summary Aaron interviews Simone Patterson, an Order of Australia Medal recipient and founder of a refuge supporting women, children, and pets escaping domestic violence. She recounts workplace sexual harassment and assault during her years in Corrective Services, the institutional barriers that kept her from reporting, and how her experiences shaped her advocacy and refuge work. Simone Patterson recounts helping a client escape a dangerous domestic-violence situation and describes how, after 32 years, her own complaint about police and corrective-services corruption finally reached court. She also reflects on building a refuge for women, children, and pets, the resilience that sustained her, and her planned Journey for Justice campaign for domestic-violence law reform. keywords Simone Patterson, Order of Australia Medal, Corrective Services, sexual assault, workplace harassment, domestic violence refuge, women children pets, prison officer, institutional accountability Simone Patterson, domestic violence refuge, police corruption, witness protection, domestic violence law reform, Journey for Justice, Order of Australia Medal takeaways “I've been sexually harassed pretty much from day one in the academy.” “We were lower than a corrective service dog.” “I kept copies of everything.” “If you can't get police to act, go ministerial.” “Boys over 12 deserve to stay with their mum and boys over 12 deserve to be safe.” “And so do the pets.” “Judo was my coping mechanism in life.” “I wanted to just run. If I could have flown like a bird, I would have.” “I did what I could. I saved a few hundred lives.” “You give me a challenge. I'll rise to the occasion.” We got no government support. We got no funding, which was a tough gig. I can't help everyone, but I can help some people. Kick the doors down. Kick the doors down. Get the ministers to listen. If you don't know where to start, write to your local member, write to your ministers. Be pause and keep documents. Keep every document. The fact that no one believed me for 32 years and then someone did, I was still grateful. You know, I can sit here with so much hatred and anger and you just got to move on and go, okay, it's in the past, keep walking. If I can get some law reform and get something changed, would make me really happy. I don't believe anyone should be made feel unsafe and unloved and unwanted. I loved helping women, children and pets escape domestic violence. If we don't talk, things go under the carpet as we know. Chapters 00:00 Meet Simone Patterson, Order of Australia Medal recipient 01:17 Growing up in a violent Western Sydney household 03:10 School, judo, and the loss that changed her trajectory 08:30 Working underage and leaving for London 12:21 Choosing Corrective Services and academy training 16:11 A prison officer’s daily routine 20:30 Women’s prison stories and transfer to Parklea 23:19 Hostility toward women officers 29:05 Sexual harassment, assault, and failed complaints 35:04 Simone’s account of threats from senior leadership 42:25 Reporting barriers and preserving records 49:08 Creating a refuge for women, children, and pets 52:01 Surviving a medical crisis and pursuing accountability 54:27 Protecting a high-risk refuge client 56:23 A client’s escape plan and the path to witness protection 01:00:08 Preserving evidence in a high-risk case 01:03:19 Simone’s own complaint and the long push for accountability 01:09:10 A guilty verdict after 32 years, and its limited penalty 01:15:07 Turning personal hardship into a mission to help others 01:18:02 Building a refuge for women, children, and pets 01:23:12 Illness, leaving the refuge, and losing judo 01:25:59 Receiving the Order of Australia Medal 01:31:17 Advice on persistence, documentation, and institutional change 01:34:37 Journey for Justice: advocacy plans for domestic-violence reform 01:39:29 Why the complaint took 32 years to reach court 01:45:11 Pet peeves, reflections, and closing remarks
