A former West Australian detective who unlawfully accessed and passed on information from a restricted police information system to his lawyer lover has been sentenced to nine months in jail.
Carl Salvatore Casilli pleaded guilty to one count each of communicating interception warrant information to another person, unlawful use of a computer, unlawful supply of an audiovisual recording of an interview, and 14 counts of operating a restricted access system without authorisation.
The offences occurred between 2008 and 2013.
Perth Magistrates Court heard during sentencing submissions last month that Casilli passed on the information to a female lawyer with whom he was having a personal relationship.
The state argued some incidents "went beyond doing a favour for someone" and undermined ongoing police investigations, a claim disputed by defence lawyer Nick Lemmon, who said the information had not been accessed for the purpose of benefit.
Magistrate Elizabeth Woods said the most serious part of the offending was Casilli distributing an intercept warrant affidavit as these usually contained sensitive information about a case, including details of informants and undercover officers, and police methodology.
That had the potential to compromise the investigation, she said.
She said Casilli's conduct would have eroded public confidence in the security of the police information system.
Ms Woods noted jail time was particularly hard for ex-police officers, but said a community-based order or fine was not appropriate.
"My view ... is the only way to deal with these matters is a term of imprisonment," she said.
Ms Woods said Casilli had to serve nine months in jail in full. She also fined him $2000 for releasing a video of interview with a murder suspect, which the court was told was for the lawyer's training purposes.
Mr Lemmon had called for the former detective to be substantially fined, saying the offences occurred when Casilli was involved in and "obsessed" with the hunt for the killer of Supreme Court registrar Corryn Rayney.
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