NSW Police and the LGBTQI community must work together on a response to a scathing inquiry into gay hate crimes after an apology from the state’s top cop for prior failings, a Sydney MP says.
The long-running NSW special inquiry was highly critical of police processes and resourcing after finding gay hate bias was a likely factor in 25 of 32 suspected homicides from 1970 to 2010.
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb apologised in a statement on Sunday for the police failures highlighted by the 18-month-long inquiry.
Independent state MP Alex Greenwich, who is gay, welcomed Ms Webb’s apology but said a co-ordinated response to the report was needed from police, government and the LGBTQI community.
“They really need to do it in a co-designed way with LGBTQ organisations,” he told ABC radio on Monday.
“There is a lot of heartache, historic heartache within the LGBTQ community. There is a trust deficit and we need to be working better together.”
Inquiry Commissioner John Sackar’s report made 12 recommendations about police unsolved homicide operations, including a call for a review of team practices, procedures and resources.
He urged police to conduct a systematic review or audit of all unsolved homicides from 1970 to 2010 and to mandate training on LGBTQI issues.
He added an apology by NSW Police was not just warranted, but overdue.
Public hearings revealed poor record-keeping practices by police, with multiple examples of crucial evidence being lost, destroyed or misplaced over the years.
Premier Chris Minns said the state government was considering the report’s findings, noting that no date had been set for an official response.
“We need to make sure that when we issue the response that we have confidence that it can be fully implemented,” he said.