A Gay and Lesbian Liaison Officer (GLLO) is not the person to report GLBT-related crimes to, but rather a “capacity builder” in the Local Area Command (LAC), Superintendent Donna Adney said this week.

Adney, who is the Surry Hills Local Area Commander and GLBT corporate spokesperson, was responding to questions about key findings from a 2006/07 survey of GLLOs in NSW. Of 60 GLLOs who responded, most said they do not consider it appropriate that they are given total responsibility for all matters relating to the GLBT community, and expressed concern that the community did not understand the true role of a GLLO.

“There is a bit of confusion out there, where people think if you’re part of the GLBT community you report crimes to a GLLO,” Adney told SX. “A GLLO is a capacity builder in the LAC. They are not the person who people in the GLBT community report crimes to, but rather they facilitate an exchange in meetings between the Commander and representatives of the GLBT community in their particular command.”

Victims of homophobic crime should report them to police, Adney stressed.

“What we’re saying to all police is ‘you have to give a professional and sensitive response to all victims of crime’,” she said. “We need the GLBT community to come to the police to report crimes. I understand it’s difficult for some people for a host of reasons, and we’ll always strive to be sensitive, but unless people tell us when crime is occurring – even in the event they don’t [pursue the case] – we need to know it’s occurring.”

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