It is disputed as to whether this rogue country cop ever really existed! There appears to be no documented records and verbal reports of him are veiled, confused and ambiguous!  Some say he died years ago, and others say he is very much alive!  Perhaps, he is a fictious historical ‘amalgam’ of many rogue country cops, now encountered by way of Tasmanian folklore in the more remote parts of the State. Still rumours persist in the victim-survivor community that this Police Officer is real and remains a serving officer! It is very hard to know the truth unless Tasmania Police chooses to conduct an investigation!

He is alleged to be a violent sexual predator who monstered the rural communities where he has been stationed. Still, with the passage of time, now going back decades, it is likely that the officer known as ‘Dirty Harry’, will evade justice, assuming that he does exist!

My informants say that they are very fearful of police in their small communities and as such would never report an officer they knew to be engaging in corruption or other misconduct. This serves as an almost insurmountable barrier to calling out officers like the eponymous “Dirty Harry” and his alleged sexual predation of youth and young women.  In the absence of a safe pathway to justice, it is understandable that community members resort to ‘whispered warnings’, to alert parents to the risks presented by rogue Country Cops.

One would hope that Tasmania Police will have conducted a forensic assessment to understand how Senior Sgt Paul (Beau) Reynolds (pictured below) targeted at least 52 boys during his 38-year career without apprehension. No doubt there are many lessons to be learned, and applied, if Tasmania Police is really serious about bringing officers like ‘Dirty Harry’ to justice.

“There are none so blind as those who do not wish to see”.

Tasmania Police will not investigate allegations of child sexual abuse unless presented with concrete proof that will deliver the prospect of a ‘slam-dunk’ prosecution to the Department of Public Prosecutions.  Proof that meets the highest legal standard of ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ is needed that would satisfy a criminal court. This places the onus on the victims and their supporters to press individuals to make police statements. Child sex offenders know and rely on this!

Tasmania Police’s mishandling of the many allegations of CSA against paedophile nurse, James (Geoffrey) Griffin, over decades serves as the cautionary tale. There is no evidence in the public domain that Police have changed their protocols to ensure that this can never happen again. This means that there can be multiple allegations over years, by credible individuals, with strong corroboration, which would satisfy “the balance of probabilities test” collectively, but none of which individually would meet the threshold of “beyond reasonable doubt”.

Tasmania Police needs a new playbook if they are serious about protecting the community from sex predators, especially those in their ranks.

 Key takeaways:

1. Reports of paedophiles are often shrouded in mystery and whispered innuendos.
2. Whispered warnings is the natural resort for a community that believes that law enforcement is somehow complicit.
3. Tasmania Police needs to be doing much more to re-build trust especially with rural communities.