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Communities Most At Risk See Police As Threat, Report Finds
Police systems, processes, and cumulative experiences are still getting in the way of fair and equitable policing, according to a new report.
An independent panel has been researching police engagement with Māori, Pasifika, disabled people, and rainbow communities.
The 85-page report, Kia Tika Ai, Kia Tōkeke Ai: Make Fair and Just Decisions, is the second from the Understanding Policing Delivery panel.
The first, released in August, relied on existing police data and found Māori men were more likely to be stopped, tasered, and prosecuted by police due to 'bias' and 'structural racism.'
The second tranche of research has relied on experiences from the community and from police. In total, 135 interviews were conducted, and 288 hours of participant observation.
It corroborated the inequities already present in the data from the first report, but shed more light on how the inequities were experienced, and their impacts on communities.
Communities shared reports of harmful, discriminatory, and unprofessional police conduct, including racist, sexist/misogynistic and ableist language, alongside excessive use of force and disproportionate responses.
Where force had been used on a disabled person, it was found police misunderstood the person's disability or their inability to control or regulate emotional responses.
"I don't think there's any framework there for them to even identify people who have disabilities... It felt like there was no room for trying to understand the situation," said one disabled participant.
Police received inadequate de-escalation training, which was leading to people refusing arrest or assaulting an officer.
The communities most at risk did not feel they were well-served by police, instead seeing them as a threat to their safety. Childhood police interactions in particular were seen to compound ongoing distrust in police.
However, the report also found instances where authentic and collaborative community and policing innovations were making a difference, such as Iwi and Diversity Liaison Officers.
"The co-response model prevents people from being unnecessarily detained legislatively when it doesn't have to happen. It prevents unnecessary use of force, because of the reaction response police get, and the stigmatism that comes with police officers historically with mental health patients being the detainer of a mental health patient," quotes one community stakeholder.
A police participant gave an example where police's gang engagement team had built relationships with a local gang chapter, allowing the gang's president to convince a member wanted on a wounding charge to surrender. This was compared to the surveillance, armed offenders squad, dogs, and helicopter approach police would have needed to use without such a relationship.
Panel chair Khylee Quince said the researchers deliberately sought to hear the good and bad of policing.
"Some of the experiences shared by community members in encounters with police will be confronting to hear, and we thank them for their courage in coming forward," she said.
"The researchers also heard of good police practice across various sites of innovation around Aotearoa. Together these insights support our recommendations - that police do more of what leads to fair and equitable policing, and less of what does not align with police values, the upholding of human rights and their obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi."
The panel made 12 recommendations to police, including amplifying Māori and community-led collaborations, more analysis and public reporting of service delivery and equity, enhanced de-escalation training, and a 'practising certificate' for officers.
Outgoing Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said while the report would be for his successor to consider, the recommendations were broadly in line with work already under way.
"We know our staff are dealing with individuals every day who may have their own struggles, issues, addictions, or complex needs. I know our people work very hard to provide the best response in every circumstance. This research has shown the value in pursuing a deeper understanding of ourselves and all the communities we serve," he said.
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