the state building rapport with troops on the ground in remote country towns, community elders and kids themselves. He's passionate about steering them away from a life of crime and into the dozen of diversional programs, trying to give them hope of a better future – while talking tough and vowing to lock up the ones who won't cop the tip. 'Pisanos is a straight shooting kind of cop who shouldn't be underestimated,' one colleague said. 'He's a hard worker and commits to whatever he is tasked. 'History will show the favourites in the past haven't taken out the prize so he shouldn't be written-off. Webb certainly wasn't the favourite, nor was Fuller.' In the contest to become commissioner, history indicates that the frontrunner isn't always guaranteed success. Ken Moroney, Andrew Scipione, and Mick Fuller all ascended over more favoured deputy commissioners. Ms Webb was no exception. And lesser known assistant commissioners should not be written off. Mr Cotter, now head of Professional Standards, was left to face the media in 2023 after the tasering of 95-year-old grandmother Clare Nowland. Police were heavily criticised for not mentioning the 'taser' in initial media releases. Mr Cotter was the one to confirm to journalists that Ms Nowland had a serrated steak knife in a small treatment room when she moved slowly towards officers and was tasered. 'She had a walking frame but she had a knife,' he said. Mr Cotter also acted as in the position of Commissioner of the NSW Crime Commission in 2018 and was southern region commander as well as having worked in homicide investigations and is known for his work in victims' services. Mr Smith is the former principal of Goulburn Police Academy and heads the State Intelligence Command. His quest for the top job has surprised many. He joined the NSW Police Force in 1989, enjoying a successful and diverse career for over 30 years. 'We're a very professional organisation where we recognise professional qualifications, experience and knowledge,' Assistant Commissioner Smith told Police Insight in 2022. 'How you present yourself, your experience, and your qualifications goes a long way in being able to convey yourself and our organisation as a professional one.' Whoever takes the top job can expect to be thrust into the media spotlight instantaneously and how they convey themselves will be paramount to their success in one of the most challenging roles in the country. While Ms Webb's representatives claim her resignation was voluntary, numerous police sources suggest the government actively encouraged her departure due to leaks, persistent media criticism, and concerns about her public performance. Her supporters say she never stood a chance, with her detractors, including Mr Lanyon and Mr Willing working against her from day one. 'Whoever gets the job they can expect to be watched closely from day one and if they misstep it won't go unnoticed,' an officer said. What's not lost on the rank and file is the fact there is not a female candidate in sight. 'Wether Karen Webb copped it worse because she is a woman, I guess the record books will show, that's not for me to say, but you can be guaranteed of one thing, no woman will put their hand up any time soon nor will they be considered any time soon,' a senior female officer said. 'I would suggest the powers that be will pick someone who fits the profile of an old school blokey cop. Someone they feel oozes confidence and authority so the public and the media will be on board from day one. 'Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, I guess time will tell. We will have to watch this space.'
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Yahoo
How Toronto police are trying to improve bail compliance
The issue of bail reform is back in the spotlight as Toronto police work to improve a program to allow officers to conduct more compliance checks. CBC's Farrah Merali explains how it works.
Al Jazeera
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Prosecutors recommend one day of prison for officer in Breonna Taylor death
The United States Department of Justice has requested that a former police officer involved in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor be given a prison term of a single day, plus three years of supervised release. That reduced sentencing recommendation marks a stark reversal for the prosecution, which began under former President Joe Biden and continued under current President Donald Trump. On Wednesday, Harmeet Dhillon, a Trump appointee serving as assistant attorney general for civil rights, submitted a court memorandum reflecting the government's new stance. She argued that former police officer Brett Hankison should not be confined to prison for his actions in the early morning hours of March 13, 2020, when Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency room technician, was shot to death in her apartment. Dhillon noted that Hankison had no criminal history before November 2024, when a federal jury found him guilty of using excessive force in violation of Taylor's civil rights. These facts, Dhillon wrote, 'demonstrate that there is no need for a prison sentence to protect the public from the defendant'. 'For the reasons explained in this memorandum, the government requests a downward variance and a sentence of time served (one day's imprisonment), followed by three years of supervised release.' But critics blasted the recommendation as disregard for the will of the jury — not to mention for Taylor's life. 'The fact that Donald Trump's DOJ thinks Breonna Taylor's life is worth just a one-day jail sentence is morally reprehensible and deeply insulting,' wrote US Representative Morgan McGarvey, a Democrat whose district includes Louisville, Kentucky, where Taylor was shot to death. 