APRIL 2015
Bushfire stretches police Northcliffe fire tests local resources
Get to know the PFA
Meet the leaders of the PFA
Scholarship
Two young women win WAPU Scholarships
THE MAGAZINE FOR THE
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APRIL 2015
POLICE NEWS THE MAGAZINE FOR THE WA POLICE UNION
CONTENTS
10
Police stand tall in Northcliffe flames Police officers from around the State stepped forward to control blaze
Injuries and unavailability were key factors in the WA Police Cricket Club’s disappointing tour
23 WAPU Opinion 25 WAPU Opinion 26 Field Report 28 Industrial Report 31 Legal
15
Former President’s interesting ANZAC link
36 Entertainment
Two young women hopeful of careers in medicine were each awarded the 2015 WAPU Scholarships
Former President Grenville Vaughn Purdue was tasked to work overseas during World War I
40 New Members
16
The police officers who lead the PFA In part one of a two-part series, meet the leaders of the Police Federation of Australia. 4
Police cricketers tour New Zealand
08 President’s Report
24
Two future doctors win scholarships
Police News APRIL 2015
22
06 WAPU Directors and staff
33 Motoring 34 Health 35 Member Benefits
38 From the Archives
42 R etirements, Resignations and Vale 43 Where are they now?
WA
POLICE UNION
639 Murray Street West Perth WA 6005 P (08) 9321 2155 F (08) 9321 2177 E admin@wapu.org.au Office hours Monday-Friday 7am-4pm After Hours Emergency Director 0438 080 930 www.wapu.org.au Follow us on Twitter @WAPoliceUnion
PUBLISHED BY WA Police Union 639 Murray Street West Perth WA 6005 (08) 9321 2155 ADVERTISING WA Police Union (08) 9321 2155 DISCLAIMER WAPU (“Publisher�) advises that the contents of this publication are the sole discretion of the WA Police Union and the magazine is offered for information purposes only. The publication has been formulated in good faith and the Publisher believes its contents to be accurate, however, the contents do not amount to a recommendation (either expressly or by implication) and should not be relied upon in lieu of specific professional advice. The Publisher disclaims all responsibility for any loss or damage which may be incurred by any reader relying upon the information contained in the publication whether that loss or damage is caused by any fault or negligence on the part of the Publishers, its Directors or employees. COPYRIGHT All materials in this publication are subject to copyright and written authorisation from WAPU is required prior to reproduction in any form. ADVERTISING Advertisements in this journal are solicited from organisations and businesses on the understanding that no special considerations other than those normally accepted in respect of commercial dealings, will be given to the advertiser. All advertising is undertaken in good faith and WAPU takes no responsibility for information contained in advertisements.
cover Pemberton OIC Sergeant Harry Arnott; Above The bushfire which tore through Northcliffe.
WA
POLICE UNION
Board of Directors
GEORGE TILBURY President 0409 105 898
BRANDON SHORTLAND Senior Vice President 0419 802 650
24/7 EMERGENCY Director
HARRY ARNOTT Vice President 0407 989 008
MICK KELLY Treasurer & 24/7 Emergency 0438 080 930
Ward Adamson Director 0457 603 311
LINDSAY GARRATT Director 0407 775 050
MICk GILL Director 0427 097 000
Mark Johnson Director 0488 352 525
Staff EMERGENCY 24/7 Director MICk KELLY
0438 080 930
PAUL HUNT Secretary 6 Police News APRIL 2015
Chris Vitler WENDY ROUTHAN Executive Finance Manager Assistant
JESSICA PORTER Media Officer
STEVEN GLOVER Media Officer
PETER KELLY Andrea Wyllie Industrial Senior Industrial Officer Officer
Board of Directors & Staff
Branch Presidents Academy
John Seidner
Air Wing
John Raphael
Avon
Dave Flaherty
Bunbury Australind Gareth Reed Central Great Southern
(Vice President)
Central Midlands
Max Walker
Central West Coast
Jason Clark
Commissioned Officers
Mike Green
Tristan Taylor
Curtin
Andie Fagan
Eastern Goldfields
Dave Curtis
East Kimberley
Michael Henderson
East Metropolitan
Barry McGrath
Eastern Wheatbelt
Shane Wheeler
Fortescue
Samuel Kelsey
Gascoyne
Jon Ellis
Geraldton
Michael Hall
Great Southern
Danny Richmond
Intelligence Services Contact WAPU HQ Leeuwin Naturaliste David Holmberg Licensing Paul Burke Enforcement Division
Stuart Lapsley Director 0408 010 436
Graeme Macey Director 0400 908 540
KEVIN McDONALD Director 0434 833 283
Peter McGee Director 0418 938 354
Michael Paterson Director 0412 224 374
PETER POTTHOFF Director 0407 476 679
HARRY RUSSELL Director 0412 585 429
Lower South West
Paul Williams
Maylands
Shaun Paterson
(Vice President)
Midland Workshops Russell Gardiner Mirrabooka
Mark Folkard
Murchison
Peter Gerada
North Eastern Goldfields
Kurt Weedon
North Pilbara
Aaron Ogg
North West Metropolitan
Darren Gill
Peel North
Warren Dowbysch
Peel South
Harry Russell
Perth Police Centre
Aaron Hickey
Perth Watch House
Fiona McPherson
Professional Standards
Peter Birch
Prosecuting
Jarred Gerace
South East Eyre
Craig Mellors
South East Metropolitan
Anthony Pymm
(PAO)
(Secretary)
South Metropolitan Rob Neutert South West Hinterland
Laurie Morley
Traffic Support
Paul Gale
Upper Great Robert Southern Jonas-Green
JANE BAkER DAVE LAMPARD DEAN GIACOMINI Field Officer Field Officer Research Officer
TARRYN SMITH JAIMEE McCAGH Nikki Page PENNY BROWN Accounts Administration Administration Administration Officer Officer Officer Officer
West Kimberley
Craig Johnson
West Pilbara
Doug Holt
Western Suburbs
Chris Fox
(Vice President)
7 Police News April 2015
George Tilbury President
Computer use investigations heavy handed Approximately 150 Members could be criminally charged if the Professional Standards portfolio has its way after it found officers accessing CAD jobs involving high profile members of the community.
It needs to be explained publicly why Professional Standards is hell bent on a quest for criminal convictions in situations that at best, may only warrant disciplinary action.
8
WAPU was shocked to learn that these officers were under investigation for unlawful access to a police computer system that is used to dispatch incidents and record the outcome. Professional Standards has taken its usual heavy handed approach, with a view to utilising Section 440A of the Criminal Code when interviewing all ‘Subject Officers’. This would be taking matters to the extreme and if allowed to proceed, would set a very dangerous precedent for all Members, who utilise this system extensively, not just for the job they are directly involved in. The Kennedy Royal Commission in fact explored this issue and stated: “The [WA Police] guidelines encompass the expectation that officers will utilise the computer system to develop knowledge”. The Final Report also explains that WA Police uses a Corrective Action Matrix which guides investigating officers as to what course of action is appropriate. Most actions noted only pertain to disciplinary action. WA Police expects officers to be conversant with crime, incidents, intelligence and information holdings that enables them to effectively do their job. This is not confined to borders, involves preparation to remain ahead of the play, not to mention the obligatory accountable arse-covering exercise. Not for one minute do I condone information accessed from police computers being passed on unlawfully for a benefit or corrupt purpose. But to target Members criminally who have a thirst for knowledge that at worst could be described as professional curiosity is an abuse of process. Section 440A was never intended to be used as a vehicle to haul police officers before a court for viewing information on a system purely for their own purpose. It needs to be explained publicly why Professional Standards is hell bent on a quest for criminal convictions in situations that at best, may only warrant disciplinary action. The Commissioner needs to take the lead here and immediately intervene to prevent the misuse of time and energy in pursuing these officers criminally, which is clearly
not in the public interest. If this proceeds unabated, I envisage officers being too scared to look at CAD jobs which may impact their work for fear of being criminally sanctioned and, as a consequence, place their colleagues on the frontline at greater risk.
Trewin assault conviction to be appealed WAPU will appeal an assault conviction and $2,000 fine handed down to Senior Constable Steven Trewin. We believe he was wrongly convicted of Assault Occasioning Bodily Harm in the Perth Magistrate’s Court, following an incident at Perth Police Centre on 25 August, 2013. In the incident, then 19-year-old Cassandra Swann assaulted Sen. Const. Trewin twice before he used a straight arm bar to take Swann to the ground. When not viewed in full context, the CCTV footage looks bad to those unfamiliar with the rigours of policing. However, policing often isn’t pretty when force has to be used. Although Sen. Const. Trewin should never have been charged, the sad fact is that it only occurred because Swann sustained injuries (arising from her behaviour) and WA Police remain fearful of CCC oversight with all incidents captured on CCTV footage. Magistrate Maughan said Sen. Const. Trewin was within his rights to act in self-defence however, the force he used was excessive and disproportionate given the circumstances. We will appeal this verdict because it brings into question every split-second decision you make when effecting an arrest in a dynamic situation. We have been inundated with numerous letters and phone calls of support for Sen. Const. Trewin and incensed reactions to the Commissioners comments stating that an appeal will only bring the matter up again for review by Internal Investigators. One letter of support really drove the point home that officers today are responding to an increasingly violent world, supercharged with alcohol and drugs.
President's report “The fact is that, unlike training in the academy, the floors out there in the real world are not padded. And concrete hurts,” the letter said. We will continue to support Sen. Const. Trewin through the appeal process. However, we would celebrate the day if and when the Commissioner came out and wholeheartedly supported Members for just doing their job, making decisions in good faith and not berating the Union for appealing this decision which will have wide-ranging ramifications for all officers.
Members’ anger at reform WAPU has received recent correspondence from officers who have shared their views on the implementation of the Response Teams. The comprehensive letters are not supportive of the Response Teams and believe long-term deployment to Response Teams will be detrimental to officers’ health and wellbeing. In one letter, the author explains that there is no job diversity and they are exposed to all domestic violence situations and weapons-related incidents as first responders, which contributes to burnout and potential trauma. In another letter, it reads: “The balance to my shift has gone. The balance to my job has gone. I thought WAPOL were meant to have developed some sort of appreciation of PTSD. At Response, it is relentless. Drama, after drama, after drama. I really want you to acknowledge this point. Only attending priority twos and threes all shift, every shift, is really intense.” Another issue that seems to arise constantly, is the lack of meal breaks for the Response Teams. I have been told that tasking pressures have meant allocated meal breaks are not being kept due to the large number of jobs being classified as urgent and the need to meet response times. I have forwarded these concerns to the Deputy Commissioner and hope that any continuing issues with Response Teams will be resolved.
Metropolitan Region Station Visits Recently I visited a number of police stations in the South East and South Metropolitan Districts respectively in the company of Senior Vice President Shortland, Directors Garratt and McDonald, and WAPU Staff. We gained firsthand feedback on how the new frontline operating model was working in the district where it was initially rolled out. The major issues appear to be around resources such as equipment and vehicles as well as buildings which are not currently suitable for the number of staff which are working in them. During our visits, we also met with South East Metropolitan District Superintendent Brad Royce, South Metropolitan Superintendent Brad Sorrell and their teams, and were able to relay this feedback. We will continue to keep the communication
lines open with all metropolitan district offices to ensure any issues are rectified in a timely manner. I applaud Supt. Sorrell for implementing quarterly meetings with local Branch Delegates. He has also requested that he or members of his management team are invited to branch meetings for a question and answer session at the beginning, after which they will then leave. I intend to visit the remaining metropolitan districts before the middle of the year to ascertain how the new operating model is affecting Members in those areas before giving feedback directly to Deputy Commissioner Stephen Brown.
Inquiry into the transport of persons in custody We were approached by the Standing Committee on Public Administration to provide a written submission for the Inquiry into the transport of persons in custody. As part of that submission, WAPU surveyed Members to garner your experience with this issue and determine who is best placed to transfer detainees. WAPU’s submission distilled your views and made nine recommendations to the Committee. One of those recommendations was to exclude WA Police from the transportation of detainees. A majority of respondents to the WAPU survey believe that WA Police should not be involved in the transport of persons in custody. Whilst the majority expressed that this responsibility should lie solely with the Department for Corrective Services, many also believed this duty could be shared between the Department and a privately contracted company. WAPU agrees with the sentiment of its Membership and believes that, apart from initial apprehension, WA Police should not be involved in the transport of persons in custody.
