The Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA) has serious concerns about the ACT Ombudsman’s report Use of force by ACT Policing: more to do to lessen harm, released on June 10, 2025.
While the AFPA supports independent oversight and accountability, the Association believes the report is based on a limited and unrepresentative sample that risks mischaracterising the professionalism and integrity of ACT Policing officers.
AFPA President Alex Caruana criticised the report for analysing just 54 use of force incidents out of 6,255 reports from 2019 to 2024, around 1% of the total.
“This small sample size raises real concerns about how accurately the report reflects overall policing practices. The lack of transparency around how those 54 cases were selected only adds to the impression that it was skewed toward highlighting negative examples.
“It’s one thing to watch body-worn footage in a quiet office. It’s another to be the officer responding to unpredictable, high-risk situations at two in the morning. That context matters and the report overlooks the complexity and danger inherent in frontline policing,” Mr Caruana said.
The AFPA is also disappointed that it was not consulted during the report’s preparation or provided an embargoed copy before its release, even though the media were.
The Association has the view that many of the case studies fail to acknowledge the operational realities officers face, particularly in incidents involving intoxication, mental health crises, or violent behaviour.
Mr Caruana said that the AFPA should have been engaged as a stakeholder as the representative body for AFP members, including those in ACT Policing.
“The AFPA supports improvements that are practical and evidence-based. Change must come through genuine collaboration, not reports ignoring frontline perspectives.
“The AFPA supports the report’s endorsement of the Police, Ambulance and Clinician Early Response (PACER) model. PACER is a proven and effective way to reduce harm in mental health-related incidents. The AFPA supports its continued expansion as a common-sense measure that helps officers, the health system, and the community.
“We stand by our members and the difficult decisions they make to protect the public and we’re calling for proper consultation, greater transparency in reviews of this nature, and a more balanced approach to oversight that doesn’t treat police officers as the problem but as partners in community safety, ” Mr Caruana said.
Media Contact: AFPA Media and Government Relations Manager Troy Roberts – (02) 6285 1677 – troy.r@afpa.org.au
The Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA) has serious concerns about the ACT Ombudsman’s report Use of force by ACT Policing: more to do to lessen harm, released on June 10, 2025.
While the AFPA supports independent oversight and accountability, the Association believes the report is based on a limited and unrepresentative sample that risks mischaracterising the professionalism and integrity of ACT Policing officers.
AFPA President Alex Caruana criticised the report for analysing just 54 use of force incidents out of 6,255 reports from 2019 to 2024, around 1% of the total.
“This small sample size raises real concerns about how accurately the report reflects overall policing practices. The lack of transparency around how those 54 cases were selected only adds to the impression that it was skewed toward highlighting negative examples.
“It’s one thing to watch body-worn footage in a quiet office. It’s another to be the officer responding to unpredictable, high-risk situations at two in the morning. That context matters and the report overlooks the complexity and danger inherent in frontline policing,” Mr Caruana said.
The AFPA is also disappointed that it was not consulted during the report’s preparation or provided an embargoed copy before its release, even though the media were.
The Association has the view that many of the case studies fail to acknowledge the operational realities officers face, particularly in incidents involving intoxication, mental health crises, or violent behaviour.
Mr Caruana said that the AFPA should have been engaged as a stakeholder as the representative body for AFP members, including those in ACT Policing.
“The AFPA supports improvements that are practical and evidence-based. Change must come through genuine collaboration, not reports ignoring frontline perspectives.
“The AFPA supports the report’s endorsement of the Police, Ambulance and Clinician Early Response (PACER) model. PACER is a proven and effective way to reduce harm in mental health-related incidents. The AFPA supports its continued expansion as a common-sense measure that helps officers, the health system, and the community.
“We stand by our members and the difficult decisions they make to protect the public and we’re calling for proper consultation, greater transparency in reviews of this nature, and a more balanced approach to oversight that doesn’t treat police officers as the problem but as partners in community safety, ” Mr Caruana said.
Media Contact: AFPA Media and Government Relations Manager Troy Roberts – (02) 6285 1677 – troy.r@afpa.org.au