'This is a dark day for our entire city.' A national outrage Taylor's killing at the hands of police officers in Louisville was a galvanising moment in the US, sparking debate over the use of police force in Black communities. It came just weeks before another unarmed Black person, George Floyd of Minnesota, was murdered by a police officer who knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes. Video of that incident — along with the news of Taylor's killing and other deaths — provoked nationwide uproar, leading to one of the largest protest movements in US history. Taylor had been at home just after midnight local time, when a group of plain-clothed police officers arrived at the apartment where she was staying with her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker. The officers executed a so-called no-knock warrant, attempting to storm Taylor's apartment unannounced, based on faulty evidence that her apartment was involved in a drug operation. Upon hearing the commotion, Walker said he believed he and Taylor were the targets of a home invasion, and he shot at the suspected intruders in self-defence. A pair of police officers returned fire in the doorway. Approximately 22 bullets were fired into the apartment, several of which hit Taylor, killing her. According to Justice Department prosecutors, Hankison then fired 10 more shots into the apartment through a window and sliding glass door, both of which were covered by curtains and blinds. They note that he could not see inside as he fired. None of Hankison's bullets struck Taylor, a fact Dhillon noted in this week's court memo. Hankison has testified that he believed his police colleagues were engaged in a gun fight with a semiautomatic rifle, and he fired through the side of the apartment to help in their defence. A shift in policy Given the outcry surrounding deaths like Taylor's, the administration of former President Biden had opened aggressive investigations and led prosecutions to hold police accountable for instances of excessive violence. In December 2024, for instance, the Department of Justice announced it had reached a court-enforceable agreement with the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) to reform the force's practices. That agreement stemmed from a March 2023 report that found a pattern of federal civil rights violations under the LMPD, including the use of excessive force and unlawful search warrants. 'An LMPD leader told the department, quote, Breonna Taylor was a symptom of the problems that we had for years,' then-Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a prepared video statement in 2024. 'The findings of our investigation, which I came to Louisville to announce last year, made that clear.' But since taking office in January, the Trump administration has rolled back the federal government's agreements with police departments found to have committed patterns of civil rights violations. One of the cancelled deals pertained to Louisville. Dhillon, at the time, called those reform agreements an example of 'federal micromanagement'. In this week's court filing, Dhillon wrote that she did not dispute that Hankison fired blindly into Taylor's apartment on the night of her killing. She also said that the government 'respects the jury's guilty verdict' in Hankison's case. But she nevertheless pointed out that Hankison had been acquitted of state-level charges, and his first federal trial ended in a mistrial in November 2023. Federal prosecutors retried the case the following year. Dhillon underscored that Hankison did not fire the fatal bullet. 'Counsel is unaware of another prosecution in which a police officer has been charged with depriving the rights of another person under the Fourth Amendment for returning fire and not injuring anyone,' she wrote. Outrage over recommendation But the recommendation that Hankison's sentencing be dropped to a single day has reignited the outrage around Taylor's killing — and the mourning for a young life cut short. In a statement on Thursday, the civil rights lawyers who represented Taylor's family, including Ben Crump, issued a joint statement denouncing Dhillon's sentencing recommendations as farcical. 'This recommendation is an insult to the life of Breonna Taylor and a blatant betrayal of the jury's decision. Every American who believes in equal justice under the law should be outraged,' they wrote. 'This sets a dangerous precedent. When a police officer is found guilty of violating someone's constitutional rights, there must be real accountability and justice. Recommending just one day in prison sends the unmistakable message that white officers can violate the civil rights of Black Americans with near-total impunity.' Hankison faces a maximum sentence of life in prison for his role in the fatal shooting.
New York Times
17-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Justice Dept. Asks for 1-Day Sentence for Ex-Officer Convicted in Breonna Taylor Raid
The Justice Department's civil rights chief has asked a federal judge to sentence a Louisville police officer convicted in the 2020 killing of Breonna Taylor to one day in jail, a stunning reversal of Biden-era efforts to address racial disparities in local law enforcement. Last year, a federal jury in Kentucky convicted Brett Hankison, the officer, of one count of violating Ms. Taylor's civil rights by discharging several shots through Ms. Taylor's window during a drug raid that went awry. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced next week. On Wednesday, Harmeet K. Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for civil rights, asked the judge in the case to sentence Mr. Hankison to time he had already served, in addition to one day in prison and three years of supervised release. In the filing, Ms. Dillon suggested the prosecution was excessive, arguing that the Biden Justice Department had secured a conviction against Mr. Hankison after he had been acquitted on state charges and his first federal trial ended in mistrial. 'In this case, two federal trials were ultimately necessary to obtain a unanimous verdict of guilt,' Ms. Dhillon wrote — adding that Mr. Hankison, a felon who was fired from his job five years ago, had already paid a substantial penalty for his actions. 'The jury's verdict will almost certainly ensure that Defendant Hankison never serves as a law enforcement officer again and will also likely ensure that he never legally possesses a firearm again,' she wrote. Such requests are typically filed by career prosecutors who worked on the case. Wednesday's filing was signed by Ms. Dillon, a political appointee who is a veteran Republican Party activist with close ties to President Trump, and one of her deputies.
