Christopher Knaus reporting in The Guardian.
The Redfern Legal Centre and Public Interest Advocacy Centre said on Monday they had asked the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission to investigate the way police enforced Covid fines, following an internal video published by the Sydney Morning Herald showing former NSW police commissioner Mick Fuller directing officers to take a “strong approach to enforcement” and that they “start to issue tickets over using discretion”.
In a statement, Redfern Legal Centre chief executive officer, Camilla Pandolfini, said the significant volume of fines issued by police suggested they were not using their discretion to issue fines and were instead issuing them by default.
"Some of our clients were as young as 12 years old when NSW Police officers issued fines to them. Parents called us, in tears, unable to pay the fines issued to their young children.
People experiencing homelessness, with significant mental health conditions, or returning home from their shift as health workers were fined by NSW Police. Many of these people were not actually in breach of the directions."
