Lawyer Questions Police Chopper Value

A Gold Coast criminal lawyer says funding for initiatives like drug rehabilitation would have a more positive effect on crime rates than a police helicopter.

Both major political parties have promised to continue funding the helicopter, which is being trialled on the Gold Coast at ratepayers’ expense.

Bill Potts says helicopters are an expensive billboard and there needs to be a mature debate about crime.

“There’s been a terrible spike on the Gold Coast in the last 12 months and there have been of course some very shocking cases which have worried the public, but certainly crime is not out of control,” he said.

“But where the debate, in my view, should be heading is not merely about tougher sentences and longer sentences, it really ought to be about rehabilitation and preventing crime.”