From strip searches to sexual harassment, Australian policing has long been plagued by sexism

This month, a woman bravely testified^[1] in court she was subjected to a “degrading and humiliating experience akin to sexual assault” at the hands of New South Wales Police. The young woman was forced to remove her tampon in front of officers during a strip search^[2], which police later admitted was unlawful.

This experience was heard in the Supreme Court as part of a class action lawsuit that includes 3,000 alleged victims. It’s alleging^[3] police unlawfully strip-searched thousands of people at music festivals between 2016 and 2022.

These searches – which disproportionately increased^[4] against young girls and women – speak to a underlying issue within policing. Police scholars have long observed an internal culture of misogyny and sexism, both domestically^[5] and internationally^[6].

In fact, predatory behaviour from police has been documented across the country, both towards members of the public and towards other police officers.

While there are immediate headlines and promises to improve, they’re often quickly forgotten by police and the community. In not holding them accountable, we allow the harming of women to continue and positive change to remain elusive.

A long history

This has previously been a point of conversation in New South Wales. Last year, there were reports^[7] of a female then-officer, Mel Cooper, being sexually harassed and assaulted by male colleagues. Cooper, who joined the force in 1994, argued this culture is “not getting better […] it’s getting worse”.

This reflected experiences from a report by the state’s police watchdog in 2020 reviewing workplace complaints. The report, titled Operation Shorewood^[8], found sexual harassment was among the most common complaints.

Female officers were the most likely to be subjected to harassment, despite the most recent available data^[9] indicating they make up only 26.9% of sworn personnel.

New South Wales is not a unique case. In Western Australia, it’s been reported^[10] that sexual misconduct complaints are rising. This prompted the police commissioner to admit^[11] WA Police had a “boys club culture” issue.

In Queensland, the Richards inquiry^[12] in 2022 found evidence of a culture of sexism and misogyny and viewed predatory behaviour as a significant issue. The commission learned of multiple examples^[13] of predatory behaviour, sexual harassment and assault against female colleagues (often junior officers).

In some rare cases, rape by male officers was reported^[14].

More recently, a Queensland police sergeant^[15] who engaged in a pattern of predatory sexual conduct was reported to still be working with the force. This was despite Queensland’s police watchdog – the Crime and Corruption Commission – recommending in 2022 that dismissal was the “only appropriate sanction”.

Decades of inaction

Victoria also has a long history of this behaviour.

In 1988, a discussion paper^[16] criticised the treatment of sexual assault victims who reported or complained to police. The paper’s recommendations were never implemented, with police and government responses dismissing the paper as “pro-victim”.

A decade later, the Victorian ombudsman investigated allegations^[17] of sexual impropriety by officers at a rural police station. The allegations, which started in 1988, included rape, sexual assault, stalking, unlawful entry on premises and threatening behaviour towards members of the public.

Victims were dissuaded from giving evidence by police. Male officers came to view sex as an entitlement of their duty, targeting vulnerable and young women. It was ultimately found that police management systems had failed to deal with the behaviour for years.

The failure to address the behaviour has only continued. An audit^[18] into sex and gender discrimination and two separate reports from Victoria’s police watchdog in 2015^[19] and 2023^[20] continue to show evidence of sexual impropriety and predatory behaviour.

This came to a head in 2023 when Brett Johnson was convicted^[21] of using Victoria’s police database to stalk vulnerable women and initiate sexual relationships.

In response to this, and other reports into systemic issues, Victoria Police has implemented more than 90% of the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission’s recommendations^[22]. This includes working towards implementing recommendations regarding predatory behaviour^[23].

Lessons left unlearned

It is impossible to gauge the full extent of this behaviour and its history in every jurisdiction.

There are no mandatory reporting requirements for police complaint data in Australia. The findings we do have often come from an occasional report or inquiry into police.

These incidents are also quickly forgotten. Government inquiries and investigations often fail to acknowledge these issues have been discussed many times before^[24].

States may recognise the need for change. Other times, they will outright dismiss it.

Many identified reforms are never fully put into practice. In the case of systems for holding police accountable, this phenomenon has been seen as^[25] “cyclic”.

This is why it’s vital to recall the incidents of our past. When another scandal occurs, we should remind ourselves these are not “bad apples” or isolated events.

They are symbolic of a crisis of reform in policing – an inability to create meaningful change. We must demand better from our police and our state governments to ensure the protection of not just Australian women, but all victims and complainants.

As researcher Janet Chan argued in her internationally recognised work^[26] on changing the culture of the police, this will not be achieved through a single reform. This will require a commitment to a range of related changes.

These include changes^[27] to education, better leadership and mentoring, more effective whistleblowing processes and reforms to police complaint systems.

A popular proposal^[28] has been the creation of an independent police ombudsman to oversee and investigate complaints against police.

However, without a continued public pressure, it is unlikely we can challenge the political power of police. Failure to address these issues will only strengthen a culture that harms all who are victim to it.

The National Sexual Assault, Family and Domestic Violence Counselling Line – 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for any Australian who has experienced, or is at risk of, family and domestic violence and/or sexual assault.

References

1. ^{^} testified (www.abc.net.au)
2. ^{^} strip search (www.theguardian.com)
3. ^{^} alleging (rlc.org.au)
4. ^{^} disproportionately increased (rlc.org.au)
5. ^{^} domestically (www.austlii.edu.au)
6. ^{^} internationally (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
7. ^{^} reports (www.abc.net.au)
8. ^{^} Operation Shorewood (www.lecc.nsw.gov.au)
9. ^{^} most recent available data (www.police.nsw.gov.au)
10. ^{^} been reported (thewest.com.au)
11. ^{^} to admit (thewest.com.au)
12. ^{^} Richards inquiry (www.qpsdfvinquiry.qld.gov.au)
13. ^{^} multiple examples (www.abc.net.au)
14. ^{^} was reported (www.abc.net.au)
15. ^{^} police sergeant (www.theguardian.com)
16. ^{^} discussion paper (www.vgls.vic.gov.au)
17. ^{^} investigated allegations (catalogue.nla.gov.au)
18. ^{^} An audit (www.humanrights.vic.gov.au)
19. ^{^} 2015 (www.ibac.vic.gov.au)
20. ^{^} 2023 (www.ibac.vic.gov.au)
21. ^{^} was convicted (www.abc.net.au)
22. ^{^} recommendations (www.ibac.vic.gov.au)
23. ^{^} predatory behaviour (amp.theguardian.com)
24. ^{^} many times before (www.tandfonline.com)
25. ^{^} been seen as (www.researchgate.net)
26. ^{^} internationally recognised work (www.jstor.org)
27. ^{^} changes (journals.sagepub.com)
28. ^{^} popular proposal (www.policeombudsmannow.com.au)