In March, Timothy John Brian Buckby was banned from being a nurse for seven years after the tribunal found him guilty of misconduct with two patients while working in the hospital’s mental health ward three years ago. Police inquiries in the months after the incident failed to find grounds to charge him.
Senior Sergeant Neville Beard said the squad would review the tribunal report now it was available.
He said they had not charged Buckby because of “a number of complicated factors”.
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READ NOW“Unfortunately, not all investigations result in criminal charges,” he said.
“The lack of charges in an investigation does not indicate that police don’t believe a victim, but in criminal cases police examine the criminal aspects required to substantiate a charge under legislation. Criminal courts require allegations to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt and in some cases this evidence is just not available to be presented.”
The tribunal report said Buckby had formed relationships with two patients.
It said his conduct with one of the patients, whose mouth he covered before having sex with her was “clearly non-consensual”.
While Sen-Sgt Beard could not comment on that finding specifically, he explained the tribunal hearing focused on proving professional misconduct, not sexual assault.
“I am unsure of the standard of proof required for a SAT hearing, but would doubt it is a high as a criminal court,” he said.
“The summary of the tribunal’s decision appears to outline that it examined his professional conduct in his capacity as a nurse, not the issue of sexual assault and the subsequent admissibility of evidence from a criminal perspective.”
But he said police would consider re-opening the case if new evidence came to hand.