WAPU agrees with the sentiment of its Membership and believes that, apart from initial apprehension, WA Police should not be involved in the transport of persons in custody.
Father Barry May Our policing community recently lost a stalwart and gentleman; Father Barry May. Hundreds of Fr Barry’s friends, family and colleagues celebrated his life and bid him farewell at a requiem mass at St George’s Cathedral. Representing WAPU and our Members, I attended with my son. Fr Barry became Senior Chaplain to the WA Police in 1989, in a part time capacity, and then full time Senior Chaplain to WA Police in 1992 until his retirement in 2007. Fr Barry had many accomplishments including being awarded the Centenary Medal in 2003, the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in 2008 for his service to WA Police and was the co-author of the Police Ode. He also served as Honorary Chaplain to the Royal Naval Association; was Patron of the Vietnam Log Support Vets Association and Chaplain to the Burma-Thailand Railway Memorial Association. Fr Barry will be sadly missed. 9
Police stand tall in Northcliffe flames By Steven Glover
10 Police News APRIL 2015
P
emberton OIC Sergeant Harry Arnott was enjoying a holiday in Denmark, fishing with his son and spending time with his family when he received a phone call about a bushfire which had started in the Shannon Basin a few days earlier. Harry packed up the family holiday, returned to Pemberton and recalled himself to duty, little was he to know that for the next two weeks, he would be working at times 20 hour days and the fire would consume his life. The bushfire at Northcliffe, 350 kilometres south of Perth, burned more than 95,000 hectares of bush over 14 days and destroyed houses and sheds. The area was declared a natural disaster by Premier Colin Barnett with reinforcements from around WA and interstate including Victoria, NSW, NT and the ACT required to bring the blaze under control. For Harry, the blaze stretched the resources of his three-man station so much that he too required reinforcements from across the State. Over the 14 days, 122 police staff were involved. “We had staff from right across the South West District and various areas from the Perth metropolitan area. It was recognised by the CEO of the Shire and at a State level and at a local level about the professionalism by all police officers involved and they were commended on all levels,” Harry said. South West District Superintendent Peter Hatch, who was the Emergency Management Co-ordinator (DEMC) and chaired
the Operational Area Support Group (OASG) meetings, said given the magnitude of the fire it was not surprising District resources were stretched. “Sub-districts in the South West District delivered great support in providing resources to assist the Hazard Management Authority (HMA) and the Police Forward Command (PFC). Further, the State Control Centre were integral in providing resources from the Metropolitan Region and Specialist Units to enable the delivery of a protracted response and business continuity in the South West District during this incident,” he said. “Likewise, with the Great Southern District and Wheatbelt District providing Commissioned Officer support for the PFC, this enabled me to rest and rotate the South West District ADO’s through the PFC role.” Late January and early February was particular busy for Supt. Hatch with fires breaking out before and after the Northcliffe bushfire started. “Given the unusual circumstances surrounding the timing and cluster of significant fires in Waroona, Lower Hotham and O’Sullivan, my workload was substantial,” he said. “Notwithstanding South Metropolitan District Superintendent Brad Sorrell had DEMC carriage of the Waroona fire, the sub-District is aligned to the South West District, and the response involved many South West District resources, hence I was heavily involved in monitoring and allocating those resources. ▷
11
Police News APRIL 2015
01 02
In … police Districts across Regional WA, Emergency Management preparedness and the training of officers to respond in this type of incident is a key focus.
03
12 Police News APRIL 2015
“Likewise, with Superintendent Bullen of the Great Southern District assuming DEMC carriage of the Lower Hotham fires, given the proximity and timing of that fire to the O’Sullivan fire, I was in constant liaison with Superintendent Bullen to ensure awareness of both fires.” The extra staff which descended on Pemberton in itself presented an extra challenge, as they all needed to be fed and bed which Harry said would not have occurred without the hard work of his CSO Val Roche. “She actually acted in the role of Logistics Officer so we used an unsworn officer and her efforts were outstanding. She provided a bed and food for all those officers, she was absolutely brilliant. “She even had the overtime done, ready to rock and roll immediately.” During the blaze, Harry wore two hats. As the local OIC, he was the Local Emergency Coordinator as delegated by the Commissioner of Police but also in that role he represented WA Police on the Incident Support Group. A normal day for Harry included eight meetings after getting to work at 5am and sometimes not finishing his shift until midnight and then up again early to do it all again. He was eventually told to stand down to have a weekend off, but only managed half a day. Harry believes even though the fire was almost the size of the Perth metropolitan area, his station was exceptionally well prepared for the fires. “This was the second fire of size that I’ve had since I’ve been in Pemberton. In 2012, we had the Babbington Fires which was 37,000 hectares, this fire was almost a 100,000 hectares by the time it burnt. So we had a lot of experience with the same people being involved so it worked very, very well - quite seamlessly,” he said. “We have an Incident Preparedness Response Plan developed by the Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPAW) and that is done every year. Every year, we meet with all the agencies that are going to be involved in fire. “Fire is a real threat, it’s prevalent and everyone who lives in the bush knows about fire. “We meet with all those agencies at the start of the fire season, about October each year, so we speak to everyone from education to health, agriculture, premier and cabinet, you name it, everyone communicates. It’s an informal formal session which is something I instigated about three years ago. “We are prepared, WA Police are actually really, really good about deploying resources. They were fantastic as soon as we said we need resources, State Control found us those resources and they were fantastic in that regard.” Supt. Hatch agrees and believes the South West District is well prepared for bushfires as are other districts across the State. “As evidenced by the quality police response to this incident and the fact no life and minimal property was lost during a fire of this magnitude, I consider this is testament to the level of preparedness of WA Police with regards to Emergency Management,” he said. “In the South West District, as in other police districts across Regional WA, Emergency Management preparedness and the training of officers to respond in this type of incident is a key focus.
“I certainly consider the South West District was well positioned to respond to this incident despite its magnitude and duration. It is a credit to WA Police that as required additional resources were mobilised and deployed to the South West District to assist in the response in support of the HMA. “I certainly praise the tireless work of Department of Fire and Emergency Services, DPAW, State Emergency Services and support services in their professionalism and commitment to combating this fire. “Likewise, I am extremely proud of the commitment and professionalism of South West District officers and those officers who travelled into the District to either combat the incident or assist with business continuity.” Supt. Hatch said WA Police worked tirelessly alongside the HMA and other combat agencies throughout the duration of this incident. “Be it working on the frontline at Vehicle Control Points, attending to evacuation planning or providing valuable contributions to the Incident Management Team, Incident Support Group or OASG meetings, police were focussed on protecting life and property and supporting the HMA towards a successful resolution.” Even though the fire was priority one, Harry still had to protect and serve the community and continue the station’s “normal tasks”. “Part of our planning, with any event of this magnitude, is our business continuity. So built into our response to the fire is fat for business continuity so we can respond on a needs basis to the community. Because after evacuation, we have to be worried about theft, looting, stolen motor vehicles all those sorts of things which you hear about so we have to be cognisant of that and we have to have patrols in place. That is built into our planning.” Throughout the blaze, Harry was not only concerned the safety of the community but also his own family and colleagues who lived in the Pemberton region. “In a straight line, we are about 26 kms from Northcliffe but until the western flank of the fire was contained and that real threat was removed, we actually did have an evacuation plan for the Pemberton Town Site. “We did evacuate Northcliffe on the Monday and then we were looking at evacuating Pemberton and we had evacuation planning done with the assistance of the guys from emergency ops, who were very professional and very, very good at their job, that evacuation plan was in place and ready to go should it be needed for Pemberton.” He also had a fire plan in place for his own property. “It’s part of living in the bush. We have an evacuation plan ready to go, everyone does. Fire is a real risk and you have to be prepared.” The reinforcements’ welfare also had to be considered as for many police officers, it was their first time working in the area and working under the conditions.
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04
“We spoke to them at length about safety and the issues surrounding them. I’m sure we could have done some things better but paramount across the whole incident was the safety of our Members. “Without the safety of our Members, we don’t have any responders.” Supt. Hatch said he had the utmost confidence in his team, on the ground, to make quality decisions to look after all police officers involved. “I knew their primary concern was for the welfare of the officers responding to this incident. Accordingly, I knew the welfare of officers at the incident was not in jeopardy,” he said. WAPU President George Tilbury said the safety of police officers during bushfires was something the Union was concerned about. “Our Members who went and helped during the Northcliffe bushfire did an amazing job and I have only had positive feedback from all the stakeholders I have spoken to, so they should be congratulated for their dedication and commitment to the community,” he said. “However, WA Police needs to look at providing fire-specific personal protective equipment so that police officers are as safe as they can be during all fire events. ▷
06 07
“Without the safety of our Members, we don’t have any responders.”
01 Sgt Harry Arnott addressing a town meeting during the blaze. Credit: Channel 9. 02 The blaze as it threatened Windy Harbour. 03 An aerial shot of the blaze. 04 A bed in the tent city which was set up in Manjimup. 05 Large widow maker trees posed a threat to police officers and fire crews. 06 Police officers assisting during the natural disaster. Credit: Channel 9. 07 The fire lit up the sky during the evenings.
13 Police News APRIL 2015
“We have a fantastic team, really good team ethos, really good operators, and I can’t acknowledge them enough.”
08
09
08 & 09 The fire burnt farm land as well as bush land.
“We don’t want our Members in harm’s way but at the end of the day, in some situations such as Northcliffe, you have Members who are not familiar with the area, driving on country roads and the potential danger of falling widow maker trees, it is quite foreseeable that they are going to find themselves trapped and in need of protection.” In its recent Pre-Election Submission, the Police Association of New South Wales asked for a commitment to provide funding to equip all frontline and emergency response police officers in high risk bushfire prone areas with Fire Personal Protective Equipment by the start of the 2015/16 bushfire season. Mr Tilbury said the extent of what protections are required for WA police officers was still being formulated by the WAPU Field Officers with storage of the equipment being a major issue. “Police vehicles already carry so much equipment that one issue we have is where would the fire protective equipment be stored?” “As a minimum, we certainly believe that all police vehicles should have a fire blanket as standard equipment.” With the fire now out and residents of Northcliffe assessing the damage and picking up the pieces, Harry can return to managing his three-man station however, the effects of the bushfire are still being felt. “So as we move into recovery mode now I’m involved as the LEC with recovery,” Harry said. “Obviously, now there is some political angst in relation to mosaic burning, water availability in the Northcliffe area and also those issues you’ve got with any event of that magnitude which draws in the undesirable characters such as
sex offenders and the like going to the evacuation centre which create an impost on our policing and business continuity.” Looking back at the incident, Harry is immensely proud of the commitment of his staff, CSO Val Roche, First Class Constable Neil Pascoe and Constable Brad Walder. “Neil Pascoe was the initial responder on this fire, Acting Sergeant, he’s a First Class Constable and in all honesty if it wasn’t for his efforts for the work he did it wouldn’t have run so smoothly. He was fantastic. If he hadn’t been so switched on and on the ball, we wouldn’t have been as prepared as we were. “Brad Walder was the other officer and he did a fantastic job. He fulfilled every single role possible and they worked tirelessly. “They were working huge hours, absolutely huge hours. We have a fantastic team, really good team ethos, really good operators, and I can’t acknowledge them enough.” Supt. Hatch said WA Police would now learn from this incident. “Whilst I consider this event was extremely tiring for those officers tasked with responding both in command and frontline roles, I see enormous benefits for the South West District and WA Police in learning from this incident,” he said. “Building on what went right, and eliminating what went wrong through a process of debrief and consultation will only strengthen our future response to this type of emergency incident. “I am extremely proud of the work ethic, commitment and resilience of all officers who had a part to play in combating this fire.”
