A review of police surveillance operations, prompted by a botched operation at Risdon Prison in 2017, is currently underway and is expected to be completed by early next year.
Former Tasmanian Director of Public Prosecutions Damian Bugg will lead the review, which will investigate the period during which privileged conversations between inmates and lawyers were secretly recorded.
The recording devices in a meeting room at the prison were not switched off until August 17, resulting in the unintended recording of subsequent meetings over a three-month period.
Police Commissioner Donna Adams said that Tasmania Police has already conducted an internal review of procedures following a determination by the Supreme Court that material obtained from the 2017 surveillance operation could not be admitted into evidence.
“This has been completed with new procedures implemented,” Commissioner Adams said.
Legislative amendments were recently passed to enable the release of information necessary for the review to proceed.
“Tasmania Police also committed to a number of actions to ensure that surveillance devices used in prisons, as part of investigations, fully meet all legal requirements to enable information obtained from to be used in the courts.”
The review aims to ensure clear guidance and oversight for police officers when obtaining surveillance device warrants and executing them.
The findings of the review are expected to be tabled in parliament in early 2024.
