NCJ Number
128515
Date Published
1989
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This is a summary of the report of the Queensland Commission of Inquiry Into Possible Illegal Activities and Associated Police Misconduct which aims to provide recommendations for structuring permanent governmental and criminal justice institutions and systems to operate in the ways intended in a democratic society.
Abstract
The commission, through its public hearings, examination of relevant documents, and independent research, determined that the crime rate is increasing in Queensland without a commensurate police response, due largely to police structures, procedures, and attitudes that foster misconduct and incompetent performance. Since good government is more likely to result if rational debate is permitted, appropriate checks and balances on power exist, and administration is open to new ideas and public scrutiny, a key recommendation of the Commission is that an Electoral and Administrative Review Commission be established to ensure that administrative laws and processes as well as the electoral system serve the ends of governmental accountability to the public. Other issues considered by the commission are the balancing of police investigative powers with citizen civil rights, the management of laws to ensure their impact yields cost-effective law enforcement, the reform of a debilitating police culture, and an assessment of the structure and operations of the Queensland Police Force with an emphasis on procedures for detecting and responding to police misconduct. Another major recommendation is the establishment of the Criminal Justice Commission to act as a permanent body, under parliamentary oversight, to monitor and instigate criminal justice system reform. Transitional arrangements for reform are described.