Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by skissane 1785 days ago
> NSW also employed the Fixated Persons Unit (a terrorist task force) to arrest a journalist who was critical of John "Pork" Barilaro

A guy who worked for a YouTube comedian as a producer, and who allegedly was following a politician to public events and harassing him there, was arrested and charged with stalking. The "Fixated Persons Unit" has a broader mandate than purely terrorism offences, its mandate also extends to stalking and harassment of a "public office holder or internationally protected person, or other person/s nominated by the commissioner of police"

> So far, there's been no word from the "Law Enforcement Conduct Commission" on whether the arrest was lawful (hint: it wasn't)

LECC is unlikely to investigate an arrest while there is a pending criminal prosecution. For them to do so might be seen as interfering with the Court process.

I don't know if the arrest was legal or not. But the police unit which carried out the arrest is irrelevant to the question of its legality.