The Authority oversaw a Police investigation following a complaint that Police stopped a vehicle by crashing into it. The complainant said officers immediately arrested her husband who was driving and pushed him into the patrol vehicle. After the complainant and her husband explained they were not fleeing from Police, the officers released her husband and left.
The officers involved said they saw the complainant’s vehicle and activated their lights intending to conduct a routine traffic stop. The vehicle stopped and two officers exited the patrol car and approached, however the vehicle drove away at a slow speed. The vehicle turned into another street before slowly driving on the far left-hand side of the road. The officers suspected the car was failing to stop for Police and drove alongside it before the two vehicles collided.
The initial accounts provided by the officers involved did not match the damage caused to both vehicles and the truthfulness of the officers’ statements was questioned.
After investigating Police found the Police patrol car and the complainant’s vehicle had become stuck and needed to be pried apart. Police determined this caused the unexplained damage and found no evidence the officers had deliberately mislead or lied in their statements. Police also found no evidence that the arresting officer had used excessive force when arresting the complainant’s husband.
However, the Police investigation concluded the manoeuvre the officers used to try to stop the complainant’s vehicle was a breach of Police policy and this has been addressed through a confidential employment process.
The Authority considers Police appropriately investigated this matter and reached a reasonable outcome.
IPCA: 23-18385