Litigation against police on the rise
A new report into legal action launched by citizens against police has found the number of cases and the number of pay-outs are rising. The report by Melbourne academics, Dr Darren Palmer and Dr Jude McCulloch covered an eight-year period and looked at 16 judgements, and 6 cases settled prior to trial. The report, Civil Litigation by Citizens against Australian police between 1994 and 2002, was commissioned by the government body the Criminology Research Council. With one NSW community receiving a payout $1 million, the report ahs advised that police adopt a “risk management approach…in order to contain the costs of litigation”. The report is believed to be the first attempt to understand the reasons behind litigation against police. One of the authors, Dr Palmer from Deakin University, spoke with Erica Vowles, and told her about the usual types of cases covered by the study.