Police Reveal Slow Pace of Investigation into Child Abuser Larkins

By Emily Bourke
ABC - PM
September 17, 2013

http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2013/s3850776.htm

[with audio]

MARK COLVIN: On its second day of hearings, the child abuse royal commission has heard some stunning admissions from New South Wales Police and Scouts Australia.

The former chief executive of New South Wales Scouts said the organisation had failed other children besides those abused by the convicted paedophile Steven Larkins.

Another scout official said there were concerns about how the allegations about Larkins would damage the reputation of scouts.

Today's hearing also offered some insights into the attitudes of police investigating child sexual abuse matters in the 1990s.

Emily Bourke reports.

EMILY BOURKE: More than a decade before Steven Larkins was convicted and jailed for child sex offences, his conduct with children had made it into the scouts' internal records, known as the behavioural files.

In 1997, Larkins had been seen approaching children at a local swimming pool, prompting scout official Allan Currie to caution Larkins in writing.

He explained his approach to the royal commission.

ALLAN CURRIE: At the time, I don't know why because I was only fairly new at the job and had no training whatsoever in this sort of area, but yes, I would have been trying to preserve the good name of the scouts, but would have taken necessary action if required.

EMILY BOURKE: He went on to say that the scouts were reluctant to dismiss Larkins because of his Aboriginal heritage.

ALLAN CURRIE: Due to the fact that we had nothing from any authority to say that he'd done anything wrong, the feeling was that if we reinstated him and he caused any further issues, that it would be bad, but if we dismissed him, he could then use the racial discrimination card.

EMILY BOURKE: It was only in 2000 that one of Larkins' victims approached the scouts directly.

Former chief executive of Scouts New South Wales, Peter Olah, told the royal commission he took the decision then to suspend Larkins and refer the matter to police and he didn't report such complaints to the Department of Community Services because that was a dead end.

Mr Olah said he bolstered child protection practices while he was in charge of scouts, despite much resistance.

PETER OLAH: There was a lot of anger about what we introduced. There was a perception amongst many leaders that we were removing their right to a presumption of innocence, that we were forcing them to prove their innocence in order to remain active in scouting. The sort of terminology I heard used was that we were throwing them under a bus.

EMILY BOURKE: Mr Olah said he personally referred many allegations to police but he admitted to commissioner Peter McClellan that other children had been abused and not just by Larkins.

PETER MCCLELLAN: Do I take it from your answer that you know of other matters where the scouting movement failed?

PETER OLAH: In terms of children being hurt, absolutely.

PETER MCCLELLAN: Is it right to think that the failures, having been identified, that became the driving force for all of you to secure the changes?

PETER OLAH: It was about ensuring that the children who were part of the organisation then and in the future were exposed to as little risk as we could reasonably deliver. It was also, to an extent I guess, a matter of shaking the tree and getting some of those cases sorted out.

EMILY BOURKE: Witnesses from NSW Police also gave evidence today.

Nigel Turney was lead investigator at Newcastle police station and in 1997 he dealt with the first official complaint about Larkins.

It was his first child sexual assault case, and within the first six months of his investigation he had taken a statement from the victim, and a witness.

He was questioned by senior counsel Gail Furness about the pace of his inquires.

NIGEL TURNEY: I would suggest, I could say it's probably a little lengthy but you have to take into account any number of investigations that we may have had going at that time.

GAIL FURNESS: Now in 1997, were you aware of any policy, guideline, or requirement by the police in respect to how child sexual assault investigations should be conducted by reference to timing?

NIGEL TURNEY: Not that I'm aware of. It may have been raised during the training that we had.

GAIL FURNESS: Was it conveyed to you or did you understand during this time that there was something about child sexual abuse or assault investigations that meant that they should be conducted as expeditiously as possible?

NIGEL TURNEY: Not from memory, no.

GAIL FURNESS: What about your understanding of such matters now? Can you see that that might be a reasonable expectation that offences of this sort be conducted particularly expeditiously?

NIGEL TURNEY: Well, we have units now that we didn't have back then.

GAIL FURNESS: Even in the absence of the units back then, is there anything you want to say about that?

NIGEL TURNEY: I guess in terms of that, yes it involved a child, but you'd also have to look at the seriousness of the allegation and I have mentioned previously whilst it does involve a child and it was an assault, it probably, in terms of the scale of it, was at the lower end of those types of offences.

EMILY BOURKE: In early 2003, Steven Larkins applied for a working with children check, a process that required a background police check and a risk assessment.

Kerryn Boland, the New South Wales Children's Guardian and the Acting Commissioner for Children and Young People, told the commission how Larkins' assessment was completed.

KERRYN BOLAND: I understand from the staff member who undertook the risk assessment that the workplace characteristic assessment was done with Mr Larkins himself.

EMILY BOURKE: The chief executive of the Department of Family and Community Services is expected to give evidence tomorrow.

MARK COLVIN: Emily Bourke.