How lockdown ruined trust between Victorians and the boys in blue: Confidence in police plummets after videos emerge of heavy-handed arrests during the pandemic
Victorians have lost faith in Victoria Police in record numbers during Melbourne's seemingly never-ending Stage Four lockdown, a new poll has revealed.
Disturbing results indicate only 42 per cent of Victorians now rate Victoria Police highly for their ethics and honesty compared to to a record high 76 percent in mid-2017.
The fourth Roy Morgan snap SMS survey on Victoria’s Stage Four restrictions suggests Victoria Police has suffered a public relations nightmare amid disturbing allegations of heavy handed tactics.
Police arrest a woman on Elsternwick Beach last month after breaking up a protest at a nearby park
A man is arrested on a Melbourne beach last month amid Stage Four lockdowns
Victoria Police patrol through Chadstone Shopping Centre on September 20. Melburnians have complained they now live in a police state
Roy Morgan chief executive officer Michele Levine said Victoria Police had attracted a degree of controversy in recent weeks after the release of several videos on social media that highlighted alleged COVID-19 lawbreakers being subject to potentially ‘heavy-handed’ police action.
These included the arrest of a pregnant woman in her own home in Ballarat over a Facebook post, elderly ladies being confronted on park benches for not wearing masks and a woman being forcibly removed from her car after refusing to provide her driver’s licence.
Victorians were appalled when video emerged last month of a Victoria Police officer stomping a man’s head during an arrest in Epping
Video further captured the man being run down by police in their squad car.
The 32-year-old father was placed in an induced coma following the incident.
Both incidents remain the subject of criminal investigations by Victoria's Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission.
Victorians have been further angered by the 'no-nonsense approach' of Victoria Police top brass, who continue to belittle those fed-up with the lock down.
Victoria Police assistant commissioner Luke Cornelius has been among the worst offenders, labelling protesters the 'tinfoil hat wearing brigade'.
Just weeks before the latest poll, Mr Cornelius lashed out at protesters from the comfort of his pulpit at police headquarters.
'I feel a bit like a dog returning to eat his own vomit,' he crowed. 'I'm sick of it.'
Zoe Buhler said she did not realise she was doing anything wrong by starting a Facebook event asking people to meet in Ballarat. She was arrested in her pyjamas last month
Police converge on some elderly Melburnians who were not wearing masks. One officer was seen snatching a phone off one of the women
A Morgan Gallop poll asked should Melbourne residents now be able to visit the homes of their immediate families?
Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Luke Cornelius addresses the media during a press conference
'They're taking every opportunity to leverage the current situation to serve their ridiculous notions about so called sovereign citizens, about constitutional issues and about how 5G is going to kill your grandkids,' he said of a previous protest.
'I mean it's just crazy, it's batsh*t crazy nonsense.'
For months now Victorians have been bombarded with information on police arrests and the issuing of hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines over lockdown breaches.
Ms Levine said there was little wonder as to why the poll indicated Victorians had begin to doubt the integrity of Victoria Police.
'Given the media attention paid to these incidents in locked down Melbourne it is no surprise that fewer Victorians than three years ago rate the police either very high or high for ethics and honesty,' she said.
The poll, which was conducted with a Victoria-wide cross-section of 2,278 Victorians aged 18 and over on September 15 and 16, revealed only 11 percent of Victorians rated police in the very high category, with 25 percent rating them low.
Women rated the ethics and honesty of Victorian Police more highly than men, with 46 percent of women rating them either very high or high compared to 38 percent of men.
In 2017, Victorians rated police as the eighth most trusted profession behind only nurses, doctors, pharmacists, school teachers, engineers, dentists and state Supreme Court judges.
The poll also indicated Victorians are fed-up with the lockdown, with 55 percent declaring Melbourne residents should now be able to visit the homes of immediate family members.
A man dances for police at St Kilda Beach during COVID-19 in Melbourne last weekend
Ratings of Victorian Police for honesty and ethical standards by Gender and Age
Police march through a Melbourne park in September. Victorians have indicated they no longer trust police
Melbournians also want to be able to travel further, with an increased majority of 53 percent of respondents declaring they should be free to travel more than 5 km from their home – up from 50 percent a week earlier.
Under the regional travel crackdown under COVOD-19 restrictions, Victorians who leave a restricted area without a lawful excuse can be handed a $4,957 fine.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has warned the controversial 5km travel rule could be extended beyond October 19.
Mr Andrews said the restriction — which applies to metropolitan Melbourne — had a clear purpose and could be extended despite the daily number of cases trending down.
On Monday, Victoria recorded nine new cases of coronavirus and no new virus deaths — the first time since September 15.