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Police News APRIL 2015
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Mick Kelly Emergency Director
www.wapu.org.au
WAPU admin@wapu.org.au
01 02
Two future doctors win scholarships By Jessica Porter
Two young women hopeful of careers in medicine were each awarded the 2015 WAPU Scholarships. Imogen Smith of Australind and Michaela Marshall of Aveley were independently assessed as exceeding the criteria for the regional award and metropolitan award respectively. WAPU Scholarships were introduced in 1997 as a way of giving back to Members’ families and to help assist with the cost of education. The 2015 WAPU Scholarships were awarded to two secondary students, one metropolitan based and the other in regional WA, in Years 7 to 12. The value of the Scholarships depends on the school year, with $1,000 per annum awarded for Years 7 to 10 and $2,000 per annum for Years 11 and 12. The Scholarship will continue annually, subject to the students’ satisfactory attendance, conduct, academic progress and the Member’s continuance of membership with WAPU. Imogen Smith, daughter of Senior Constable Stephanie Smith, was awarded the regional scholarship for her outstanding academic record and community contribution. In a personal statement written by Imogen, the 15-year-old Bunbury Catholic College student said she would be studying six ATAR subjects this year with the hope of becoming a doctor. “I recently completed two weeks work experience at a local childhood clinic which provides a number of services for babies through to young children,” she said. “I enjoyed this experience, which not only gave me further insight into the healthcare of the young, but confirmed my interest in a career in medicine.” A keen netballer, Imogen also balances her studies with umpiring for the Leschenault Netball Association and was last season awarded Most Improved Umpire. Her commitment to those less fortunate than her also shone through, with the teenager traveling to India in December last year to volunteer at Mother Theresa’s Orphanage for nine days. “My ambition is to continue to contribute to both my school community and the local community in general,” she said.
Another extraordinar y young woman to receive the scholarship this year was Michaela Marshall, daughter of Sergeant Michelle Jose. Michaela is also a high achiever, earning seven A’s out of her eight subjects last year, despite suffering a great loss. “Unfortunately, my father passed away this year which was unexpected and turned not only my world upside down, but also that of my mother, sister and brother,” the 16-year-old said. “I had to reassess my workload and unfortunately I had to give up my employment at McDonalds, as this stress and the stress at home meant I was not coping very well.” But the confident teen said being at home meant she was able to help more around the house and help her brother and sister, who live with their mother. “I was able to volunteer at Mullaloo Surf Club with my sister which is the only thing that really makes her happy and helps us to cope with our father’s death,” she said. “My brother and I have found a connection through hip hop dancing. Gordon is autistic and has found this has helped him to express himself without words.” Michaela said the scholarship will help her focus on her studies and pay for extra tuition to ensure she has the marks to get into medicine. “My mother understands and supports my passion to be a doctor, so to get the 99 WACE score needed, my mother has arranged for extra tutor lessons during 2015 so I can accomplish the most I can. I know she will struggle with the extra tutor lessons and I would love to be able to help her out financially,” she said. President George Tilbury said both winners were very deserving. “WAPU applauds the children of Members who also portray the values and ideals displayed by WA police officers. The WA community owes a debt of great gratitude to our serving and retired Members and WAPU is proud to offer the Scholarship to those who will take these values into the future,” he said.
01 Mick Kelly, Stephanie Smith, Imogen Smith and Harry Arnott. 02 Michaela Marshall with her mother Sgt. Michelle Jose.
15 Police News APRIL 2015
The Police Federation of Australia The PFA represents more than 58,000 sworn police officers throughout Australia. WAPU Members are also members of the PFA by virtue of their state, territory or federal union membership, with the cost incorporated in WAPU Union fees. A system of proportional representation is used to fill 35 positions on the Federal Council. Each union affiliate is entitled to one delegate for its first 1,000 financial members (or part thereof), and one per each successive 2,500 (or part thereof). WAPU has four seats on the Council to represent WA police officers with President George Tilbury, Senior Vice President Brandon Shortland, Treasurer Mick Kelly and Director Peter Potthoff currently holding those positions. The PFA Executive is made up of the president of each state, territory and federal police union and over the next two editions, Police News will delve into each leader’s background to give Members a deeper sense of the men representing them at a federal level.
Story By Brett Williams
16 Police News APRIL 2015
Scott Weber Police Federation of Australia – Vice-President Police Association of New South Wales – President New South Wales Police Force– joined 1994
I
t was never money or status that led Scott Weber to take on the presidency of the Police Association of NSW. Nor was it the lure of a high-profile position which thrusts its occupants into the limelight. The way Weber saw it, he could he have done “heaps of easier things” to get those so-called rewards – had he even wanted them. The reality was that he had lived and breathed the union cause since he was a freshfaced constable of just 20. Back then, he saw cops treated unjustly in the workplace and a superior who refused even to consider the views of the rank and file. That gave him all the motivation he needed to become the union branch official at Ashfield Police Station. And the fair treatment and welfare of, and support for, cops remained his motivation to lead the nation’s biggest police union. Not even some who cautioned him about taking on such significant roles with the union were able to dissuade him. “It happened many a time in regard to my career prospects,” he recalls. “They said: ‘What are you doing? You’ll never go any further than sergeant. This (union involvement) is hurting you. You need to have an endgame.’ “My comment to that was: ‘My endgame is actually getting the best for the membership.’ “(And) I’ve often said, even to some very high-ranking people: ‘This is not about the next progression or job for me. It’s about doing the right thing, and this (my participation in the union) is the right thing.’ ”
“When the Police Association speaks, people listen because they know it’s evidence-based.” Weber even copped the taunts of “commie”, “red” and “rabble-rouser” during a heated pay campaign in 2000. But none of that fazed him. “I’ve been called a Labor Party stooge,” he says, “and I’m currently called a Liberal Party stooge.” But clear evidence that Weber is no puppet of either the major or minor parties lies in his rejection of their overtures. All have sought to draw him into running for them. “It hasn’t been hard to knock it back,” he says, “because I’m a police officer through and through. “I’d love more police officers to be involved in politics. We’re actually totally built for politics. We’re very good communicators, very good under pressure and we can deal with long hours. “But my role is with the Police Association and my police career, and I hope it will be well into the future.” Weber, who speaks of his members with great regard, sees it as his job to make sure cops get home safe at the end of their shifts. “I’ve got to get them the resources and the training to do that,” he says. And, to Weber, that means helping to steer the New South Wales Police Force in “the right direction”, but not just to make sure it delivers officer safety. “Police need to be able to put food on the table, pay their mortgages and have an adequate quality of life,” he says. “I think as an association we’ve done that (brought those things about) really well, but we need to be constantly vigilant about it.” Of course, not ever y good industrial outcome results from calm, rational negotiation. Police union adversaries, such as government and police management, are quite capable of intransigence. That is why Weber insists that a police union president has to be a fighter who, in the industrial arena, can not only throw but also take a punch. “And you don’t have to throw many,” he says, “but, when you do, you have to make sure they land. “You’ve got to be willing to take the ongoing criticism, the attacks from the police hierarchy, politicians and even members. Everyone has a
point of view and it’s very difficult to keep 16,500 people (members) on the same line. But it’s good for people to question you.” While Weber might never have seemed destined to lead a trade union, he was always likely to join a police force. Right from the age of five, when he toured the Tweed Heads Police Station with his kindergarten, he wanted to be a copper. The station sergeant had allowed him into a cell, where he sat and thought: “I want to help people.” “I know that sounds really corny and idealistic,” he says, “but I think the sole purpose of joining the police is to actually try to make a difference. It’s the only job I ever wanted to do.” Born and raised in Tweed Heads, Weber attended Kingscliff High School and later worked at the Coolangatta McDonald’s, one of the busiest restaurants in the chain, nationwide. He had by then survived his toughest childhood challenge, which was the divorce of his parents when he was eight. His next challenge, after working as a barman, waiter and poker-machine attendant at the Twin Towns Services Club, would be a police career. Weber joined the NSW Police Force as a 20-year-old in 1994. And, like all cops, he had to confront threats to his life and other emotioncharged situations which seared themselves into his memory. One was the death of a baby whose mother had drowned her in a lake and then taken her body back home to Marrickville. Weber, one of the first to respond, tried desperately to resuscitate the infant who vomited several times, as can occur after death. Unknown to Weber was that too much time had passed for resuscitation to work. He ended up with the child’s vomit in his mouth and momentarily overcome with emotion. In distress, he asked an ambulance officer to explain to him what he had done wrong. The ambo – who had turned up on the scene after Weber – told him that he had not failed, that the baby had been dead for some time. Still, after the incident, Weber needed time to recover and so flew home to Tweed Heads to be with his family for a few days. ▷ 17 Police News APRIL 2015
He consulted a counsellor and, in the end, was able to emerge from the trauma. Years earlier, Weber and his partner at the time had had to confront a knife-wielding mentally ill man in a park. They had called on him to drop his weapon but he started moving directly toward them. Weber, armed with a long baton, kept the man’s attention on him while his partner, armed with a handgun, moved to one side. Only after Weber had called on the man several more times to drop the knife did he eventually comply. Later, back at Ashfield Police Station, the man admitted that, had Weber drawn his gun, he (the man) intended to charge at him to commit suicide-by-cop. Around the time this incident played out, Weber the union branch official won an election to attend his first Police Association conference as a delegate. And, at that 2000 symposium in Wollongong, he won election to the association executive. “By then,” he says, “I was quite active, probably over-passionate. Now I’m a lot more tempered.” In 2004, Weber rose to the office of vicepresident and in 2010, at the age of just 37, won election to the presidency. Among his credentials, apart from his time in front-line policing, is the Police Association Certified Executive programme he undertook in Canada. Weber also took part in the annual “Big 50” Police Union Leaders Seminar run by the Harvard Law School Labor and Worklife Program. Today, he leads his union by simple but effective strategies. “I like keeping my powder dry,” he says, “and I don’t think we need to flex our muscles for the sake of it. “You don’t parade your tactical capabilities every day down the main street of Sydney or Adelaide just to show that you have them. We need to keep our strength in reserve. “The last thing you want to be is in constant battle. It’s not only draining on the membership but it starts to lose its power. “When the Police Association speaks, people listen because they know it’s evidencebased. We’re quite tempered in the use of our strengths, but no one should underestimate that as weakness.” 18 Police News APRIL 2015
Ian Leavers Police Federation of Australia – Vice-President Queensland Police Union – President Queensland Police – joined 1989
H
e knew he was “going out on a limb” when he declared publicly that now former premier Campbell Newman had lied to him. But Queensland Police Union President Ian Leavers considered it his duty to call the controversial LNP leader to account – in the interests of QPU members. “Campbell Newman looked me in the eye and he lied to me,” the forthright Leavers told ABC Radio host Steve Austin in Brisbane last January. “If you’re going to lie to a police officer, you’ll lie to anyone.” Later that day, Leavers repeated his declaration with equal conviction in a press conference. And news like that, amid the flurry of a pre-election campaign, was always going to – and did – flash around the country in no time. The coverage led some observers to label Leavers a union thug and others to tell him he should never have made such a provocative statement. But the union president of almost six years saw it differently. “I knew it could be risky but there was a bigger picture and (making the comment) had to be done,” he insists. “You’ve got to call all politicians to account, hold them to their word, and that’s what I was doing. “If someone gives you a commitment, that’s their commitment, and I expect them to keep it. If he couldn’t live up to the commitment, the thing to do was contact me and say: ‘We can’t do it because of this reason.’ Just be honest and upfront with me. Don’t lie to me.”
“You’re in a political role whether you like it or not … you’re watched in whatever you do…” Funding of $20 million, which the Newman Government had promised but not delivered for its Safe Night Out precincts, was what led to the Leavers comment. Newman’s successor as premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, had drawn some strong public comment from Leavers, too, about nine months earlier. In the Queensland parliament, she had branded police as intimidators for filming people – including members of the public and (Labor) Opposition members – at a Gold Coast community cabinet meeting. The practice, undertaken for many years, was a routine security measure designed to protect both the public and parliamentarians. Leavers called Palaszczuk’s remarks a “disgrace”. “I demand (that) Annastacia Palaszczuk withdraw her baseless criticisms of police immediately and apologise for making such ridiculous allegations against police…” he told the media. But Leavers holds no grudges and appreciates the value of rational negotiation. “You’ve got to be apolitical,” he insists, “and you must work with all sides of politics to achieve the best outcomes.” Pre-election commitments he sought from the ALP – and secured – include no loss of conditions or allowances for police and no privatisation of any police functions. As a public figure, and as Queensland’s highest-profile defender of police, Leavers cops his share of ill-considered criticism, even in the form of hate mail. Most of it comes after he publicly backs his members against armchair critics who rush to judgement on police involved in incidents such as shootings and high-speed chases. “You’re a disgrace!” and “You should resign!” are some of the remarks he cops for the stand he takes. “I get hate mail all the time,” he says. “I’ve had death threats, too, but it doesn’t bother me.” Nor do the far more sinister threats bother him, the ones that come from within political circles. One came during a dinner he shared
with a political figure, who warned him to “back off” in respect of pressure he was applying to the government. The threat was that, if he continued to “go hard” on certain issues he was pushing, “they” would go after him. But the face-to-face encounter never ruffled Leavers. “I said: ‘Look, you do what you’ve got to do, but I’m not going to change my position,’ ” he recalls. “And that’s the way it was. I was disappointed because there was no need for it.” There was also the acting inspector who threatened to arrest Leavers if he placed a bumper sticker on a police car during a campaign for increased staffing. The two exchanged words, Leavers did not yield, and the arrest never took place. Of course, the flip side of all the antagonism is immense support for Leavers, even from the public. One recent example was an elderly Asian man who stopped him on a Brisbane street to shake his hand and say: “You do a great job. Keep going.” “And,” Leavers says, “when I ran an alcoholfuelled violence campaign for the reduction in trading hours, I got e-mails from ordinary mums and dads saying: ‘Thank you. We support you for caring for our children.’ ” Leavers insists that a union president must “live and breathe” his or her role. He remains on call 24-7, is rarely off the phone, and seems endlessly ensconced in his work. If union members need his support in places as distant as far north Queensland, his practice is to get the next available plane straight there out of Brisbane. And he accepts the intense media and other scrutiny which comes with life as the face of one of Queensland’s most influential unions. “It does change the way you live your life,” he says. “You’re in a political role whether you like or not, and it’s the same for politicians: you’re watched in whatever you do, and that’s just the way it is.” And Leavers picked up an extra responsibility after the Police Federation of Australia federal council elected him one of two vice-presidents last November.
