A Victorian police officer is expected to be charged over leaking photos of former AFL player and coach Dean Laidley inside a police station.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The photos of Laidley wearing a long blonde wig and a dress were taken when the North Melbourne premiership player was being questioned after his arrest outside a home in St Kilda on Saturday night.
He is facing stalking and other charges.
Photos of the 53-year-old in the station's interview room as well as his mug shot were disseminated on social media on Sunday and appeared on the front pages of the Herald Sun and the West Australian newspapers on Monday.
Laidley faced Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday and will remain in custody until May 11 after not applying for bail.
Deputy police commissioner Shane Patton says the dissemination of the photos is appalling.
Mr Patton said the senior constable allegedly responsible was suspended with pay on Monday.
He is expected to be charged with accessing police information without authorisation.
The maximum penalty for the criminal charge is two years in prison or $40,000 in fines.
"It's a breach of our values, it's unlawful and criminal conduct and that's the way we are treating it," Mr Patton said.
Mr Patton said six police officers were sent the photos by the senior constable via WhatsApp and they could also face charges if it's found they disseminated them further.
The police officer would also be subject to internal disciplinary measures and the corruption watchdog has been notified, he said.
Laidley's lawyers, as well as civil liberties groups, have criticised the officer's actions.
"Outraged that pictures of my client, taken by some police officer, on the sly, when in custody in interview have hit the media. Typical (hash)grossbreachofprivacy," lawyer Dee Giannopoulos tweeted.
Another of his lawyers, Bill Doogue, also tweeted his anger.
"Disgraceful. Taking photos unlawfully and sharing them. And these were sneaky photos while in Police interview in Police Station by a Police Officer," Mr Doogue said.
The Victorian Council for Civil Liberties described the release of the photos as a "serious violation of Laidley's human rights" with "transphobic overtones".
"It appears that these images were released with the intention of publicly 'outing' Laidley," the group said in a statement.
LGBTIQ Legal, a branch of the community group St Kilda Legal Service, said they were concerned the incident would lead to further distrust of police officers.
"This incident requires an independent investigation as the first of many steps that are required for Victoria Police to do better for trans and gender non-conforming Victorians, many of whom have already experienced discrimination," they said.
Laidley played 151 AFL games from 1987-97 and was an inaugural player at West Coast before joining North in 1993.
He played 99 games at Arden St, including their 1996 premiership before he succeeded Denis Pagan as North Melbourne coach in 2003. In 149 games, he led them to the finals three times before resigning during the 2009 season.
He then had assistant coaching roles at three AFL clubs until 2015 and is currently coach of Melbourne suburban club Maribyrnong Park.
Australian Associated Press
