Rock throwers pelt police

Police were pelted with rocks and the riot squad was placed on alert after a brawl involving up to 30 people broke out in Sydney's south-west overnight.

Officers were first dispatched to suburban streets in Campbelltown following reports of rocks being thrown at buses about 4.15pm and again at 9.15pm.

"Shortly after the second rock attack, police attended MacBeth Way following reports of a brawl involving up to 30 people," NSW Police Force said in a statement today.

Police said the initial patrol did not come across any brawl but when officers later drove through MacBeth Way about 10pm, things had turned violent.

"The crowd had turned hostile," police said.

"A number of projectiles were thrown at officers, however, no one was injured.

"Extra police were deployed to the area to disperse the crowd."

Police conducted extra patrols of the area throughout the night.

"The Public Order and Riot Squad was put on standby during the incident but was not utilised," police said.

An investigation is underway to find those responsible for the rock attacks against the buses and police.

Related:

Nexus Policing: Binding Research to Practice. 26-28 May 2008

This conference brings police practitioners, police leaders and key stakeholders together with academic researchers. The aim is to explore how the future of policing policies and practices, both in Australia and internationally is increasingly being informed by research-generated knowledge. Through keynote speakers and panel presenters, a range of cutting edge research projects from Australia, South Africa, North America and the United Kingdom will be examined.

The following key themes will be addressed throughout the conference:

Police Governance - internal and external

Community engagement and the delivery of policing services

Professional police education and capability development

Each of the three days of the conference will feature keynote speakers, plenary sessions and parallel workshops. The keynote speakers will include:

Professor Martin Innes - Director of the Universities Police Science Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom .

Distinguished Professor David Bayley - School of Criminal Justice, University at Albany, State University of New York, USA

Professor Clifford Shearing - Director of the Centre of Criminology, University of Cape Town, South Africa

Professor Lorraine Mazzerole - Director ARC Centre of Excellence in Policing and Security (CEPS), Griffith University

Christine Nixon - Chief Commissioner, Victoria Police

Parallel workshops speakers will include:

Assoc. Professor Jennifer Wood - Temple University, USA

Dr. Monique Marks - University of Kwazula-Natal, South Africa

Ms. Julie Berg - University of Cape Town, Centre of Criminology, South Africa.

For more information please visit: www.nexuspolicing08.com.au