Geoffrey Reed (judge)
Encyclopedia
Sir Geoffrey Sandford Reed (14 March 1892 – 31 December 1970) was a judge in the Supreme Court of South Australia
and the first Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
(ASIO).
on 14 March 1892, the first child of William Reed and his wife Elizabeth, née Lathlean. William Reed was an Wesleyan
clergyman, and Geoffrey was educated at Prince Alfred College
, a Methodist
school. Reed studied Law at the University of Adelaide
and was admitted as a solicitor and barrister on 25 April 1914. He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force
(AIF) on 18 February 1918, and was married later the same year to Kathleen Matthews. He was posted to England
and France
and served with a supply depot. He was discharged in Adelaide on 21 May 1919.
Through the 1920s and 1930s, Reed became a partner in McLachlan, Reed & Griffiths, was active in the Law Society of South Australia and lectured in law at the University of Adelaide. He chaired a Royal Commission
on transport in 1937. He was appointed to the Supreme Court of South Australia
in 1943, having acted as judge for a period earlier.
. Reed was appointed as Commonwealth Director-General of Security on 2 March 1949. A fortnight later, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
was established. The Australian Government of Ben Chifley
was pressured by its allies to address security shortcomings at the beginning of the Cold War
.
In late 1943 Judge Reed was commissionned by Attorney General Dr H.V. Evatt to conduct an inquiry into the competence of Lt. Colonel Robert ( Bob) Wake who was in charge of the Commonwealth Security Service in Queensland. Serious charges had been made by the Army's Commander-in-chief, General Blamey, that Wake was a incompentent, used 'lewd' wommen as agents and had lost the trust of Australia's American allies. Judge Reed found that all charges were false and when Prme Minister Chifley told him that Wake was the government's preferred choice to run ASIO, Judge Reed was very happy to work with Wake. Wake was the operational head of ASIO from its formation until Reed retired. Wake was responsible for appointing key agents to spy on the Russian Club in Sydney that eventually led to the Petrov Defection. During the formation of ASIO Wake worked very closely with the MI5 liaison officer, Courtney Young, who took snuff and wore spats. Much of this information is given in Val Wake's biography of Bob Wake titled No Ribbons or Medals: the story of 'Hereward'an Australian counter espionage officer.
ASIO was modeled on the British equivalent, MI5
. Its first authorised telephone interceptions were in June 1949, followed in July by a raid on the Sydney
office of the Communist Party of Australia
. Reed and ASIO were supported by the new Prime Minister
, Robert Menzies
after the 1949 election
and he received warm tributes at the end of his post in July 1950 from both sides of politics.
Reed returned to the Supreme Court of South Australia and was knighted in 1953. He chaired a Royal Commission in electoral boundaries in 1955 and served as acting Governor of South Australia twice in 1957. In 1959, he was judge in the controversial trial of Max Stuart
, an Aborigine accused of murdering a 9 year old girl and subsequently also appointed to the Royal Commission into the conviction.
Reed retired from the court in 1962 and retired in Adelaide
after some travel overseas. He died on 31 December 1970 and was cremated. He was survived by his wife and their son and daughter.
Supreme Court of South Australia
The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court for the Australian State of South Australia. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. The Supreme Court is the highest South Australian court in the Australian court...
and the first Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation is Australia's national security service, which is responsible for the protection of the country and its citizens from espionage, sabotage, acts of foreign interference, politically-motivated violence, attacks on the Australian defence system, and...
(ASIO).
Early life
He was born in Port PiriePort Pirie, South Australia
-Transport:Port Pirie is located off National Highway One. It is serviced by an airport five minutes out of the city.- Railways :The first railways in Port Pirie were of the narrow [3' 6"] gauge....
on 14 March 1892, the first child of William Reed and his wife Elizabeth, née Lathlean. William Reed was an Wesleyan
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
clergyman, and Geoffrey was educated at Prince Alfred College
Prince Alfred College
Prince Alfred College is an independent, day and boarding school for boys, located on Dequetteville Terrace, Kent Town, near the centre of Adelaide, South Australia...
, a Methodist
Methodist Church of Australasia
The Methodist Church of Australasia was a Methodist denomination based in Australia.It ceased to exist in 1977 when most of its congregations joined with the many congregations of the Congregational Union of Australia and the Presbyterian Church of Australia to form the Uniting Church in...
school. Reed studied Law at the University of Adelaide
University of Adelaide
The University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
and was admitted as a solicitor and barrister on 25 April 1914. He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force
First Australian Imperial Force
The First Australian Imperial Force was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during World War I. It was formed from 15 August 1914, following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. Generally known at the time as the AIF, it is today referred to as the 1st AIF to distinguish from...
