Friday, 20 October 2023
The Western Australia’s Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) announced that it is investigating an allegation of serious misconduct following a teenager’s death a week after he was found unresponsive inside his cell at a problem-plagued prison unit.
In a statement released by the CCC on Friday, Commissioner John McKechnie KC said the inquiry would centre around the alleged conduct of public officers “where that conduct meets the high bar of serious misconduct”.
“The Commission’s role is to ensure particular allegations of serious misconduct are dealt with appropriately,” he said.
Law Society President Ante Golem said the Law Society of Western Australia (Law Society) welcomed the CCC announcement given the public interest and the seriousness of the incident.
The Law Society has and continues to raise its concerns in relation to the manner in which the State government and the Department of Justice are managing children and young people in detention centres at Banksia Hill and Unit 18, Casuarina.
Mr Golem repeated the Law Society’s offer “to work with the State government to urgently look at how it can redirect funding to programmes that work to reduce the root causes of crime before behaviour escalates, and how to house children appropriately when bail is inappropriate, or a custodial sentence is to be imposed.”
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For comment please contact:
Madeleine McErlain
Manager Corporate Communications
(08) 9324 8650
mmcerlain@lawsocietywa.asn.au
The Law Society of Western Australia is the peak professional association for lawyers in the State. The Society is a not-for-profit association dedicated to the representation of its more than 4,600 members. The Society enhances the legal profession through its position as a respected leader and contributor on law reform, access to justice and the rule of law. The Society is widely acknowledged by the legal profession, government and the community as the voice of the legal profession in Western Australia.
