However, it now seems that Overland did keep diaries, for after telling the commission he did not, his then chief of staff recalled packing away Overland's diaries when the chief commissioner resigned from Victoria Police. Those from 2003, 2004 and 2007 have now been located. It is becoming apparent that several members of senior command saw an unacceptable standard of conduct as acceptable. One wonders, however, how two former chief commissioners, the current chief commissioner and a current assistant commissioner would react to a group of constables or senior sergeants if, when being questioned about a very serious and potentially illegal matter, the more junior officers explained that they did not keep any official diary notes. Would they simply accept, as perfectly reasonable, a statement similar to Nixon's explanation that "that's the way we operated"? Would they let the matter rest if the junior officers explained that "it wasn't the intention to cause problems"? Loading

It is highly doubtful these members of senior command would have brushed aside the same conduct from more junior officers and just accepted the explanation that perhaps it would have been wiser to have kept diary notes. Victorians have heard that the recruiting of criminal barrister Nicola Gobbo as a police informer arose, in large part, because of the extraordinary circumstances surrounding the gangland wars. This decision was more than "messy", it was a seriously flawed and potentially illegal decision and, as the High Court found, constitutes "reprehensible conduct" on the part of Victoria Police. Extraordinary circumstances are often used as an excuse for conduct that falls under "noble cause corruption" – the practice of using any means to achieve a particular end. It is often offered to justify the unjustifiable. The unethical and illegal conduct that results from engaging in noble cause corruption as a management/leadership strategy is especially compounded when police use it, because they exist to uphold and enforce the law. Taken to its logical conclusion, the adoption by a police officer of a noble cause corruption strategy means that those who have taken an oath to uphold the law have decided it does not necessarily apply to them. Some officers believe they can bend or break the law in order to arrest and charge suspected criminals. Where does this leave the rule of law in Victoria? Clearly, not in a very good place. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video

The influence leadership has on the ethics of an entire organisation is well known. Indeed, it is one of the first topics anyone undertaking a leadership program has explained to them, as is keeping official diary notes of meetings. Ill-considered and unethical decisions from those at the top have an adverse effect on the respect junior officers have for senior echelons of Victoria Police and, in some circumstances, for the rule of law. The culture of Victoria Police, from the top down, must be addressed. As former deputy commissioner Sir Ken Jones told the royal commission, "absolute loyalty to whoever your boss was at the time was demanded and rewarded". He went on to warn: "In any public service such unquestioning loyalty to hierarchy is toxic and dysfunctional. It sustains and nurtures corrupt cultures and cover-ups. This is especially true in law enforcement." The "blue curtain of silence" is often used to describe police culture. It wraps an opaque cloak around policing organisations and as several royal commissions have revealed, results in cover-ups that lead to unethical and illegal actions by police. Attempts by good police officers to draw back the curtain usually have serious consequences for their policing career and overall wellbeing. That things must change, starting at the top, is indisputable. If they do not, there is every chance that the behaviour being revealed at the Lawyer X royal commission will permeate throughout the organisation and bring Victoria Police into further disrepute. This is why it is important to start by analysing how four well-paid leaders of Victoria Police, with extensive policing experience, appear to have failed so badly in their leadership roles.