(AIF) on 18 February 1918, and was married later the same year to Kathleen Matthews. He was posted to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and served with a supply depot. He was discharged in Adelaide on 21 May 1919.
Through the 1920s and 1930s, Reed became a partner in McLachlan, Reed & Griffiths, was active in the Law Society of South Australia and lectured in law at the University of Adelaide. He chaired a Royal Commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
on transport in 1937. He was appointed to the Supreme Court of South Australia
Supreme Court of South Australia
The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court for the Australian State of South Australia. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. The Supreme Court is the highest South Australian court in the Australian court...
in 1943, having acted as judge for a period earlier.
ASIO
Reed was involved in security, including chairing the South Australian National Security Advisory Committee from 1941. He undertook a number of inquiries on security issues for the Federal GovernmentGovernment of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
. Reed was appointed as Commonwealth Director-General of Security on 2 March 1949. A fortnight later, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation is Australia's national security service, which is responsible for the protection of the country and its citizens from espionage, sabotage, acts of foreign interference, politically-motivated violence, attacks on the Australian defence system, and...
was established. The Australian Government of Ben Chifley
Ben Chifley
Joseph Benedict Chifley , Australian politician, was the 16th Prime Minister of Australia. He took over the Australian Labor Party leadership and Prime Ministership after the death of John Curtin in 1945, and went on to retain government at the 1946 election, before being defeated at the 1949...
was pressured by its allies to address security shortcomings at the beginning of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
In late 1943 Judge Reed was commissionned by Attorney General Dr H.V. Evatt to conduct an inquiry into the competence of Lt. Colonel Robert ( Bob) Wake who was in charge of the Commonwealth Security Service in Queensland. Serious charges had been made by the Army's Commander-in-chief, General Blamey, that Wake was a incompentent, used 'lewd' wommen as agents and had lost the trust of Australia's American allies. Judge Reed found that all charges were false and when Prme Minister Chifley told him that Wake was the government's preferred choice to run ASIO, Judge Reed was very happy to work with Wake. Wake was the operational head of ASIO from its formation until Reed retired. Wake was responsible for appointing key agents to spy on the Russian Club in Sydney that eventually led to the Petrov Defection. During the formation of ASIO Wake worked very closely with the MI5 liaison officer, Courtney Young, who took snuff and wore spats. Much of this information is given in Val Wake's biography of Bob Wake titled No Ribbons or Medals: the story of 'Hereward'an Australian counter espionage officer.
ASIO was modeled on the British equivalent, MI5
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
. Its first authorised telephone interceptions were in June 1949, followed in July by a raid on the Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
office of the Communist Party of Australia
Communist Party of Australia
The Communist Party of Australia was founded in 1920 and dissolved in 1991; it was succeeded by the Socialist Party of Australia, which then renamed itself, becoming the current Communist Party of Australia. The CPA achieved its greatest political strength in the 1940s and faced an attempted...
. Reed and ASIO were supported by the new Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
, Robert Menzies
Robert Menzies
Sir Robert Gordon Menzies, , Australian politician, was the 12th and longest-serving Prime Minister of Australia....
after the 1949 election
Australian federal election, 1949
Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1949. All 121 seats in the House of Representatives, and 42 of the 60 seats in the Senate were up for election, where the single transferable vote was introduced...
and he received warm tributes at the end of his post in July 1950 from both sides of politics.
Reed returned to the Supreme Court of South Australia and was knighted in 1953. He chaired a Royal Commission in electoral boundaries in 1955 and served as acting Governor of South Australia twice in 1957. In 1959, he was judge in the controversial trial of Max Stuart
Max Stuart
Rupert Maxwell Stuart is an Indigenous Australian who was convicted of murder in 1959. His conviction was subject to several appeals to higher courts, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and a Royal Commission, all of which upheld the verdict. Newspapers campaigned successfully against...
, an Aborigine accused of murdering a 9 year old girl and subsequently also appointed to the Royal Commission into the conviction.
Reed retired from the court in 1962 and retired in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
after some travel overseas. He died on 31 December 1970 and was cremated. He was survived by his wife and their son and daughter.