NSW DPP Sally Dowling accused of false evidence over 2GB media leak and judge dispute
Consensus Summary
A NSW parliamentary committee issued a 4-3 report accusing Director of Public Prosecutions Sally Dowling of authorising a 2GB media leak in October 2024 about District Court Judge Penelope Wass’ sentencing of a young Indigenous offender. The story, aired on October 25, 2024, described Wass’ invitation for an Acknowledgement of Country as a ‘local scandal.’ Dowling denied authorising the leak but admitted her office was the source, claiming she only learned of it days before her December 2025 testimony. The committee found her evidence false and recommended Attorney-General Michael Daley consider removing her from office. Daley rejected the findings, calling the report the ‘worst’ he had seen in his nearly 21 years in parliament, and instructed senior counsel to review it. Dissenting MPs called the findings ‘unfounded and biased,’ while Dowling’s counterparts across Australia signed a June 30 letter supporting her integrity. The inquiry, originally about child identity protections, focused on the dispute between Dowling and Wass, who accused the ODPP of leaking the story to ‘embarrass and defame’ her in a 68-page submission. Police investigated but found no breach of identity protections, though the committee acknowledged the disclosure was inappropriate.
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Key details reported by multiple sources:
- Sally Dowling, SC, is the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) at the center of the controversy
- The dispute involves District Court Judge Penelope Wass, SC, who allowed a young Indigenous offender to perform an Acknowledgement of Country during sentencing in October 2024
- The ODPP allegedly pitched a story about Wass’ sentencing to 2GB radio on October 25, 2024, describing the Acknowledgement of Country as a ‘local scandal’
- A 4-3 majority of the NSW upper house justice and communities committee found Dowling authorised the 2GB story and falsely denied it in December 2025 testimony
- Dowling admitted her office was the source of the 2GB story but denied authorising it, claiming she only became aware of it days before her December 2025 committee appearance
- Attorney-General Michael Daley described the report as the ‘worst’ he had seen in his nearly 21 years in parliament and rejected its findings
- Dowling’s Commonwealth, state, and territory counterparts signed a June 30 letter supporting her integrity
- The inquiry was originally set up to examine identity protections for children in criminal proceedings but focused on Dowling and Wass
- A 68-page submission by Wass accused the ODPP of leaking the story to ‘embarrass and defame’ her
- The 2GB story involved a young Indigenous offender sentenced for aggravated break and enter with sexual touching
- The committee recommended Daley consider establishing a formal inquiry to examine whether there are grounds to remove Dowling from office
Points of Difference
Details reported by only one source:
- Dowling attended an internal meeting with the ODPP media manager and an external media consultant a day before the 2GB story aired, where the topic was discussed
- The ODPP said it was ‘difficult to avoid the inference that the committee intended to ambush Dowling with Wass’ explosive 68-page submission’
- The committee found Dowling’s false denials included her claim that she ‘only discovered in December 2025 the story had been pitched by the ODPP’ despite attending the meeting where it was discussed
- The committee’s majority said the story was pitched in retaliation for Wass’ previous criticisms of the ODPP over sexual assault prosecutions
- The committee recommended Daley ‘consider establishing a formal inquiry with compulsory powers’ to examine the incident
- The committee’s mandate for a new oversight committee for the ODPP was compared to existing committees overseeing the corruption watchdog
- The ODPP gave 2GB the name of the Indigenous offender to confirm the story, but the offender was not named on air due to statutory prohibition
- Wass contacted police after the 2GB broadcast, concerned about a potential breach of identity protections, but no charges were laid
- The committee acknowledged that while no breach was established, the disclosure ‘should never have occurred’
- The committee’s majority included Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party’s Robert Borsak, Labor’s Stephen Lawrence, and Liberals Susan Carter and Natasha Maclaren-Jones
- The committee’s report stated that the leak had a ‘significant personal and professional impact’ on Judge Wass
- The report described the ODPP’s ‘media management’ as ‘inherently dangerous and potentially intimidatory’ to the criminal justice system
- The inquiry was called in October last year (October 2024) but focused almost solely on the 2GB leak
- The committee’s report made eight findings, including Dowling’s alleged false denial of authorising the leak
- The committee’s split was described as ‘down the middle,’ with Labor’s Cameron Murphy and Bob Nanva dissenting alongside Greens MLC Sue Higginson
- The ABC noted that Daley rejected the recommendation for a separate inquiry, calling it a ‘waste of taxpayers’ money’
- The committee found there was ‘no genuine public interest’ in the ODPP ‘proactively and surreptitiously’ pitching the story, which risked identifying the child
- The inquiry heard evidence from ODPP media manager Sally Killoran about a meeting with Dowling and an external media adviser the day before the 2GB story aired
- Killoran said she discussed ‘proactively pitching’ the story to the Daily Telegraph, and the external media adviser suggested 2GB ‘would be more interested’
- The external media adviser did not appear before the inquiry or make herself available to be served a summons to give evidence
- The inquiry found that while safeguarding children’s identities during criminal proceedings helps improve rehabilitation prospects, some in NSW are likely being identified ‘through a jigsaw of information’
- The committee recommended the government expand the definition of information that can lead to identification
- The Guardian noted that after a court decision in favour of the Minns government, parliamentary committees lost the power to compel witnesses, impacting the inquiry’s findings
Where the reporting differs
Details that conflict, or appear in only some outlets:
- The SMH and Guardian state the committee found Dowling gave false evidence, including claiming she only discovered the story was pitched in December 2025, despite attending the meeting where it was discussed, but the ABC does not explicitly mention this specific false evidence claim
- The SMH and Guardian describe the committee’s majority as including Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party’s Robert Borsak, Labor’s Stephen Lawrence, and Liberals Susan Carter and Natasha Maclaren-Jones, while the ABC only mentions the committee’s split but does not list the members
- The SMH and Guardian state the committee recommended Daley ‘consider establishing a formal inquiry with compulsory powers,’ while the ABC states the committee recommended Daley ‘consider setting up a formal inquiry’ without mentioning ‘compulsory powers’
- The SMH and Guardian mention that Wass’ 68-page submission was published on the NSW parliamentary website the night before Dowling’s evidence, while the ABC does not specify the timing of its publication
Source Articles
‘Stitch-up’: A-G blasts damning report that found top prosecutor gave false evidence
A NSW upper house committee has released a damaging report about Director of Public Prosecutions Sally Dowling, SC. But MPs are divided.
Controversial report calling for NSW DPP to be replaced condemned
The inquiry into children's identity protection was called in October last year, but has focused almost solely on the leaking of the story to media.
NSW’s top prosecutor gave false evidence on media leak about young Indigenous offender, inquiry finds
Sally Dowling admits her office pitched the story but says it was not authorised by her, while her colleagues call her ‘a person of integrity’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A New South Wales parliamentary committee report has made findings accusing the state’s top prosecutor of giving false evidence under oath to an inquiry and recommended the attorney general investigate whether there are grounds to remove her