Senior SAPOL Cop Who Pushed Female Officer on to a Bed Had Demotion, Transfer Overturned

A female constable said she was treated “horrifically” after complaining about inappropriate behaviour from a senior officer.

The senior officer forcefully pushed her down on to a bed in September 2020, during what appeared to be a “boozy” weekend away for the heavy-drinking clowns at SAPOL.

After lodging a complaint about the incident, the constable said she was transferred away from her station without support, and queried by internal investigations about whether the senior officer had “tripped and fallen on her”.

This is despite the fact the senior officer looks to be a serial-offending dickhead.

The senior officer admitted to the misconduct and claims he was “horrified by his behaviour”.

He had previously been reprimanded for sending a “culturally insensitive” email.

The sleazy officer was demoted and transferred.

The Advertiser is prevented by the draconian Police Complaints and Discipline Act 2016 from identifying the senior police officer. This is the same act that allowed Wade Burns and SAPOL to conceal his 2017 indecent assault on a female colleague for seven years. Earlier this year, independent MP Frank Pangallo used parliamentary privilege to expose Burns, who had secured high level committee positions at Woodcroft College and Basketball SA, potentially bringing him into contact with vulnerable students and athletes.

Another SAPOL Predator Gets a Free Pass

Despite the seriousness of the allegations, in 2022 the senior officer won a significant legal victory when the District Court set aside his demotion and mandatory transfer, claiming it was “manifestly excessive”.

In a 2022 judgement, Judge Jo-Anne Deuter held the senior officer had been unfairly disciplined by an Assistant Commissioner who had placed too much weight on an “inaccurate and prejudicial” impact statement written by the victim.

Judge Deuter wrote that in September 2020 the senior officer had pulled the female constable close while dancing.

Both officers and other police were at a weekend away where alcohol was being consumed.

Later in the evening the senior officer followed the constable to a bedroom where she was going to get changed and pushed her down on the bed and leaned over her.

The victim said both incidents made her feel “very uncomfortable”.

The senior officer was extremely intoxicated at the time.

Deuter said there was no suggestion that he said anything sexual during the incident and was rather “rambling about work”.

Because when you want to innocently discuss ‘work issues’ with a female colleague, you always push them on to a bed and hover over them menacingly, right?

In a five page impact statement, the victim spent one page outlining the impact of the incident itself and the rest criticising the internal investigation.

“The experience has left me totally devastated with SAPOL, where I am now left questioning my career within this organisation,” she wrote.

“If I remain in this organisation and another incident like this or similar was to happen to me, I highly doubt I would report this.”

“The process has been horrific for my mental health and I would not be surprised if many similar incidents go unreported for this reason.”

She was made to leave her post and transfer to a different station “not because she had done anything wrong, but because someone had done something wrong (by her)”.

Judge Accuses Victim of ‘Prejudice’ and Instead Sides With Officer Drunken Dickhead

Deuter claimed the initial punishment was handed down without the Assistant Commissioner giving any reasons for the ‘severity’ of the punishment or pausing to consider the information he had received.

The ‘severe’ punishment was the senior officer be demoted, transferred to another station for 13 months and have an official reprimand recorded against him.

He was not fired, never charged with any criminal offence, and has not been named publicly.

Some would say he got off lightly.

Deuter held that the Assistant Commissioner had taken into account the impact statement which contained prejudicial and irrelevant material.

Yep, when it’s the word of a victim versus the word of a predatory senior cop, you can count on our sordid court system to side with the latter.

Deuter said the demotion in particular was a serious financial penalty, reducing the officer’s yearly wage by around $20,000 and affecting his prospects of an early retirement as planned.

Poor diddums.

Judge Deuter granted the appeal, finding the punishment was “manifestly excessive” and remitted the matter back to SA Police to be dealt with again. Where of course it will be glossed over. Just like the more recent matter involving Wade Burns, who not only escaped any real punishment but was allowed to head both the Police Association of SA and the police union!

Source

District Court overturns demotion, transfer of senior officer who pushed a female officer on to a bed. The Advertiser.