Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro says the CLP stands by NT Police and the NT Police Association in their support for the highly regulated use of spit hoods and restraint chairs to prevent members of the NT Police being exposed to communicable diseases.
“Northern Territory police perform a very difficult job in extremely confronting circumstances and deserve to be protected from communicable diseases, which can have a long-lasting impact on their health.
“There are strict guidelines in place to ensure the safety of the person in custody and police – who only ever used these measures as a last resort.
“When spat on, blood and saliva can spread communicable diseases, which not only affect the person being spat at, but also their family, and the wait for test results can take months. For some police, that means not kissing their children goodnight for fear of transmitting a disease to them”.
“These measures are used to protect the police and those in custody, and should be allowed to be used when all other options are exhausted.” said Mrs Finocchiaro.
ENDS
