Policing at Mardi Gras Was ‘Aggressive and Intensive’, Says Report

Mardi Gras in this day and age should invoke feelings of pride, freedom and safety – but according to a new report, Australia’s top LGBTQIA+ event could actually be closer to its violent roots than we realise.

A new report commissioned by the Inner City Legal Centre with researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) has found the policing at Mardi Gras is “intensive and aggressive”. 

“Police violence and over policing at Mardi Gras continues despite negotiations between Mardi Gras and the NSW Police Force,” the study reads.

”Our findings reveal intensive and aggressive policing characterised by invasive questioning, instances of potentially unlawful policing, and use of force”.

The report includes accounts from Fair Play (formerly Project Blue), an initiative that works to document police involvement at Mardi Gras, act as independent witnesses for LGBTQI+ involved in police incidents, and provide the community with legal advice. The report used observational data from Fair Play in order to find patterns in police behaviour.

‘Intensive’ drug dog and strip search practices

The report determined the use of drug dogs and strip searches was very intensive, with a force of 200 officers being deployed for drug detection at three Mardi Gras parties. 

Researchers stressed that it was unclear if all the searches made at these events were unlawful, however the study was able to establish a pattern that pointed to questionable use of drug detection dogs to justify searches. It is unlawful to jump straight to a strip search from a drug dog indication, and police reports suggest this occurred in at least some instances.

It also outlines the use of coercive questioning, with one account from a witness saying partygoers ‘felt helpless and irrelevant because [they] were not able to exercise their right to silence’. 

“It was really obvious and […] what was happening was people were just being harassed, and coerced, and bullied into consent or else”, the report account reads.

Mardi Gras partygoers ‘visibly upset’, says professor

UNSW Law and Justice Associate professor Vicki Sentas says the level of disruption and distress caused to the LGBTQI+ community by the police was striking. 

“People being visibly kind of upset and quite rattled by the intimidating tactics, which, you know, only harms police-community relations,” she told AAP.

Mardi Gras has faced its fair share of issues in the last couple of years, and the police and Mardi Gras have a long and complex history of violence and clashes. This year, tensions between the two were particularly high, following the killings of Luke Davies and Jesse Baird, allegedly by then-serving NSW Police Officer Beau Lamarre-Condon. After this heartbreaking event, police were asked not to appear in the parade in uniform in hopes of minimising the distress on the community, according to organisers.  

Sentas told AAP that while some progression had been made between NSW Police and the LGBTQI community, there is also “this parallel universe then when you’ve got the drug policing operations engaging in sort of aggressive, unnecessary over-policing at events after the parade,” she said.

A NSW Police spokesperson said the organisation “worked extensively” with Sydney World Pride organisers and a range of government and non-government stakeholders throughout the 17-day event.

“A range of strategies were utilised which ensured the community was able to enjoy the event safely and securely,” they said.

You can read the full report here.