The LECC has overturned an internal police decision that found no misconduct, ordering a new investigation into allegations of aggressive behaviour and humiliating searches during Pride Month operations
The NSW Police Force has been directed to reopen an investigation into drug-dog raids carried out at several LGBTQIA+ venues in Sydney after the state’s police watchdog rejected an earlier internal assessment.
The operations took place on June 13 around Oxford Street, during Pride Month, and prompted complaints from patrons who alleged they were shoved, pushed against walls and, in some cases, required to remove clothing in public view.
The allegations have not been proven and will now be examined further.
Initial police review found no wrongdoing
NSW Police had already conducted an internal assessment of the operation.
Professional standards manager Inspector Michael Butcher said body-worn camera footage, CCTV, police records and witness accounts had been reviewed.
That assessment concluded there was no evidence of misconduct, unlawful conduct or breaches of NSW Police Force policy, and no further investigation was considered necessary.
Watchdog orders new investigation
The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) disagreed.
Commissioner Anina Johnson advised that the watchdog had conducted its own assessment and had invoked its statutory powers to direct NSW Police to investigate the matter.
The LECC will review the outcome of the renewed investigation and determine whether any further action is required.
Sydney MP Alex Greenwich welcomed the intervention, saying the concerns raised by the community deserved proper scrutiny.
He said the investigation was an important step towards transparency, accountability and rebuilding trust between police and the LGBTQIA+ community.
93 people searched
Police said 93 people were searched during the operation, with 42 drug detections recorded and one person charged with supply.
NSW Police said the deployment formed part of broader strategies aimed at reducing risks associated with the possession, supply and use of prohibited drugs.
Police said such operations are informed by intelligence, drug trends, overdoses, fatalities and offending in and around licensed venues.
Complaints of aggressive treatment
Greenwich and Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore said they had received numerous reports from people who were in the precinct that night.
Their complaint alleged that groups of officers with drug-detection dogs entered venues in large numbers and that some patrons were pushed, aggressively directed to move and subjected to intimidating treatment.
Again, those allegations remain unproven.
Historic sensitivities resurface
The controversy has also revived memories of the historically difficult relationship between police and Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ community.
Rebbell Barnes, one of the so-called “78ers”, said witnessing one of the raids brought back memories of the first Mardi Gras in 1978, which ended in violence involving police.
The issue has also reached NSW Parliament, while historian and activist Garry Wotherspoon resigned from the LGBTQIA+ Consultative Committee, which was established to improve relations between police and the rainbow community.
New investigation now underway
The LECC’s intervention does not mean misconduct has been established.
It means the watchdog believes the complaints require a fuller investigation than the initial police review provided.
The reopened inquiry will now have to determine what happened during the raids, whether officers acted within policy and whether the treatment described by patrons can be substantiated.
