Cops and bloggers: online reporting proposal no substitute for more police

ACT Policing’s plans to not attend certain property crime incidents such as break-ins, but expect victims to post a report online for police to follow up, should be met with the incredulity it deserves.

It is well-known that Canberra’s contracted police service is hard-pressed to keep pace with a growing capital. Just talk to the residents of the new suburbs of Molonglo or Gungahlin, who complain in vain about break-ins and hooning and lack of police visibility.

Just because such antisocial behaviour doesn’t make it into the crime statistics doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.

The thin blue line is just that, with the police union saying Canberra is short about 200 officers.

Either the new approach is the brainchild of some well-meaning bureaucrat, or perhaps Chief Police Officer Neil Gaughan is being crafty and tossing out a broad hint that he needs to bolster the ranks.

Information is short about the criteria for the police turning up or not, but it seems the online reporting option will be limited to offences such as vandalism, minor property damage and minor burglaries.

For someone who has found the door kicked in, their privacy violated and property pinched, how minor is minor?

The CPO also mentioned occurrences when there is a lack of forensic evidence, but how will police know that without being there?

Turning civilians into community crime bloggers also puts an undeserved burden on people who may be traumatised or lack the skills to deliver a useful or complete report.

The CPO assures us that the new approach will free up resources to focus on more serious crime and life-threatening matters and give officers more front-line exposure.

He admits that resources are tight and this would be a more efficient use of officers’ time.

But what kind of message does this send to the community, and criminals, no matter how minor?

The compact between police and the community is vital to maintaining law and order in a civil society. This sort of triaging will only undermine that trust and leave many wondering whether reporting a crime is worth the hassle.

That may be good for crime stats, but that only creates an illusion of calm in our suburbs.

Missing in action has been Police Minister Mick Gentleman, who did not respond to our questions.

Opposition police spokesperson Jeremy Hanson called on Mr Gentleman to come out of hiding and explain how and why this change was made.

“Frankly, this a direct result of the fact that there are not enough police in the ACT, as has been stated repeatedly by me and by police themselves, and I call on the government to focus on community policing and give police the resources they and the community need,” Mr Hanson said.

Canberra may not be the crime capital, but it has its fair share of violence, poor behaviour and unnerving violations of people’s sanctity at home.

The move to online reporting was described as one of many “modern ways” to improve community reporting of minor crimes.

But many would prefer some old-fashioned police on the beat they could tell their stories to rather than a police website.