So, as a divorcee and father to an 11-year-old son, he has to stand up to the personal impact which comes with a life spent in high-level unionism. And it was a life in which he never once expected to be involved. His sole career goal, ever since he was a five-year-old, was to be not a union official but simply a police officer. That ambition came about after he had emigrated from England as a four-year-old with his parents in 1973. Raised in suburban Inala as the second of four children, he attended St Laurence’s College, South Brisbane and embraced a range of sports, including athletics and roller skating. Indeed, sport gave him “a thirst to win” and ended up a major influence in his life. After leaving school, he scored work in the prison system in which he remained for two years. Then, finally, at the age of 20, Leavers joined Queensland Police; and, as a copper, he confronted every human horror, from fatal car crashes to child abuse. One investigation he has never forgotten is that of a man who shook his baby stepson so violently that the boy ultimately lost all brain function. Hospital staff called police and Leavers responded. He found out that the shaking had left the boy in a vegetative state from which he would never emerge. “The child was never going to live, and this fellow (the stepfather) was unrepentant,” Leavers recalls. “He claimed he gave him only a little shake to wake him up because he was concerned about him, but the medical evidence was overwhelming. “The young boy lived in a vegetative state for two-and-a-half years after the incident and then died. And it took more than four years, but we ended up getting a plea for manslaughter.” Among the issues that first motivated Leavers to get involved with the QPU in the 1990s were the denial of overtime payments and shortfalls in police numbers. Ipswich police station, where he was himself based, was down by up to 35 staff. ▷ 19 Police News APRIL 2015
So Leavers became the delegate for the union’s Ipswich branch and later rose to the offices of Executive Member in 2005 and VicePresident in 2008. Then, after the resignation of his now predecessor, he won office as QPU President in July 2009. He wanted to make a difference and was never concerned about the labels his critics might apply to him. “People assume (based on your union role) that you’re extremely left wing and unreasonable,” he laments, “and that’s not the case. “In Queensland I’ve been accused of being very pro LNP and that I was actually running for a safe LNP seat, which wasn’t the case either.” Leavers, who came from an “extremely conservative” family, admits that apparatchiks from both sides of politics have approached him about running for political office. But, as committed as he is to representing police, he has rejected every approach. “I have no ambition for politics in any way, shape or form,” he insists. “The more I’ve dealt with politicians, the less appealing politics is to me. I’d never want to be involved in it.”
20 Police News APRIL 2015
John Laird Police Federation of Australia – Treasurer The Police Association Victoria – President Victoria Police – joined 1980
P
olice Association Victoria President John Laird has wound up on some of the bloodiest and most unforgettable crime scenes in Australian history. One of them, the 1986 Russell St bombing right outside Victoria Police Headquarters, was where 21-year-old police officer Angela Taylor suffered fatal wounds. Laird was mobile from a nearby suburban court when the bomb, planted inside a stolen Commodore, exploded around 1pm. It took him only minutes to get to the scene and, when he did, it struck him as “still mayhem”. There were the 22 injured innocent victims; police converging on the site; and the blackened, smoking wreck of the stolen Commodore. It was now not recognisable to Laird as a car, as it continued to emit small explosions. “In that immediate aftermath we helped with some people who’d been injured,” Laird remembers. “It was something you’re not going to forget. You don’t expect to see that (a bombing) in that place. “The concern was for a secondary attack. The IRA had had a habit of setting off one bomb and then they’d set off another one. And there had been some further threats made so there was a bit of apprehension.” Laird manned the intersection of Russell and Victoria streets, just north of police headquarters, and saw the disaster unfold over the next four hours. And the next year, he ended up on the scene of the Queen St massacre in Melbourne’s 18-storey Australia Post building. A 22-year-old gunman, Frank Vitkovic, shot eight people dead and caused serious injuries to five others before plunging to his own death on the street.
“Even now, we get people come in (to the association) just about every day and they’re broken.” Standing directly below the 11th-floor window he jumped from was Laird who, moments earlier, had arrived on the scene to the sound of gunfire. Vitkovic landed and died right near him on the footpath. With uniformed police officers around the perimeter of the building, Laird went inside with other detectives to investigate. Among the dead, he found a man who Vitkovic had shot multiple times but failed to kill. Laird helped the embattled survivor out of the building to safety but then went straight back inside to investigate further. “It’s the forgotten massacre,” Laird says. “Everyone talked about Hoddle St, which was just four months beforehand (in August, 1987). I always assumed that was his (Vitkovic’s) inspiration.” In the Hoddle St massacre, former army cadet Julian Knight, 19, had shot seven people dead and injured 19 others with a shotgun and two rifles in Clifton Hill. As Laird progressed through his police career, he continued to confront high-risk jobs, particularly in his time as an Armed Robbery Squad detective. In those days, he and his colleagues undertook many early-morning raids to find and arrest armed offenders. “Sometimes we did five a week,” he says. “We might have two lined up and do the first at 4 in the morning but not do any good. We’d then clean up and be at another joint by 5 o’clock.” Deeply painful for Laird, and every other Victorian police officer, were the 1998 murders of Sergeant Gary Silk and Senior Constable Rodney Miller. The two had teamed up to work on an undercover operation (Hamada) to catch two serial armed robbers of restaurants. These criminals, Bandali Debs and Jason Roberts, shot Silk and Miller in a Moorabbin street after the officers had spotted them during a stakeout. Laird knew both slain cops, whose deaths he got word of in an early-morning phone call. “It was terrible,” he says, “just tragic that they lost their lives. It was traumatic for everybody who knew them. “I still see Rod’s widow, Carmel, once a
year at the ceremony (that pays tribute to Rod and Gary). We always go to that. Now I go to represent the Police Association. It’s usually some event that sparks the memory for me, but I’m past dwelling on it.” Life as a front-line copper was no doubt good preparation for the roles Laird came to take on in police unionism. His early service was as a delegate and an independent member of a Police Association sub-committee which considered legal funding. In 2005, he won a position on the association executive and later served as Junior VicePresident and Senior Vice-President. He won election to the office of President in October last year. The stress and poor treatment he saw some cops suffer in the workplace were what drove Laird to take on such active union roles in the first place. “You start realising how badly some people are suffering and that they need a bit of help,” he says. “Even now, we get people come in (to the association) just about every day and they’re broken. And they probably wouldn’t have been if they hadn’t been police.” Fortunate for his members, particularly the ones in pain, is that Laird understands the value of empathy and the folly of spin. “You’ve got to be able to understand their points of view,” he says. “Our members do diverse roles, so they have different ways of looking at things. “When you’re talking to members, you must avoid management terms and talk to them plainly and honestly. Weasel words should be avoided at all costs because most members would associate those words with insincere people. “You have to engage the people (members) you’re speaking to and let them know you’re human.” Indeed, those of his colleagues Laird has admired most over time are the ones he has seen practise great people skills. But he also understands that, along with his or her power to engage, a president needs tenacity and strength of character.
“The (police union) presidents are like that,” he says, “they’re strong-willed people. It’s really that determination to do something and see it through. I think you need that whenever you challenge and change things.” Of course, it was not only his police background that shaped Laird but also his childhood, little of which he spent in one place. The work his father undertook as a banker involved frequent transfers around country Victoria. For Laird, that meant turning up to a lot of new schools, only to become a target for bullies who took pleasure in picking on newcomers. “You need to look after yourself a little more,” he says. “And I had to start over and over again in relationships.” Laird survived not only the aggression of bullies but also a burning Jamieson shack when he was 18. One of a few mates he was camping with dragged the unconscious Laird out to safety after the shack’s roof caught fire. If not for that mate, he would certainly have died. At the age of 19, after working in a pub and as a driver, as well as unloading trucks, he joined Victoria Police in 1980. And, until then, the prospect of a police career had never once crossed his mind. “A cousin talked me into it,” he says. “He was a copper and I think he might have been influenced to persuade me. I was told it (policing) wouldn’t be a bad thing to do.” Laird would go on to work in uniform and, later, as detective in the inner-city areas of Melbourne, where he wound up on those horrific crime scenes. Today, the 54-year-old husband and father-ofthree insists that, for him, the role of president has no downsides. He enjoys “all aspects” of it, and even appreciates the odd lesson the job has taught him. “If I had a strongly held view I used to think I couldn’t be moved on it,” he says. “But now I’m happy to listen to other points of view. I’ve got a better appreciation of other views and of listening to them throughout entire issues.” Although, one issue on which he remains immovable is that of a switch to politics. No one has asked him the question yet but, if anyone does, his unmistakable answer is: “I couldn’t be less interested.” 21 Police News APRIL 2015
02 03
01
Numbats kiwi adventure I
Paterson won the championship batting award … and was also named captain of the Championship AustralianNew Zealand merit team. 01 Veteran Ian Lyon slides one past the batsman into Mike Nash’s gloves. 02 Andy Galbraith cuts. 03 Captain Michael Patterson brings up his century against Queensland.
22 Police News APRIL 2015
njuries and unavailability were key factors in the WA Police Cricket Club’s disappointing tour of New Zealand in late January. Competing in the 18th Australia New Zealand Police Cricket Championships (ANZPCC), the Numbats struggled to four losses, before an emphatic last day win over New South Wales which the lads celebrated hard afterwards. The Numbats have toured all over the world, including to England (1996, 2004, 2010), Barbados (1998), New Zealand (2006), South Africa (2007), Sri Lanka (2014) and they also participate in the ANZPCC which is held every two years. In recent years, the Numbats have recruited some high quality cricketers from amongst the WA Police ranks which resulted in a successful 2009 championship win in Perth and a second placing at the 2012 Gold Coast championships. On Day One of the 2014 championships, an opening partnership of 69 between Andy Galbraith and Robert Murdoch got the Numbats off to a flying start against championship favourites, and eventual winners, New Zealand. A batting collapse for the ages saw WA lose 10 for 37 after the promising start to be all out for 106, a score which the Kiwis passed only three wickets down in pretty quick time. The Numbats looked to bounce back in the second game against Queensland. Skipper Michael Paterson scored a dominant 122 not out with Andy Galbraith (66) providing solid support, the Numbats posted a competitive 3/226 from their allocated 45 overs. Despite a couple of early wickets from veteran Ian Lyon, the Queensland batsmen took a liking to the WA slow bowlers and won the game by seven wickets.
Day Three saw the Numbats go down in a close game to South Australia by three wickets. A five wicket haul by off spinner John Allanson was the highlight against Victoria in the fourth match as the Numbats restricted the Vics to a formidable 220 off just 37 overs. The Numbats went out swinging for the win and were bowled out for 68. A rained shortened last day, saw WA, desperate to end the championships on a high, chase down the New South Wales total of 163 in just 25 overs. Captain Paterson was again the mainstay of the WA innings scoring an impressive 93 not out off 71 balls after Lyon picked up two important wickets, to take his tally to nine for the week, to be WA’s leading wicket taker. Paterson won the championship batting award after making 271 runs at an average of 90.33 and was also named captain of the Championship Australian-New Zealand merit team. WA Police Cricket stalwart Mike Sedgman was awarded Life Membership of the ANZPCC during the Closing Ceremony. Auckland was Sedgman’s 13th Numbats tour and his years of effort and tireless work for the ANZPCC and WA Police Cricket Club were recognised with the highest honour of Life Membership. He joins club founders Peter Potthoff and Doug Holt as ANZPCC Life Members. The next championships will be held in Adelaide in November 2016. If you are interested in joining the WA Police Cricket Club, please contact Sgt Michael Sedgman at ROG for more details.
