Association welcomes law change to protect officers

Making an assault on a police officer an aggravating factor at sentencing is welcome, but action also needs to be taken to address the growing belief police are ‘fair game’, Police Association Vice-President Chris Cahill said today.

“Assaults on police are assaults on law and order itself. Recognising that fact as an aggravating factor at sentencing is entirely appropriate,” Mr Cahill said.

“We can’t rely on the blue uniform alone to deter attacks, and police will be very encouraged to see action being taken on this very serious issue.

“However, we also need to tackle the growing culture of contempt for police and the rule of law, which breeds these assaults in the first place. Failure to impose consequences for the ‘small stuff’ – the abuse, insults, bottle-throwing, spitting and minor assaults inflicted on police on a daily basis – just emboldens offenders, and their peers, and makes more serious assaults inevitable,” Mr Cahill said.

“Yet that behaviour is too often tolerated or written off as ‘just something police have to put up with.’ At the same time, the constant focus on police conduct, after every use of force or pursuit, effectively puts the officer’s decision-making on trial. That makes offenders bolder and police more tentative.

“An increasing number of offenders are being allowed to develop a belief that police are ‘fair game.’ Police need to be supported when they take action before that attitude leads to a serious assault,” Mr Cahill said.