The result of an independent investigation into the police handling of the crash investigation and its aftermath, a 75-page report, was released by IPCA chairman Judge Sir David Carruthers yesterday.
He said the multiple failings had resulted in police not uncovering the truth about the crash between an unmarked police ute driven by Senior Constable Neil Ford and a car driven by then 17-year-old Shane Cribb for more than two years.
This caused ''much undue stress to Mr Cribb and his supporters'', Sir David said.
''Furthermore, the mishandling of the crash investigation also greatly damaged the reputation of Southern district police.''
However, the authority made no recommendation for further action against the officers concerned. The conduct of the officers involved pre-dated the code of conduct procedure introduced by police in 2008 and therefore the former 12-month time limit on starting disciplinary proceedings applied.
The authority considered allegations of a police ''cover-up'' but failed to find any evidence there was a conspiracy among the police handling the crash investigation, Sir David said.
Constable Dairne Cassidy was appointed to investigate the 2005 crash and Mr Cribb was charged with causing injury by careless use of a motor vehicle and convicted in March 2006. A rehearing was later granted. Police failed to offer any evidence at the hearing, so the conviction was overturned.
Alexandra couple Steve and Denise Potter have campaigned on behalf of Mr Cribb, who was the boyfriend of one of their daughters at the time of the crash. After a series of letters from Mr Potter outlining his concerns about the case, the IPCA became involved in September 2008.
Two Alexandra police officers were charged in the wake of the incident.
Ford was found guilty in August 2010 of perjury and sentenced to 28 months' jail.
Cassidy admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice by failing to disclose a statement made by Ford at the time of the accident and, in November 2010, was sentenced to seven months' home detention.
Both officers resigned from the police.
Because it had already been established that Ford committed perjury and Cassidy perverted the course of justice, resulting in the wrongful conviction of Mr Cribb, the authority focused primarily on how this occurred and why police did not uncover the truth earlier.
The authority interviewed three former and five current police officers as well as reviewing the investigation files and police reviews.
'' ... although the crash happened eight and a-half years ago, some of the officers involved in overseeing the crash investigation have only recently been questioned regarding their actions and subsequently have had difficulty recalling exactly what took place,'' the authority said.
''The authority has taken this into account when reaching its conclusions.''
The police mishandling highlighted by the authority included a lack of adequate supervision and leadership, a failure to critically examine evidence and remedy deficiencies during the investigation, or to address concerns about the crash investigation in a timely manner.
A review by Detective Inspector Steve Vaughan in October 2010 criticised the performance of four senior police officers involved in the incident.
Inspector Trevor Pullen reviewed Det Insp Vaughan's report and one of recommendations he made was that policy on crashes involving police staff should be reviewed in the light of the incident.
Mr Cribb lodged a civil claim against the police for ''malicious prosecution'' and police reached a settlement with Mr Cribb in November 2013, the authority said. No figure was disclosed.
''In concluding its investigation, the authority found that police individual and collective failures in addressing concerns about the crash investigation caused unacceptable and unjustified delays.''
Once the court proceedings were completed, the authority said it should have acted quicker to address issues raised by Mr Potter.
The whole story
- Confidence in Alexandra policing ...
- Police behaviour described as 'indefensible' + timelime ...
- Campaigning couple feel efforts vindicated ...
- Seeing another side to court ...
