Griffith and Queensland Police Service; Thorpe (Third Party)
(1993 S0208, 15 August 1997)
The Information Commissioner applied the principles discussed in Stewart and Department of Transport (1993) 1 QAR 227 in finding that information concerning allegations of wrongdoing by a police officer while on duty was not information concerning the officer's personal affairs. The Information Commissioner stated that where a disciplinary proceeding relates to conduct which occurred while an officer was on duty, and in the performance of his or her duties of employment, information relating to the incident and subsequent disciplinary proceedings cannot ordinarily be said to concern the personal affairs of the officer.
The Information Commissioner found that the bulk of the matter in issue was merely administrative in nature relating to the disciplinary process, and that the substance of the allegations and outcome had already been made known to the applicant through official sources. The matter in issue did not identify the complainant or any confidential source of information. The Information Commissioner rejected claims that the matter in issue was exempt under s.40(c), s.41(1), s.42(1)(b), s.42(1)(e) or s.46(1)(b) of the FOI Act.