In closing arguments,a Crown prosecutor said Johnstone had run up the ramp to a doctor’s surgery and his next move would have required climbing a railing or negotiating stairs while wearing shackles,meaning the officers had a chance to catch up.
“At that very moment,had he[the first officer] kept running in the direction of Mr Johnstone,he would have secured him,you might think,” the prosecutor said.
“The inmate kept on running. I think I said something along the lines of ‘f---ing stop’ and he didn’t. That’s when I fired the third shot.”
Officer A on the circumstances surrounding the death of inmate Dwayne Johnstone
“When you consider that Mr Johnstone was shackled to his ankles and the accused was not,all it would have taken was for him to run up to this ramp ... and trap Mr Johnstone.”
Officer A’s barrister Philip Strickland,SC,said his client was permitted by law to shoot fleeing prisoners if he issued a verbal warning or fired a warning shot,both of which he did.
Strickland said it was unrealistic to suggest the officers could have used a “spectacular flying tackle” to take down the escapee,particularly when one of them was “no athlete”. The defence barrister said Johnstone had ample opportunity to surrender,but “tragically,he did not take it”.
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In a police interview played to the court,Officer A recalled saying something like “stop or I’ll shoot” before telling the other officer,“get out of the way”. He said the other officer slowed down after a warning shot was fired at bushes.
“The inmate kept on running,” Officer A said. “I think I said something along the lines of ‘f---ing stop’ and he didn’t. That’s when I fired the third shot.”
Officer A said he was surprised that Johnstone was running so fast. A detective asked if there was any way,other than shooting,to prevent Johnstone’s escape.
“I wish I could tackle him,I wish I could go and tackle him from behind,” Officer A said. “But his distance,it was getting wider.”
Speaking outside court,Stewart Little – general secretary of the Public Service Association of NSW – said the union would continue to support Officer A,believing he had “acted in accordance with his training and with the regulations”.
“Prison officers perform an extraordinarily difficult and dangerous job,” Little said. “We have had members murdered,we have had members bashed to death,taken hostage,knifed.”
He expressed sympathy for Johnstone’s family,who experienced heartache and anguish,and said the process also had “a huge impact” on Officer A.
“He’s been to hell and back,and then some – as has his family,” Little said.
Nicole Jess,a prison officer and president of the Public Service Association,said numerous prison officers had come to court to support Officer A,some using their recreational leave.
“Every single officer could be in Officer A’s situation,” she said. “That’s why there were so many people supporting him.”
The case will return to court on December 8.
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