A SENIOR detective will be asked to show why he should not be removed from criminal investigations because of his handling of the bungled prosecution of the former chief of the Sexual Assault Support Service.
And the case should be used to teach detectives what not to do, a review of the prosecution has recommended.
Tasmania Police was forced to pay 80 per cent of former SASS chief Karen Donnet-Jones’ legal costs after magistrate Chris Webster dismissed five counts of theft against her last year, describing them as “ridiculous”.
A copy of Commander Peter Edwards’ report on the case, obtained by the Mercury, contains a scathing assessment of police handling of the issue with repeated failures to correct glaring mistakes.
He found SASS provided incorrect and misleading information to police, that the investigation and the decision to lay charges were flawed and that the prosecution failed to properly review material and heed warnings provided by the defence.
Ms Donnet-Jones’ explanations were given little consideration and the errors in the prosecution facts were “conspicuous”.
“I believe the available evidence was not critically assessed from the outset,” Commander Edwards wrote.
“The decision to prefer charges against the defendant lacked objectivity and the facts for the prosecutor were subjective and misleading.”
He said if the officer had done his job properly, charges would never have been laid.
