South Australia’s corruption watchdog has cleared Police Commissioner Grant Stevens of a self-discipline breach for by accident discharging his firearm throughout a home raid within the early Nineteen Nineties.
Commissioner Stevens had revealed in July that when he was a senior constable stationed in the northern suburbs in the early 1990s, he accidentally discharged his firearm whereas making an attempt a raid on a suspected drug seller’s property.
The revelation got here after The Sunday Mail revealed a narrative concerning the incident every week earlier, however solely referred to a “high-ranking South Australian police officer”.
In a uncommon public assertion on Tuesday, Impartial Commissioner Towards Corruption (ICAC) Emma Townsend revealed her company had launched an investigation in July to look at whether or not the December 1990 incident constituted a breach of self-discipline by Commissioner Stevens.
The investigation “refuted” the “alleged breaches of self-discipline”, the ICAC stated.
“The allegations made concerning the conduct of the Commissioner of Police have been independently investigated and located to be with out substance,” Ms Townsend said.
She stated the firearm incident in query “was reported on the day it occurred, in accordance with the relevant procedures”.
“It was totally investigated in accordance with these procedures,” she stated.
“That investigation was appropriately documented. The investigation resulted in then-Senior Constable Stevens receiving extra coaching.
“He was not in any other case topic to any disciplinary proceedings. This was an applicable consequence.”
The ICAC discovered the allegations made concerning the conduct of the commissioner have been “with out substance”. (ABC Information: Che Chorley)
In its June article concerning the firearm incident, The Sunday Mail reported there had been a second incident “a number of months” after the primary wherein the commissioner once more by accident fired his gun.
However the commissioner strongly rejected that declare, insisting there had “solely ever been one event that I’ve by accident discharged my firearm” — a view that was upheld by the ICAC.
“The second alleged incident involving the discharge of a firearm didn’t happen,” the commissioner stated.
Ms Townsend stated the ICAC’s investigation obtained and examined “related paperwork and witness statements” and reviewed the police commissioner’s file from 1991.
She stated whereas such investigations have been usually carried out by SA Police’s Inner Investigation Part, the circumstances on this specific case have been totally different.
“ICAC thought of the truth that the matter concerned the Commissioner of Police, SA Police’s highest-ranked police officer, and that the allegations had been the topic of media reporting,” Ms Townsend stated.
“In these circumstances, an unbiased investigation of the matter by ICAC was more likely to promote and preserve public confidence in SA Police, and was according to the needs of the PCD Act.”
Whereas SA Police stated Commissioner Stevens wouldn’t be commenting on the matter, the commissioner beforehand stated he didn’t discover the revelations “damaging” and that he had by no means “shied away from” discussing the incident with different officers.
“I’ve truly relayed the story on events over the past 34 years for various causes to let different law enforcement officials perceive how fragile circumstances may be,” he stated.
“It serves as a lesson to the neighborhood that policing has inherent dangers in it, errors do occur.”
