Cop assaulter back in custody after police shock at early release from prison

Cop assaulter Raina Cruise back in custody after police shock at early release from prison Fri 31 Jul 2026 at 6:02pm In short: The Department of Correctional Services has revoked the home detention of Raina Cruise, who assaulted an police officer and two security guards outside an Adelaide pub in 2021. Cruise, who was not eligible for parole until June 2027, shared a video announcing her release this week. What's next? The SA police union has called for an explanation of how Cruise was approved for release. A failed senate candidate who assaulted a pregnant police officer is back in custody after she was released on home detention almost a year before she was eligible for parole. Raina Cruise, 43, was sentenced to three years, nine months and two weeks imprisonment in June 2025 after South Australia's Court of Appeal overrode the District Court's decision to suspend her sentence and impose a good behaviour bond. The anti-vaccine protester was jailed after she pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault and was found guilty of one count of intentionally causing harm to Constable Anthea Beck in October 2021. The court ordered Cruise to be ineligible to apply for parole until June 2027. However, on Wednesday, Cruise posted a video to Facebook announcing her release from the Adelaide Women's Prison, which she captioned "I'm home". "I just wanted to post a little video and just say thank you to everyone who supported me and still supports me," she said. "I am truly blessed to have so many amazing friends and family in my life. "When you do have your liberties taken away and be incarcerated for an extended period of time, it makes things very clear just how blessed I am to have such incredible people in my life." On Friday, a spokesperson from the Department for Correctional Services said its chief executive had "issued a direction for Raina Cruise's home detention to be revoked, and she has been brought back into custody". "Sentenced prisoners are eligible to be released to home detention to serve part of their sentence under strict home detention conditions. This decision is made by the Home Detention Committee," the spokesperson said. "The Chief Executive of the Department may, in their absolute discretion, revoke the release of someone under home detention conditions." The department did not say how long Cruise was on home detention. In a statement, Deputy Police Commissioner Linda Williams said Cruise's early release from prison had "shocked and distressed" police and had "re-victimised" the officer she assaulted. "What has happened here simply sends the wrong message to the community,"she said. "When Cruise was handed a suspended sentence by the District Court, I said it did not meet community expectations in any way. Likewise, what has occurred with her early release from prison does not meet community expectations. "The community expects that an individual convicted and sentenced for offences of violence, particularly against police officers, will serve their full custodial sentence." Police said they attended a western suburbs address just before 12.30pm on Friday, where correctional services officers were present to apprehend Cruise. Custodial sentence for police assault At the time of her initial sentence, the District Court said that Cruise became aggressive to security guards at a Rundle Street hotel as the two men she was with were ejected from the venue. Cruise and the two men left the venue and were stopped by Constable Beck and another officer who were investigating the assault of the security guards. "During this conversation, a sudden violent altercation ensued between you and Constable Beck, which ultimately led to you grabbing her and dragging her to the ground," Judge Joanne Deuter said. Constable Beck suffered multiple injuries during the altercation, including two patches of her hair being torn from her scalp. Cruise's initial sentence saw widespread calls for mandatory jail time for anyone convicted of assaulting a police officer. Cruise said in her three-minute video that "it was quite an experience" while in prison and "I'm still recovering". "It could be quite a hostile environment," she said. "I'm just adjusting back to the real world, and I look forward to catching up with everyone very soon, as soon as I can." Cruise thanked everyone for the letters of support they sent her while incarcerated. "I've got hundreds and hundreds of letters here and I did my best to respond to everyone," she said. President of South Australia's Police Association Wade Burns welcomed the decision to return Cruise to custody. "Sanity has prevailed," he said. "This morning, I publicly questioned how a person responsible for such a vicious attack on a police officer could be released after little more than a year in custody. "We welcome the outcome, but the police officer victim and the SA community are still entitled to a full explanation of how this release was approved in the first place."