Message on cop attacks heard at last

Busselton’s top cop says a 60 per cent drop in assaults on police in the past year may show the message about tougher penalties is sinking in.

Figures from the South West District Office reveal five people were charged with assaulting Busselton police officers in the 2013-2014 financial year to May, compared with 11 in the same period for 2012-2013.

Assaults on Dunsborough officers also decreased in that time from four to one.

Busselton Senior Sergeant Steve Principe said he was surprised but pleased to see the figures.

“We haven’t done anything differently, but maybe the understanding of the severity of the laws is kicking in with a lot of people and they’re realising the ramifications, ” he said.

The Barnett Government introduced a six-month mandatory jail term for assaults on police officers in 2009.

The laws were strengthened this year when offenders were prevented from being released early on parole.

Sen. Sgt Principe said the penalty only applied if the attack caused serious bodily harm, but it could be causing people to think twice before striking out.

“It’s an education thing, ” he said. “Once people understand the severity of assaulting an officer … once they see a few people in prison for it, they’re more likely to stop the behaviour.”

Sen. Sgt Principe said he could not recall a recent attack on Busselton police resulting in hospitalisation.

But he said earlier this year, an officer was recently kicked in the face.

Dunsborough Acting Sergeant at the time Rod McAllister said the decrease was good news. “There have been assaults on police officers down here, but luckily they’ve been few and far between, ” he said.

“It’s not that in Dunsborough it’s not possible, but it’s not as bad as in Busselton, where you’ve got a bigger population.”

Local police also welcomed legislation introduced into Parliament mandating blood testing for people who bite or spit at officers.

Sen. Sgt Principe said those types of attacks were rare, but they did happen.

“Even myself, I’ve been bitten years ago, ” he said.

“When it does happen, it can be concerning if you’ve got to wait a long time to find out if you have any blood-borne diseases.

“At least with this you’ll know straight away if you’ve contracted a disease.”

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