Kellam Review
The Kellem review was an
Enquiry
On 14 July 2014 the
The review referenced
Where there is any doubt as to the handling and dissemination which may be subject to legal professional privilege, advice should be sought from a legal advisor before any further dissemination of the material takes place.
After examining 14 witnesses under oath including Gobbo's police handlers,[4]: 263 and reviewing more than 5500 documents, but without inviting Gobbo to give evidence,[6][7] Kellam presented a confidential report to IBAC in February 2015 which found that Gobbo was not acting in the best interests of her clients[4]: 264 as well as a high order of negligence in the handling of human sources by Victoria Police[8][9] whilst they left Gobbo to manage her legal and ethical responsibilities.[10][11]
The serious systemic failure of VicPol in relation to the management of the Source[a] is primarily responsible for the grave risk which has now been created for the personal safety of the Source, for the good reputation and public confidence in VicPol and to the administration of justice in Victoria.
โ Kellam Review[4]: 266
The report identified 9 convictions that may have been affected by the actions of Gobbo[4]: 267 and directed Victoria Police to provide a copy of the Kellam review to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), John Champion,[4]: 268 [12] and recommended that Victoria Police and the DPP investigate the impact of Gobbo's actions on criminal convictions.[13] In response to the report acting Chief Commissioner Tim Cartwright said that "There is no evidence at this stage of any threat to any conviction or any evidence of mistrial".[4]: 263
Aftermath
After the completion of the Kellam Review, the DPP concluded that there was an obligation to inform some of Gobbo's former clients of her actions however Gobbo and Victoria Police launched legal action to keep the information suppressed. This legal case eventually reached the High Court of Australia and became the AB v CD case.[14][13]
During legal arguments for a 2016 Herald Sun article about the appeals of Rob Karam, Victoria Police confirmed that the Kellam review concluded police used information from an informer which may have affected one or more trials,[4]: 269 stating:
The use of information provided by a police informer or informers may have compromised the fair trial of criminals such as Rob Karam.
โ Kellam Review[4]: 269
In 2016 it was claimed that documents had been withheld from the enquiry by Victoria Police but the complaint was dismissed[8] and during the Royal Commission into the Management of Police Informants it was stated that IBAC had not looked into the impact of Gobbo's actions on criminal cases as part of their review.
Footnotes
References
- ^ Day, Lauren (2015-08-07). "Corruption watchdog chief blasts 'complacent' Tas Government". ABC News. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
- ^ "IBAC appoints the Hon Murray Kellam AO QC to examine Victoria Police's handling of human sources". IBAC. Retrieved 2022-03-27.
- ^ Ackland, Richard (2019-02-10). "Deeper, wider, longer: lawyer X inquiry reveals corruption of justice system". the Guardian. Retrieved 2023-01-08.
- ^ OCLC 1141076627.)
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- ^ "Melbourne gangland lawyer explains why she became a police informant". ABC News. 2018-12-04. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
- ^ Taylor, Josie (2015-02-06). "IBAC to finalise probe into 'Lawyer X' case". ABC News. Retrieved 2022-10-18.
- ^ a b Sakkal, Erin; Pearson, Paul (2019-03-01). "Informer 3838: Timeline of a scandal 26 years in the making". The Age. Retrieved 2022-02-08.
- ^ "Inquiry into Victoria Police human source management concludes". IBAC. Retrieved 2022-02-08.
- ^ "IBAC could investigate Lawyer X, police". 7NEWS. 2020-10-27. Retrieved 2022-12-20.
- ^ "Lawyer X: senior police were warned about risk to prosecutions, inquiry told". the Guardian. 2019-03-28. Retrieved 2022-12-20 – via Australian Associated Press.
- ^ McKenzie, Nick; Baker, Richard; Bucci, Nino (2015-02-10). "IBAC inquiry finds police mishandled key gangland witness". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2022-12-20.
- ^ a b Mills, Tammy (2020-02-18). "Police left on their own to deal with tainted convictions, inquiry told". The Age. Retrieved 2022-05-02.
- ^ Ratliff, Evan (2020-01-16). "The Mysterious Lawyer X". The California Sunday Magazine. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
Further reading
- Dowsley, Anthony; Carlyon, Patrick (2020). Lawyer X : The scandalous story of how Melbourne's Gangland War was really won (1st ed.). Sydney, NSW. OCLC 1141076627.)
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