WAPU Opinion
Brandon Shortland Senior Vice President
Blue soldiers deserve greater recognition In the lead up to the centenary of ANZAC commemorations, a great deal is being said and acknowledged regarding the trauma and suffering of Australia’s defence personnel and the horrors they have experienced.
The point of this article is to advocate for the same treatment of our police here at home who are doing, seeing and experiencing things theatres of war dare not provide.
There is growing acceptance by organisations, professional healthcare practitioners and academics that the trauma experienced during the diggers’ service to Australia has resulted in undeniable and directly linked non-physical injury and illness. The recognition of these issues and willingness to make positive and naturally just changes to how our defence personnel are treated and compensated for their sacrifices continues to grow, expand and come to fruition, as it rightly should. The people that serve to keep our country safe and secure deserve to be treated with dignity, respect and given the recognition and assistance they need in their attempts to maintain some sort of normal existence. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for our police officers. Firstly, I need to make this point. This piece is not to diminish, detract from nor minimise the efforts and service of our defence personnel. It is to simply draw comparisons and highlight the massive discrepancies of how two similar groups of people are treated so differently. Defence personnel deserve everything they need to rebuild their broken lives when they return from their service overseas. The point of this article is to advocate for the same treatment of our police here at home who are doing, seeing and experiencing things theatres of war dare not provide.
The Project Recompense Report can be found at www.wapu.org.au
Police officers do not serve their community in a hostile environment for a set period of time. Policing is undertaken every day, everywhere, throughout the State with unknown dangers waiting around any corner. Our police live within the communities where they work and live side-by-side with the law breakers they target. When a police officer is involved in a critical incident and there is a ‘death in police presence’ it is always accompanied by intense media coverage. This is usually a front page story in the newspaper, editorials and then lead stories on the evening TV news along with several live crosses to the incident scene. The police officers involved are repeatedly shown on mobile footage captured by witnesses and then followed by heavy coverage of the coronial inquest, complete with salacious photographs. If a life is taken overseas by our defence personnel, you would be doing well to hear about it. Our Members are then put through the sausage machine of arguably the most aggressive, robust and traumatising internal review processes of all government and non-government organisations. But it is not just the critical incidents which causes police to be paraded. Any incident where there are political, social, legal or other angles of interest to media organisations, police will be facing the spotlight. Two examples, the Buswell saga and attempts to curb out of control parties, it is the police who are the subject of the resulting inquisitions.
I have acknowledged the need for thorough journalism as an important aspect in keeping the decision makers accountable. However, the exponential increase of trauma and damage done to our Members by the media is an issue rarely experienced by defence personnel. After two years’ worth of research, WAPU published Project Recompense in November 2014 which analysed all of the prevention strategies, support systems and compensatory mechanisms in place for every other emergency service worker across Australia. Project Recompense made 14 recommendations for a suite of solutions to adequately acknowledge and prevent trauma suffered by our Members, along with options for a fair and sustainable scheme to compensate those falling victim to injury and illness caused by their service to WA. To date, neither WA Police nor the State Government have provided a response to the research paper and its recommendations. In light of the ever growing acknowledgement and recognition of trauma suffered by those serving our communities overseas and celebration of their contributions, it is long overdue and about time our police officers are acknowledged and recognised to the same extent. It is not too much to ask that our Members are given fair, reasonable and empathetic support for their sacrifices here at home 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year. 23 Police News APRIL 2015
Former President’s interesting ANZAC link Dave Lampard Field Officer
It is fitting in the year that we celebrate the centenary of Anzac Day that the WA Police Union acknowledge some of the interesting policing activities performed by former President Grenville Vaughn Purdue. He is one of only four WAPU Presidents to serve two separate terms (1918-1919 and 1922-1924) and was one of the only serving members of WA Police to be tasked to work overseas with the Australian Imperial Forces (AIF). In March 1916, the then Detective joined other investigators from around Australia as well as other WA police officers who had taken leave of absence to join the AIF in the Middle East. The six detectives had an almost pseudo secret police role whilst in Egypt. Their job was to track down criminals who had wangled their way into the army and were a risk against the war effort. Their duties were even extended to weeding out and identifying spies and plans for espionage. Lacking any modern computer technology, an essential quality was studying criminal photographs from around Australia and memorising facial details along with the offenders’ modis
Right 1922 Annual Conference then Detective Sergeant Purdue second back row third from the right prior to commencing his second term as President.
24 Police News APRIL 2015
operandi. As a result of their work, a number of undesirable Australian soldiers were rounded up and returned to Australia. In no time at all Det. Purdue had his first overseas pinch. WA villain Joe Remnicker, going under the name of Joe Herbert, had enlisted in Queensland where he was also a suspect for murder. The detectives tracked down soldiers absent without leave, known as stray soldiers, who dressed like locals and stayed in brothels, some even producing false documents for gangs in the area. Investigating these gangs resulted in the cracking of a scam that had been causing severe disruption in the city. The deserters, posing as first aid officers, using false names and dressed as Egyptian civilians, infiltrated the posh hotel scene. They were apprehended by Det. Purdue and his colleagues at Kasr El Nil after a scam was uncovered. Other gang members were eventually tracked down to the Metropole Hotel. Another interesting assignment was the investigation into the illegal radio activities of three women whom Det. Purdue described as ‘Turkish Jewess’. They were enemy subjects and one was married to a man working in the British Consul’s Office in Cairo. Not content with his special agent role, Det. Purdue conducted what was probably one of the first overseas study assignments, using the methods employed by the Egyptian Police Force in the forensic fingerprint and photo ID field. He even extended his studies to Union matters regarding the pay and conditions of the various non-commissioned and commissioned officer ranks. Det. Purdue was dismayed to report about the lewdness of the average prostitute that tempted young soldiers to such an extent that they deserted their posts and often fell victim of venereal diseases that eventually had to be treated by the AIF nurses. The stay in Egypt was short but eventful and by August 1916 the detectives departed for England whilst the poor old AIF were destined for the muddy battlefields of the Western Front. Det. Purdue received a glowing reference from the Acting Provost Marshall in Cairo. Whilst paperwork was being sorted, Det. Purdue engaged in further overseas studies at Scotland Yard and other police and justice establishments. In general, the Australian soldiers’ behaviour improved while in England and by October, a decision was made that their services were no longer required. Leaving for Australia on December 11 1916, Det.Purdue could not stop working on the return journey and on Boxing Day he recorded the arrest of the ship’s engineer for sexual assault on a nine-year-old girl. Upon his return, Det. Purdue rose to the rank of Chief Inspector, effectively second in charge of the force, before his retirement in 1940 at 65 years of age. His photograph hangs proudly amongst other presidents of the Union at the top of the stairs on the first floor of WAPU HQ.
WAPU Opinion
Kevin McDonald
Metropolitan Region Director
It’s a question of trust There has been significant disquiet in recent years among WAPU Members on the subject of patient-doctor confidentiality as far as Health and Safety Branch intervention is concerned.
It’s been a long held belief that medical information between doctor and patient was private and confidential which lead to a general belief that Health and Safety Branch did not disclose private medical information to WA Police without member consent. Well apparently they do. If there was ever any doubt about member confidentiality at WA Police’s Health and Safety Branch (used to be Health and Welfare Branch), it was abruptly extinguished at the March WAPU Board of Directors’ meeting. A Health and Safet y Branch representative unashamedly and unrepentantly informed the Board that personal medical information was not confidential and in fact, is necessarily accessible by the organisation for the purpose of risk management and to facilitate the expeditious return to work of employees following critical incidents. People generally are accustomed that the personal information they discuss with their medical practitioner is confidential unless they have a personal and consensual reason for disclosing it to a third party.
The Health and Safety Branch representative has finally cleared the air and WAPU can now advise its Members that WA Police has full and unfettered access to your medical information held within Health and Safety Branch.
Police of ficers are quite understandably reticent to divulge private information, par ticularly when it comes to their mental and physical health, for fear of professional recriminations. And who could blame them? There are countless anecdotal accounts over the years involving WAPU Members, the release of whose private medical information has resulted in dismissal, workplace ostracism/bullying and unjustified employee separation, re-classified as non-operational, missed transfers, higher duties or promotion opportunities. The Health and Safety Branch representative was quite at ease explaining that an employee who is directed by management to undergo psychological examination by Health and Safety can expect their private and personal medical information to be delivered to management without their permission and without hesitation. In other words, your privacy and wellbeing is in the hands of your local district officer whether you like it or not. Are you starting to feel ill? It was explained that member– psychologist interviews were in a different category than lawyer-client legal professional privilege and in any case, if consent wasn’t forthcoming, private medical information could easily be obtained by way of subpoena. There are a few basic rights that I think are worth hanging onto in this world and just because we’re coppers doesn’t mean we have to forego all of them. Take for example every person’s right to remain silent. Every person except police officers that is!
If you have a need for legal services then the private information you disclose to a lawyer is protected. If you are a church going individual and you want to seek forgiveness for a sin you can privately cleanse your soul in the presence of a priest. No-one else knows. But if you’re a copper and you’ve risked your own safety and wellbeing in defence of a vulnerable community, expect to get put under the psychological microscope for viewing by any number of interested onlookers. At least now the veil of secrecy has been removed. Under pressure from WAPU, WA Police was forced to explain reasons for the public release of private information (obtained by Health and Safety Branch) made by the Commissioner of Police after a recent and very public critical incident. The Health and Safety Branch representative has finally cleared the air and WAPU can now advise its Members that WA Police has full and unfettered access to your medical information held within Health and Safety Branch. It’s not within the domain of WAPU to advise how Members should react to this knowledge however, it is appropriate that Members are informed and it’s worth reminding you of your industrial entitlements relative to reimbursement of medical expenses. Therefore, in theory, you could visit a private physician or specialist for your medical matters and have those reimbursed if it is a work related medical issue.
25 Police News APRIL 2015
Dean Giacomini & Dave Lampard Field Officer
Field Officer
Method of Entry report WAPU has been made aware of a number of issues relating to Methods of Entry (MOE), particularly during the execution of search warrants on residential and commercial properties, as well as forced entry during hot pursuits of offenders.
The investigation revealed that the policies, standard operating procedures, training, MOE tools and personal protective clothing was not adequately covered in the two existing policies.
26 Police News APRIL 2015
The tools used to gain entry have varied from a baton wedged in a door to prevent it from being locked to a Tactical Response Group vehicle being used to crash through steel gates to “homemade” ram and slam devices. When available, surveillance has provided information on the type of challenges that will be faced when executing a forced entry. The villains have deployed all manner of tactics to prevent easy entry such as false handles on the same side as the hinges, to doors that appear to be solid only to be of flimsy construction. These traps have sometimes left Members injured, the October 2014 Police News reported an incident which resulted in a Member receiving serious injuries to his arm and Safety Branch conducting an investigation into all MOE procedures. The investigation revealed that the policies, standard operating procedures, training, MOE tools and personal protective clothing was not adequately covered in the two existing policies (PR-1.2.19.1 and SZ-1.3.2.6). In the meantime, a Safety Advice Broadcast has been issued by the Acting Assistant Commissioner of the Workforce Portfolio. WAPU supports the advice of: • Using officers who have completed MOE training; • Providing appropriate supervision; • Conducting a pre-MOE safety briefing; • Conducting an MOE rehearsal; • Consider the risks to parts of the body that are vulnerable in such MOE operations; • Where possible plan the MOE with intelligence/ reconnaissance; and • Select tools that can affect the entry with the least possible risk to Member’s health. Sworn Members would be fully aware that work related injuries are not subject to legislative workers compensation entitlements, so your wellbeing is paramount to continuance as a fully operational fit for duty role in the police.
Margaret River asbestos drama Funding was provided for a major refurbishment of the Margaret River Police Station and planned to commence in early 2015. WAPU was unhappy that these plans did not provide for alternative accommodation for our Members whilst this internal and external work progressed. Members have been placed at risk during this renovation whilst remaining in a hazardous environment that included the dislodgement of tiles laid in 1965. These tiles were known to contain asbestos products. The uprooting of the tiles whilst the station was occupied led to the station being closed and with no plan ‘B’ in place providing Members with no alternative accommodation that could provide a temporary police station. WAPU has written to the Commissioner of Police recommending that future refurbishments involve the elected and qualified Safety and Health Representative (SHR). SHR training include a component alerting Members to the hazards of these types of major works and consideration for the provision of a ready available transportable police facility to be placed to safely accommodate police officers and at the same time not disrupting police operations.
