RLC in the media

A woman wrongfully handcuffed and detained while walking by a peaceful protest to protect a heritage church on the NSW South Coast has received a $60,000 compensation payout from NSW Police.

Video evidence of police using Tasers will only be collected when “circumstances permit” because a new generation of the technology being rolled out across the state does not have an inbuilt camera, prompting concerns about police accountability.

Indigenous community leaders in Walgett in western NSW are supporting calls for an investigation into police enforcement of COVID-19 fines.

Former NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller and the NSW Police are facing a formal complaint over their “heavy-handed approach” in issuing more than 60,000 COVID-19 fines between March 2020 and September 2022.

More than 33,000 fines were rescinded last year after a supreme court ruling, but correspondence from authorities suggests thousands more will stand.

Two community legal services have lodged a formal complaint against NSW police over its “heavy-handed” enforcement of Covid fines during the pandemic.

Redfern Legal Centre and the Public Interest Advocacy Centre lodged a complaint calling for the LECC to investigate internal directives regarding the NSW Police Force's approach to fines.

Justice experts say there needs to be a more rigorous process for when Tasers and guns can be deployed to change the way officers manage incidents.

The LECC on Thursday put police officer training under the microscope as it investigated allegations excessive force was used during the arrest of an Indigenous teenager in northern NSW in September 2022.

Police have been questioned about when they are able to use force after a 14-year-old Indigenous boy was hospitalised following his arrest.