The ACT Director of Public Prosecutions’ increasingly emotive and promotional social media presence raises broader questions about whether prosecutorial offices should market themselves like modern corporate workplaces.

“All rise for Roxy – our Chief Comfort Officer.

“As part of our wellbeing initiative, we welcome four-legged friends on Fridays to bring light-hearted relief to a high-pressure environment.”

The above staff-morale boosterism comes complete with a picture of a smiling dog, plus paw and puppy emojis on LinkedIn.

Who’s posting? A vet? A pet groomer? Maybe just a good, honest small business somewhere?

No. This is the Office of the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions. And it gets worse.

“Here’s Roxy fur-mly upholding the law of comfort, settling in with quiet authority and offering exactly the kind of fun and loveable presence that helps our team take a moment to relax and reset.

“Verdict? Roxy delivered a judgment in favour of ear scratches, snacks and belly rubs.”

This, one assumes, is a result of the office appointing a media director, the very concept of which would have been seen by many lawyers and journalists as an unnecessary grotesquery not so very long ago.

Are internal staff matters and team-priming of any interest to the public, let alone to complainants and defendants in criminal matters, the people most affected by decisions at the DPP’s office?

The Victorian Office........

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