Originally Posted by AAP

A Victorian police officer has been suspended on full pay after an investigation by the force's Ethical Standards Department.

- Officer investigated
- 'Concerns about behaviour'
- Possible charges

The suspension was confirmed by Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon on Fairfax Radio Network this morning.

Ms Nixon would not comment on reports that the officer had reduced speeding fines and assessed speed levels as being at a lesser speed than cars were actually travelling.
"We are investigating a matter which relates to a police officer and I guess my point at this stage is we are investigating and I think various people are speculating at what it is. But we've had concerns about his behaviour and we are investigating that,'' Ms Nixon confirmed.

It's claimed the charges the police officer may face are perverting the course of justice and falsifying documents.

Ms Nixon said police were talking to the Director of Public Prosecutions about what charges may be laid, if any.

She refused to say how the investigation came about, other than to say information came from ``a number of sources''.

An investigation into the officer had been going on for ``some time now'', Ms Nixon said, but declined to say for how long.

The Ethical Standards Department carried out the investigation. "We have a variety of ways we conduct investigations ... we're comfortable with the way we are investigating that.

"There's a whole variety of ways we find out about officers behaving badly. Our Ethical Standards Department does an outstanding job.''

But she said officers did have discretion when pulling people over for speeding.

"What people need to understand is that police officers do have discretion. Many officers exercise that discretion in a number of ways.

"What we require of our officers when they do that, though, is that they are open and transparent.''

The officer has not been named at this stage.

"People have a right to some privacy in policing, while we investigate the matter.''

If charges are laid, the police will publicly name those charges and the case will go before the court, Ms Nixon said.

Originally Posted by Revolver

A side note - every time I see that Nixon woman she looks another size bigger. One day she's going to explode....

Originally Posted by enforcer

Is there something I'm missing here? To the Australian public he's a hero, but if he's letting people off for life endangering offences and he knows the risk.

Police once had a discretion to reduce speeding offences but we don't anymore. Having said that making an example of this bloke is nothing short of beaurocracy gone mad. Yes, he stuffed up, but to turn it into a full blown inquisition and a media circus is not the way to go.

It does raise another question. The National Measurement Act and Australian design rules prescribes the guidelines for measurement in terms of tolerances. All measuring devices (including radars) have a small margin of error and they allow for 10% tolerance. How is it in in Victoria you can get a ticket for being 3 or 4 km/h over the limit?

In the United States, speeding tolerance is usually up to the discretion of the individual officer and in the case of hand held radar, a person can't get a ticket if they are traveling less than 10 km/h over in a 90 km/h zone.

The United Kingdom recommends a tolerance level of +10%. In Queensland, there is a 10% tolerance that complies with the Trade Measurement and Fair Trading Act.

Victoria....you can get a fine for driving 3 km/h over the speed limit, and this is despite the Australian Design Rules and car manufacturers allowing a 10% margin of error.

Everytime I go to Victoria I find myself going UNDER the speed limit, and that can present another problem....wherelse should we go....Queensland!

Originally Posted by takahashi

There is no big research of how to set road safety speed limits.

I wonder if Will (yellowrx8inoz) can help, he is afterall a "professor" of traffic.