North Coogee Heritage listed abandoned Power Station One of the unforseen outcomes of the introduction of the SDRM Response Team (RT) style of reactive policing was the coverage of numerous traditional police sub districts that may have had in-house practices regarding hazardous and often dangerous buildings, and areas. Police officers stationed in that sub district would have had sensible rules that dealt with attendance at these sites for other than emergencies. One such site is the old North Coogee heritage listed abandoned Power Station. South Metropolitan (North) RT are now allocated tasks at this site by the South Metropolitan District Control Centre.
Field Report
01
02 03
‌ work related injuries are not subject to legislative workers compensation entitlements, so your wellbeing is paramount to continuance as a fully operational fit for duty role in the police.
Both unaware of the hidden dangers and traps at the site. RT police officers have attended to even the most low priority trespass complaints there. One of our Members was involved in an almost freakish incident that resulted in the loss of three of his fingertips. Again, I repeat that sworn Members would be fully aware that work related injuries are not subject to legislative workers compensation entitlements, so your wellbeing is paramount to continuance as a fully operational fit for duty role in the police.
South West Field Trip WAPU Vice President Harry Arnott and Treasurer Mick Kelly recently conducted a field trip of the South West including visits to Bunbury, Collie, Bridgetown and Busselton. In the company of Field Officer Dean Giacomini, the field trip discovered the issues previously mentioned at Margaret River Police Station as well as attended several branch meetings and conducted some station visits. They also bumped into a familiar face in Collie when they caught up with current OIC and former WAPU President Mike Dean.
04
01 WAPU Vice President Harry Arnott and Treasurer Mick Kelly outside the Margaret River Police Station. 02 Harry Arnott and Mick Kelly at Bridgetown Police Station with Members of the Lower South West Branch. 03 Mick Kelly with the team outside Kojonup Police Station. 04 Mick Kelly with former WAPU President and current Collie OIC Senior Sergeant Mike Dean.
27 Police News APRIL 2015
Industrial reporT
Andrea Wyllie Industrial Officer
Regional Incentive Scheme During the 2013 Election campaign WAPU lobbied Government for a Locality Allowance which would have seen money fairly and reasonably distributed to our Members right across regional WA. At the time, Government claimed it could not afford our proposal and police were not going to be provided with anything. It was through persistence and targeted political pressure that $10.5 million was committed to the Regional WA Incentive Scheme through Royalties for Regions funding and the money was allocated directly to WA Police who determined the distribution. WAPU had no involvement with the negotiations or the packaging arrangements for the Regional WA Incentive Scheme, and prior to the 2013 Annual Conference WAPU was presented with the two options available for the Regional WA Incentive Scheme (Attraction and Retention Payments) for WA police officers. Then Assistant Commissioner (Regional WA) Gary Dreibergs attended the Annual Conference workshop on 23 June 2013 and outlined the two package options to the Annual Conference Delegates including the Board of Directors. It was made clear that there would be no further negotiations on the proposals and if they were not accepted then the money would be reallocated to another government group. On 26 June 2013, WAPU President George Tilbury wrote to the Minister for Police advising that “I am pleased to inform you that we have now reached a position that will enable you to progress this matter. Notwithstanding the Union’s Locality Allowance Submission is our preference, your proposal two was accepted by our Members on the basis that it provides an expedient interim solution to the challenges of attracting and retaining regional WA officers…..We have been informed that a review will be undertaken in two years.”
It was made clear that there would be no further negotiations on the proposals and if they were not accepted then the money would be reallocated to another government group.
28 Police News APRIL 2015
Following on from feedback from our Members, WAPU recently approached WA Police with a view to reconsider the exclusion of OICs from receiving the retention allowance. WA Police advised that all eligible OICs who submitted a claim form to the Regional WA portfolio have been provided with the applicable attraction payment and that the retention portion of the allowance was not applicable to an OIC as they are in receipt of an OIC Allowance. The allowance paid to OICs of police stations and detective offices, as part of their salary, is to compensate them for the extra hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week and for having no fixed hours of duty during their five working days. Clause 10(1)(c) of the WA Police Industrial Agreement is very clear in that salary rates prescribed for OICs “…shall include allowance for all duties performed beyond forty hours in a week…”. This is quite clearly something that is to be treated separately from a retention payment that rewards officers for commitment and determination to contribute effectively to their regional community. On 24 Februar y 2015, WAPU received fur ther correspondence from WA Police advising that “…an equitable review of all allowances paid to regional WA staff, (including Attraction and Retention Allowance), for all non-commissioned and commissioned officers (including Officer in Charge of stations and detectives offices)” is being undertaken. It is our strong belief that OICs of police stations, traffic and detective offices, who have qualified for the retention component of the allowance by completing three and a half years in their positions, should be paid the allowance in the same manner as all other police officers who live and serve in regional WA and to view this any other way would be blatantly discriminatory.
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29 Police News APRIL 2015
Free legal service for current and retired WAPU Members and their families. The WA Police Union is partnering with leading law firm Tindall Gask Bentley to provide Members with access to first class legal services. Established in 1970, TGB has grown to become South Australia’s largest plaintiff law firm and has now expanded into Western Australia.
The firm offers a full range of legal services. Receive 30 minutes free preliminary advice on all legal matters. We also offer a 10% discount on any legal fees for: • Workers Compensation*, • Motor Vehicle Accident Compensation*, • Family and Divorce law, • Estates and Estate Planning. To book an appointment with a lawyer or for more information contact WAPU HQ on (08) 9321 2155.
*If you have not made a claim, disregard this publication.
Richard Yates
LEGAL
Senior Associate, Tindall Gask Bentley Lawyers
What to do if you receive a CCC Witness Summons The Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) has oversight of complaints against police officers in Western Australia. It is not uncommon for police officers to receive witness summonses (i.e. subpoenas) to attend hearings and give evidence before the CCC. Witness summonses can be issued to officers who are the subject of alleged misconduct, or police officers who are merely witnesses to an event or allegation.
Should I make a voluntary statement? It has been a regular practice of the CCC to approach police officers and invite them to give a voluntary statement about a particular matter before a witness summons is issued or served. Advice can be sought from WAPU when such an approach is made, although we usually advise against voluntary statements being made. This is because the legal protections afforded to involuntary statements (for example, internal WA Police managerial inter views under compulsion, or evidence at cour t in answer to a summons/ subpoena) might not apply to voluntary statements given to the CCC. The significance of that potential reduction in legal protection is likely to be greater when the police officer is or could be the subject of a criminal or misconduct allegation. In other words, if you are or could be the subject of allegations, giving a voluntary statement about the issues to anybody including the CCC is unwise.
In other words, if you are or could be the subject of allegations, giving a voluntary statement about the issues to anybody including the CCC is unwise.
Witness Summonses Assuming an invitation to give a voluntary statement is declined by a police officer, or the CCC move immediately to an examination, the CCC can issue witness summonses to police officers who might be able to assist in the investigation. These witness summonses are usually personally served on the police officer by an officer of the CCC. The witness summons will usually identify the officer or officers who are under investigation, or the incident being investigated. However, the summons might not if the CCC has decided not to disclose this information to protect the integrity of the investigation. If you receive a witness summons to attend the CCC, the very first thing you should do is carefully read the summons. This cannot be stressed enough. The summons may have a non-disclosure notation. Non-disclosure notations can prohibit you from telling anybody about the summons other than to seek legal advice. Depending on the wording of the non-disclose notation, it is likely to be a criminal offence to tell your colleagues, spouse, friends, etc. about the summons. This notation will continue to apply after the hearing, usually until the Commission serves a further notice on the witness advising the notation no longer applies – which could be months or longer down the track.
If you receive a CCC witness summons, you should telephone WAPU HQ and ask to speak to a lawyer. All witnesses at the CCC are entitled to legal representation, the cost of which is met by the State Government. This applies to subject officers, and officers who are merely witnesses. We strongly recommend all witnesses obtain legal advice and representation, given the potential significant outcomes of a CCC inquiry, and particularly because the cost of legal representation is met by the government. WAPU can provide you with the required funding forms. These forms should be completed and returned as soon as possible, in order for funding to be secured prior to the hearing.
The Hearing At the hearing, witnesses’ evidence is required to be on oath. Questions are usually asked by a lawyer acting on behalf of the CCC (referred to as ‘counsel assisting’), and the witness’ lawyer has a right to object to certain questions being asked. The witness’ lawyer can also be granted permission to ask questions of the witness, usually after counsel as sis t ing has conclude d t h eir examination.
Continued on page 39
31 Police News APRIL 2015
Package a new car and save on tax
Proud Supporters of the WA Police Union Your Package Includes Finance, Fuel, Insurance, Servicing, Tyres & Registration
Mention this advert prior to completing your contract and get a bonus GoPro HD Hero Camera or an iPad Mini when your new vehicle is delivered!
Did you know that as a police officer, you have priority access to salary packaging your next car? Let the team at Fleet Network show you how to save thousands when buying your next new car. It’s all about getting the most out of your salary and paying less in tax.
It’s worth a call – it’s your salary, after all.
1300 738 601 www.fleetnetwork.com.au/bonus Fleet Network Pty Ltd. To qualify for this offer you must mention this advertisement to Fleet Network prior to the completion of your initial contract. Vehicle must be new and supplied by Fleet Network. Not valid in conjunction with any other current Fleet Network offers. Employees should consult their employer’s salary packaging policy before entering into a contract. *Subject to Employer policy. Vehicle for illustration purposes only.
Bought to you by
MOTORING
Fleet Network
Members now able to package luxury cars Great news for all police officers‌ You can now salary package vehicles that exceed the Luxury Car Tax (LCT) threshold! In the past, Fleet Network has spoken to many officers, mainly in remote areas, that unfortunately could not lease the vehicle they wanted due to these restrictions in the WA Police novated leasing arrangements.
But in February this year, WAPU successfully lobbied WA Police to allow employees to salary package cars which exceed the LCT threshold. Currently, the LCT sits at $75,375 for fuel efficient cars and $61,884 for other vehicles which made it difficult to package a quality four wheel drive, with all the safety features, suitable for driving in regional WA. For example, if you wanted to add accessories such as a bull bar and roof racks to a Toyota Prado, you could potentially exceed the LCT threshold making it unattainable to salary package. Now this has changed, which is great news for all police officers in WA. Another popular off-road vehicle on the market at the moment, the Toyota 200 Series LandCruiser, can now also be purchased under a salary packaging arrangement. WAPU argued that Members should be able to package cars above the threshold given that no additional costs would be incurred by the Agency. They also highlighted the disparity given that other WA Government agencies and interstate police officers had unrestricted access to salary package motor vehicles. You need to be aware of the extra costs involved in packaging a vehicle above the threshold and we encourage you to discuss the impact of this new opportunity with your financial adviser, so that you are aware of your obligations. This is a significant achievement by WAPU, with all Members now having the choice to package a vehicle that suits your needs and lifestyle.
Fleet Network has been sourcing a better deal for WA police officers for two decades. Salar y packaging maximises your take home income by including car repayments, on-road costs and all running costs associated with your lease by utilising your pre-tax salary. Your dedicated Fleet Network consultant will provide detailed
salary packaging information to your depar tments authorised bureau provider, ensuring no hassles for you, plus there are a range of benefits and discounts available to Fleet Network clients. So if you’re in the market for a new car, call Fleet Network on 1300 738 601 or visit www.fleetnetwork.com.au
The table below shows the savings that can be gained through salary packaging. It is based on leasing a new vehicle with a FBT base value of $85,000 and travelling 15,000km per year, with a gross income of $100,000pa. The employee in this situation is effectively able to take home an additional $3,184 in disposable income per year just through salary packaging alone and ends up paying less in taxes.
Not Packaging
Salary Packaging using Employee Contribution Method
Annual Salary Less motor vehicle & running costs per month Less FBT Less GST on employee contribution Less luxury car charge Add input tax credits
$100,000 $0.00
$100,000 $9,108
$0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
$0.00 $1,547 $1,432 $2,375
Taxable salary
$100,000
$90,288
Tax (inc. Medicare) Net salary pre employee contribution Employee contribution (vehicle)
$26,947 $73,053 $26,129
$23,159 $67,128 $17,021
Net Cash Salary (after input tax credits)
$46,923
$50,107
Fortnightly net reduction in take home pay after tax with salary packaging Net packaging benefit per year* Total Packaging Benefit over 5 year lease
$882 $3,184 $15,920
*This example is only for illustration purposes based on the information above. Actual taxation amounts will depend on various factors. The above comparative analysis shows the net benefit gained per annum by acquiring the vehicle with a novated lease agreement versus a private finance agreement assuming the monthly repayments and running costs are the same in both scenarios.
33 Police News APRIL 2015
Bought to you by
HEALTH
Police Health
Surprising consequences of poor dental health Even though we use them multiple times every day, many people are guilty of being complacent when it comes to looking after their teeth. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, three in 10 adults aged 25-44 have untreated tooth decay and every year one in seven people aged over 15 have toothache.
Equally disturbing are findings from researchers who believe there may be a link between tooth decay and inflamed gums with more serious illnesses.
Children are particularly at risk, with one in two 12-year-olds suffering decay in their permanent teeth. As a result, tooth decay is one of Australia’s most common health problem. Poor oral hygiene also leads to gum disease and various medical studies have found that there may be links with serious illnesses such as heart attacks and dementia. The good news is that if people make the effort, 90 per cent of all teeth complaints can be avoided with a healthy diet, good oral hygiene and regular check-ups.
The causes of tooth decay Every time we eat we risk tooth decay. Plaque, a clear, sticky substance, is always forming on teeth and gums and contains bacteria that feed on sugars in food. This in turn creates acids which destroy tooth enamel. Most of the decay occurs in the back teeth – molars and premolars – which are covered in grooves and pits where food particles collect. Certain foods are more likely to cause decay because they cling to teeth and are not easily washed away by saliva. These include any foods containing sugar such as ice cream, honey, soft drinks, dried fruit, confectionary and desserts.
People who enjoy frequent snacking or sipping drinks high in sugar or acid are particularly at risk because this provides mouth bacteria with a continual fuel source. Additionally, those who drink bottled water over tap water, are missing out on the benefits of fluoride which is added to most water supplies. Other conditions can also lead to increased tooth decay, including: • A lack of saliva caused by certain medical conditions, medications and treatments; • Plaque build-up in worn fillings; and • Stomach acid from heartburn and eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia which can wear away tooth enamel.
Serious side effects Alarmingly, cavities and tooth decay are so common that many people fail to take them seriously – and that can be a serious mistake. There can be other long-term complications, including: • Pus around the teeth and gums • Unsightly teeth and bad breath • Chewing problems leading to nutritional issues • Long-term bite issues when children lose their baby teeth early • A tooth abscess which can cause serious infections. A build up of plaque and tartar, which is caused by hardened plaque, can also lead to gum diseases such as gingivitis. This is an inflammation of
the gums and if not treated can lead to periodontitis when the gums pull away from the teeth.
Poor oral hygiene can be fatal In extreme cases tooth decay can cause death. Infection in an upper back tooth can spread to the sinus behind the eye and then enter the brain – which can be fatal. Equally disturbing are findings from researchers who believe there may be a link between tooth decay and inflamed gums with more serious illnesses. In the UK, a long-term study has found that people who never or rarely brush their teeth are 70 per cent more likely to develop cardiovascular disease than those who brush twice a day. Other studies are looking at possible links between periodontal disease and premature births, with mothers more likely to deliver babies before term if they fail to seek dental treatment. Researchers in the UK and US have also discovered that poor oral hygiene could place people at higher risk of developing Alzheimer's. A University of Central Lancashire study found bacterium associated with chronic gum disease in the brains of dementia victims.
Continued on page 39 34 Police News APRIL 2015
SAVE with WAPU Member benefits
Member benefits
Getaway Outdoors MORE DISCOUNTS? If you know a business or a venue that might be interested in providing a special deal or rates for WAPU Members, the Union would like to hear about it. Please contact Director Peter Potthoff on 0407 476 679 or admin@wapu.org.au to pass on the details.
WAPU has secured a new discount offer with retailer Getaway Outdoors. Members will receive a 10 per cent discount when they shop in-store at one of Getaway Outdoors eight WA locations*. All stores independently owned and operated across WA so you can be sure to find a local friendly store near you. Store locations include – Balcatta, Bentley, Bunbury, Cockburn, Geraldton, Kelmscott, Mandurah and Midland. Importantly, they understand better than anyone why their customers love the outdoors. The reason for this is the owners of each Getaway Outdoors store are locals who live and breathe the great outdoors.
They have a vast amount of firsthand knowledge and experience combined with the friendly and specialist service you have come to know and trust, you won’t find a better way to Getaway. With many leading name brands in-store such as Coleman, Oztent, Oztrail, Primus, Engel and Darche to name a few, there is something for everyone So go on, get into your local Getaway Outdoors store today and get amongst it or visit their website www.getawayoutdoors.com.au or like them Facebook.
WAPU Director Mick Gill with Getaway Outdoors Geraldton Owner Franchisee Peter Berryman.
*Exclusions do apply. All prices include GST. This offer is not to be used in conjunction with any other offer and is only available on full price items. Exclusions from the discount include Fish Sounders, GPS & EPIRBs, Hobie Kayaks and Accessories, Power Generators and Weber BBQs and Accessories.
AMF Bowling joins WAPU Member Benefits Program
WAPU Magnets Make sure you don’t miss your free WAPU Magnet included in this edition of Police News.
With winter just around the corner, what perfect way to spend a rainy day than by heading down to your local AMF Bowling alley to unwind and relax. AMF Bowling is now offering WAPU Members a Buy one game of bowling, Get one free offer upon presentation of the below coupon. And the best news is that the coupon can be used over and over again. This is another great benefit for WAPU Members and it is a sure way to entertain the family this winter.
BUY ONE GAME OF BOWLING
GET ONE
Member Services Committee Chair Peter Potthoff wants you to buy some of these watches.
FREE
*
*Conditions apply. Buy one full price Adult bowling game, and get one free at AMF Bowling Centres only. Shoe hire additional $2. Not valid in conjunction with any other offer. Not valid for league, tournament play or pre-paid events. Offer valid until the 31st of December 2015.
The magnet has all the contact details you will need to get in touch with your Union. Put it on the fridge or inside your locker so you have our details when you need them!
35
Police News APRIL 2015
READ
The Boy Who Could See Death Vickers Salley RRP: $35.00
Eli was not quite seven years old when he discovered that he was different. At that time, in most ways, he was a quite ordinary child, with the usual traits, good and bad, that ordinary little boys will have. But in one important respect he differed from the ordinary. One March day, Eli looked into the eyes of his friend Thomas Wilkes and said, 'You are going to die on Tuesday.' And when the following Tuesday, after school, Tommy Wilkes fell from his treehouse and broke his neck it was inevitable that questions were asked.
Watch
Spice I Am
Horrible Bosses 2
New Tricks
In this much anticipated cookbook Sydney-based Thai chef Sujet Saenkham shares his family recipes for the fresh flavours of regional Thai cooking so you can enjoy authentic Thai food at home. Leave the Thai takeaway menus in your kitchen drawer, as you learn how to make restaurant favourites such as Sujet’s signature stir-fried crispy pork belly with basil, roasted red duck curry with eggplant, tomato and pineapple and crispy prawn and lemongrass salad, as well as traditional classics like pad Thai, fishcakes and a massaman beef curry from scratch. Throughout, Sujet offers practical advice on finding the ingredients and mastering the cooking techniques you need to create your own Thai feasts at home.
For Nick (Jason Bateman, This is Where I Leave You), Kurt (Jason Sudeikis, We’re The Millers) and Dale (Charlie Day, It’s Always Sunnier in Philadelphia), the only thing that would make the daily grind more tolerable would be to grind their intolerable bosses into dust. Quitting is not an option, so, with the benefit of a few too many drinks and some dubious advice from a hustling ex-con, the three friends devise a convoluted and seemingly foolproof plan to rid themselves of their respective employers... permanently. There’s only one problem: even the bestlaid plans are only as foolproof as the brains behind them. Horrible Bosses 2 also stars Jennifer Aniston (We’re the Millers), Oscar winner Jamie Foxx (Ray), Chris Pine (Star Trek: Into Darkness) and Oscar winner Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds).
In Series 11 of New Tricks, Dan Griffin, Steve MacAndrew and Gerry Standing are back investigating cold cases under the watchful eye of their boss DCI Sasha Miller. This series the team are challenged with some of the toughest cases yet, from the death of a young A&E doctor to an international interpreter with a passion for chess. There’s an occult mystery that leads the team to the underground river fleet and there’s the murder of a pub landlord where Gerry and Steve end up in an English vineyard. Throw in some Roman reenactment, some black market steroids, the death of one of Griffin’s friends and a difficult reunion between Steve and his father and you have another compelling ten episodes of New Tricks.
Sujet Saenkham RRP: $39.99
DVD SRP: $39.95 BLU-RAY SRP: $44.95
DVD SRP: $39.95 Three Discs
win
win
We have one copy of The Boy Who Could See Death and Spice I Am to give away courtesy of Penguin Books Australia. To enter, email jessica.porter@wapu.org.au with your name, work address and title of the book. Winners will be drawn on May 11, 2015.
We have five copies of Horrible Bosses 2 and New Tricks to give away courtesy of Roadshow Entertainment. To enter, email jessica.porter@wapu.org.au with your name, work address and title of the movie. Winners will be drawn on May 11, 2015.
Police News APRIL 2015
See
LISTEN
Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2
Avengers: Age of Ultron 3D
In this sequel, in which Kevin James reprises the role of Paul Blart, the security guard is headed to Las Vegas to attend a Security Guard Expo with his teenage daughter Maya (Raini Rodriguez) before she departs for college. While at the convention, he inadvertently discovers a heist – and it’s up to Blart to apprehend the criminals.
Marvel Studios presents this epic follow-up to the biggest superhero movie of all time. When Tony Stark tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth’s mightiest heroes, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye, are put to the ultimate test as the fate of the planet hangs in the balance. As the villainous Ultron emerges, it is up to The Avengers to stop him from enacting his terrible plans, and soon uneasy alliances and unexpected action pave the way for an epic and unique global adventure.
SEASON COMMENCES April 16
SEASON COMMENCES April 23
win We have two passes to give away to Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 and Avengers: Age of Ultron 3D. To enter, email jessica.porter@wapu.org.au with your name, work address and title of the movie. Winners will be drawn on May 11, 2015.
DUETS: RE-WORKING THE CATALOGUE VAN MORRISON Out Now
On Duets: Re-Working The Catalogue, Van Morrison and guests selected and recorded some of his songs from the catalogue of 360 songs across his career. Deliberately steering away from his more well-known classics, Van enlisted some of the artists he most respects to perform these songs with him to re-craft and re-imagine them. The album was recorded in his home town of Belfast and London over the last year, using a variety of musicians and fresh arrangements. The album features duet performances with Bobby Womack, Steve Winwood, Mark Knopfler, Taj Mahal, Mavis Staples, Michael Bublé, Natalie Cole, George Benson, Gregory Porter, Clare Teal, P.J. Proby, Joss Stone, Georgie Fame, Mick Hucknall, Chris Farlowe, and Van’s daughter Shana Morrison.
Entertain me
SONIC HIGHWAYS DVD FOO FIGHTERS Out Now
Described by Dave Grohl as a love letter to the history of American music, Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways followed Grohl and fellow Foo Fighters Taylor Hawkins, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear as they recorded each song in a legendary studio in one of eight iconic American musical capital cities – Chicago, Washington DC, Nashville, Austin, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Seattle and New York – tapping into the deep musical heritage and cultural fabric of each locale: experiencing firsthand how each region shaped these musicians in their formative years, and in turn the impact those people had on the cultural fabric of their hometowns.
win We have five copies of Duets: Re-Working The Catalogue and Sonic Highways Dvd to give away courtesy of Sony Music Australia. To enter, email jessica.porter@wapu.org.au with your name, work address and title of the CD. Winners will be drawn on May 11, 2015. 37 Police News APRIL 2015
From the Archives
April 1999 Keith Wagstaff – Life and Times of a Tough Cop Former police officer Keith Wagstaff was on the cover with one of the newspaper cuttings detailing the injuries he received while on duty. He knew that he would have severe health problems for the rest of his life. He was bashed with an iron bar while on duty in Halls Creek in 1984 which left him with a limp, loss of speech capacity, vision problems, inability to use his left arm, unable to walk without falling or bumping into objects and “epileptic-like fits”. He battled back from the injuries and resumed duty a year later before being discharged as a result of the injuries in 1991. Other injuries he received while on duty include: spending weeks in a metal brace following a car crash in 1964; Shot four times in 1964 and 1965; in 1968 his left kidney was damaged when he was hit with a killing stick; he was stabbed in the back; slashed in the back; kicked in the kidney region; shot at; and had his jaw broken in three pieces in 1974. He was awarded $12,718 in criminal injuries compensation for the 1984 incident and had not received any further type of compensation by 1999.
Members vote “Yes” for EBA Seventy per cent of Members voted for the new EBA which provided for a nine per cent increase over the time of the agreement. It was noted that the 30 per cent “No” vote reflected the continuing concerns over the flexible rostering issue and the Union made assurances to ensure the new system was properly applied. Besides the pay rise, other elements in the new agreement included: • 10-hour break between shifts • Rosters to be posted on Tuesdays
• Salary packaging option • Night shift removed from mixed shift arrangement • Equal distribution of shifts over a roster cycle • County OIC’s allowance increased by $2,340 a year • Time off in lieu to be strictly at the employee’s request.
Issues affecting Members Branch meetings, Field Trips and articles highlighted a number of issues affecting Members in 1999. Members in Broome were experiencing staff shortages which was putting huge pressure on police officers. Mirrabooka Branch also asked the Union Executive to launch a campaign to highlight sworn officer shortages. Reports from the branch meeting said the Mirrabooka District was being drastically affected by low staffing levels. The Union’s Gascoyne Branch was concerned with single officer highway patrols which brought to the forefront when a truck was stopped by Karratha police officers and firearms were found. A survey by the Commissioned Officers Branch indicated that their salaries did not equate to those paid to executive officers and managers in the private sector and in some cases other government employees who have similar roles and responsibilities. Four of Moora’s police officers were the hardest hit following the floodwaters which engulfed the town. The officers were busily helping to protect the town’s hospital and homes of senior citizens and were unable to save their own property.
LEGAL
HEALTH
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Most examinations are in private, and no members of the public are allowed in the hearing. In rare cases, an examination might be held in public, but only if the CCC determines that this is in the public interest. After a witness is released from giving evidence, it may be some time before they hear further about the matter, if at all. Outcomes from CCC investigations include no action being taken, to the recommendation for criminal or disciplinary proceedings to proceed in the usual forums for those types of matters. Receiving a witness summons to the CCC can be a stressful experience. However it is something that many officers will encounter in their career. If it happens to you, don’t panic, carefully read the summons, and seek a referral to a WAPU lawyer as soon as possible.
Dangers of cheap overseas dentistry
TGB Lawyers are available to WAPU Members, retired Members and their families. Call WAPU HQ on (08) 9321 2155 to arrange an appointment.
An estimated 10,000 Australians are heading overseas every year for budget dental work and that, according to the Australian Dental Association (ADA), is a serious mistake. The ADA warns that the risks are high and people can easily end up paying more to have shoddy dental work fixed. People need to take care to not fall victim to underqualified practitioners who use unsafe practices and cheap materials. The dangers of infection in certain countries are also higher with some blood-borne diseases taking years to be properly identified.
Tips for good oral hygiene Keeping your teeth cavity-free is really not that hard: • Avoid foods and drinks high in sugar; • Brush and floss twice a day for at least two minutes; • Use toothpaste containing fluoride as it helps make teeth more resistant to acid. In Australia
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fluoride is added to most public water supplies; and • Make sure you visit your dentist for check-ups once or twice a year so that problems can be identified and treated before they become serious.
Police Health Extras Cover Police Health’s dental cover is hard to match. In most occasions, generous benefits are designed to cover 80 per cent of fees with no annual limit on general dental benefits. For major dental benefits, there is an annual limit of $1,300 with a possible rollover benefit of $2,600 per person. Benefits may be subject to waiting periods. Additionally, Police Health include periodontics and endodontics (gum treatment and root canal treatment) within the unlimited general dental. Many funds include these under major dental, which can quickly eat into that annual maximum. For more information see the Police Health website – policehealth.com.au – read our brochure or phone 1800 603 603.
About this article This article provides a general summary only. Professional advice should be sought about specific cases. Police Health is not responsible for any error or omission in this article. The information provided reflects the view of the organisations from which the information has been sourced and does not represent any recommendations or views of Police Health.
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new members
WAPU Welcomes its Newest Members 01 Auxiliary 03/2014
Stuart Capewell David Catherine Amelia Fair Paul Gusteron Jennia Hill
Fahed Jahshan Brian Mazvidza Arlen Mersch Prakhar Sood Dawn Synnott
02 Transition 5/2014
Tracy Aveling Michael Clark Faye Clayson Graham Cox Adam Davies Darren Davy Jennah Douglas William Finney James Forshaw Michael Fountain Joseph Gonzalez Richard Hall Charles Jenkins Sarah Kemp Gavin Mallon
01
Duncan Markham Paul McGlue Paul McKee Scott Milligan Craig Moreton Leanne Murdoch Scott Neale Stuart Newman Eleanor Pollard Philip Rigby Zachary Ryan Christopher Shewring Craig Taylor Ryan Turner Edward Wilson
03 Recruit 6/2014 (Gold Squad)
02
40 Police News APRIL 2015
David Beecher Chad Brancourt Sarah Darling Ryan Deasy Taylor Ellis Luke Faccioni Mirinda Friend Kirsty Gilbert Owen Gregoor Christopher Heart Daniel Henderson Ashlee Johnson Luke Jones Arron Kelemen Thomas Knight
Stephanie McGrath Laura Molloy Matthew Noonan Nicholas O'Callaghan Alexandra Otto Matthew Quinn Paul Reemeijer Marc Rodin Paul Sparks Christopher Surman Linda Taurima Logan Wichman Samuel Williams Korric Worrell
04 Recruit 7/2014 (Blue Squad)
Neal Aitken Richard Butterworth Brooke Davidson Paul Donaldson Adam Evans Amanda Fong Brendan Gibson Mark Hoey Michael Ingram Alisha Jarman Katie Jordan Benjamin Leber Malcolm Lovett Emma MacLeod Jack McDougall
Caterina McFadyean Jake Miller Benjamin Rickards Henry Robson Alan Ryan Latisha Sanders Aneen Smith Thomas Smrcek Anatoly Sokolov Michael Sweeting Colin Todd Tyson Towie Douglas Winsor Brendan Wise
03 04
05 Transition 6/2014
Gavin Anderson James Ballingall Lee Birch Simon Blennerhassett James Carney Darren Cass Jade Coupland Natasha Davis Louise Hewings David Holmes Peter King
Layla Knight Owen Lupo Matthew McSevney Martin Mitchell Jason Moreschini John Oberholzer Andrew O'Brien Michael Purver Peter Smith Richard Smith Lee Thompson
The Transfers List is back! WAPU has been able to secure a Transfers List from WA Police. Each month, a Transfer List will be loaded onto the Members Area of www.wapu.org.au for Members to view. All 2015 transfers can now be viewed online. 05
41 Police News APRIL 2015
Retirements & resignations
Vale
Retiring members
Resigning members
5702 Gregory Medhurst 6003 Gavin Carter 6007 Stephen Parker
7865 John Trent 8840 Glenn Lloyd 9979 Rick Bond 10550 Anthony Smith 11037 Lindsay Pankhurst 11140 Jason Anderson 11523 Bradley Tomlinson 11885 Grant Bear 12503 Christopher Pickard 12508 Rebecca Brown 12645 Duncan Swadkins 12765 Mark Brown 12865 Theonie Jacobs 12996 Philip Bowler 13000 Stephen Gladwin 13005 Alison Maguire 13019 Justin Watts 13491 Glenn Cutler 14158 Nathan Bird 14185 Shaun Gilbert 14848 Hollie Foley 15178 James Renwick 15721 Tamara Hughes 15745 Garry Williams 99878 Brendan Atkin
Serving 7450 Senior Constable Laurence Francis McCarthy Aged 55
Retired cont. 2831 1/C Sergeant Albert Thomas Strangward Aged 85
Retired 3948 Detective Inspector Roger Edward Smart Aged 73
2220 Senior Constable Daniel Joseph Coffey Aged 90
2573 Chief Inspector Vernon Francis Hannaby Aged 83
3656 Inspector Arnold Louis Zoethout Aged 73
3373 Third Class Sergeant Ronald Alan Hall Aged 78
2975 Inspector Bernard Raymond Rampant Aged 85
4215 1/C Sergeant Ian Jeffrey Richards Aged 68
9011 Reverend Barry John May Aged 77
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42 Police News APRIL 2015
Do you feel you’re not the person or leader you should be? Do you feel you aren’t managing your career as well as you should be?
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Do you feel stuck in a rut? Do you feel that life is too complicated? Do you feel you might be in the wrong job?
Where are they now?
What are you up to now? After retiring at 55 I was a Candidate for State Parliament and competed for the seat of Rockingham against Mark McGowan. I achieved a swing of 6 per cent but not quite enough to win the seat. I then entered real estate. After working for five years as a sales consultant I went back to school and studied for my licence. Together with some friends, I bought the Elders Real Estate office in Rockingham. I am now a part owner, Director and Licensee of Elders Real Estate Rockingham Districts. I was also elected as a Councillor for the City of Rockingham.
What areas did you work in? PCYC, General Duties, Traffic, CIB, Juvenile Aid Group. I worked in Perth, Fremantle, Port Hedland, Three Springs, Busselton and Rockingham.
Paul Ellis
Regimental number: 5074
What did you like most about policing? What I liked most about policing was dealing with people and meeting all kinds of people from all cultures and walks of life. Also the camaraderie amongst police.
What did you dislike about policing? The management practices of police were horrendous. I am now a business owner and manager of staff. If I handled my staff like they did I wouldn’t have any! There was far too much emphasis on jobs for the boys. Promotion depended on who you were associated with rather than if you did a good job. The official practice was equality, but in reality it was just “who you knew and who would pull the strings for you”.
What was the highlight of your career? A note from Paul’s wife, Lindy: Over the past years since he retired, Paul has worked very hard and now runs two Real Estate offices, Rockingham and Southern Gateway with 22 staff below him. He has done all this whilst suffering throat cancer, which he was diagnosed with in 2012 and now can only eat liquid foods (no alcohol). We are very proud of him and what he has achieved. He works very hard at keeping up his fitness and looks well. People don't realise what he has suffered over the past two years and what he does to keep himself looking fit and working hard.
The highlight of my career was being in a position at City Police Station when I identified a problem with youth at risk. I came up with the idea of the Juvenile Aid Group and a forward thinking Superintendent gave me a free hand. This developed into what is still today one of Australia’s leading police groups dealing with youth at risk. We won a Citation from the Commissioner of Police and National Violence Prevention Award.
In your opinion what have been the biggest changes in policing over the years? The biggest changes I have seen is the change from a “force” to a “service” and with this came a lowering
of respect from within the community. Also on par with that, or with it, came a lack of gutsy support from senior officers. Police officers now see themselves as a service to the community and not a force against crime etc. Police officers now are not confident they have the support of their senior officers. The senior officers now do not have the intestinal fortitude of senior officers in the past. In the past the management may have been terrible, with cronyism rampant, but you also knew you could count on support if needed. The current management are too quick to take the opportunity to prosecute police for trivial matters to demonstrate their “service” to the community.
Is there anything you would do to make policing as a profession safer and more appealing? I feel WA Police need to demonstrate strength. This must come from the top. It needs to be clear that if you join the police, you will receive the support from senior staff that you need to do the job. Officers need to know that no matter what, they have someone watching their back. It needs to be a “Force to be reckoned with” not a “Service to provide”.
What do you miss the most about the job? What I miss about the job is the ability to take some action when I see really bad behaviour. A couple of years ago I saw a drug deal taking place. A van parked next to a park, dishing out drugs to kids. I called the police and they had no one to send. I walked right up to them and took pics which I offered to give to the police. They were not even interested. I would have liked to be able to take that action myself. That’s what I miss.
Any special comments? Being a police officer is a great and rewarding position. The biggest damper is the management. Even today, many serving officers I know complain about their supervisors, not the work they are doing. They will put in the hard yards, do the dirty work and put their lives on the line without complaint. It’s when they get back in the office they are treated without respect, their every decision and action is scrutinised. This is where it falls down. If the police on the street knew, no matter what, their supervisors had their back, they would do what needs to be done without hesitation and with enthusiasm. 43 Police News APRIL 2015