NOT GUILTY Australia - Kumanjayi Walker, 19, fatally shot by LE, Yuendumu, Nov 2019

[Trooper]

NT cop's fatal shot not necessary: expert | The Murray Valley Standard | Murray Bridge, SA

Det Sen Sgt Barram said Rolfe could have used "defensive tactics to help take control of Mr Walker on the ground" instead of firing shots two and three.

"As far as the fight was concerned or the arrest of Mr Walker, the firing of those two shots made no difference to the tactical situation," he said.

"The scissors were a very low threat at that point. We are taught to be accountable for every shot we fire and the need to assess and reassess after every shot. I believe there were other options available."

He said the final two shots "were unnecessary and it does not appear a threat assessment of the situation was made by Mr Rolfe".

Rolfe and three other officers were sent to the remote Indigenous community to assist local officers with general policing duties.

They were also ordered to arrest Mr Walker at 5.30am on November 10 when he was likely to be sleeping and easily taken into custody.

Instead, they found the teen about 15 minutes after leaving the local police station where the officer-in-charge Sergeant Julie Frost has said she handed the men a printed page outlining the arrest plan.

Rolfe walked into a dark room and shot Mr Walker about a minute later. The second fatal shot ripped through the teen's spleen, lung, liver and a kidney.

The Crown says Rolfe and his team were "intent" on finding Mr Walker after watching a video of him violently threatening two other policemen with an axe on November 6.

 

[Trooper]

None of this testimony is doing Rolfe any good at all.

Rolfe, therefore, must have some powerful evidence in his own defence.. that's all I can come up with...

 

[Trooper]

'They shouldn't have gone in': Police trainer says Zachary Rolfe failed to follow safety procedures before fatal shooting

That is a picture of Rolfe , in this article, that portrays him in a terrible light. He looks like what he is charged with..

 

[Trooper]

Constable Zachary Rolfe's second and third shots were not reasonable nor necessary, police expert tells murder trial - ABC News

Barram was cross examined by Rolfe's defence barrister this afternoon, and that will continue tomorrow ( it seems a lot of weight by both prosecutor and defence is being laid on this witness )

'''Under cross-examination from the defence, Acting Superintendent Barram confirmed that one month prior to the Yuendumu incident he re-posted a Facebook video depicting a police shooting in the United States.

The video, which was played in court, shows body-worn camera vision of a man running at police with a knife, before he is shot multiple times after being told to drop the weapon.

The man then gets up and targets another officer, whom he pulls to the ground as he tries to get hold of the officer's firearm, before being shot again.

The video was titled "Brings a little bit of reality into the argument" and the original post captioned "Why officers shoot until threat has stopped".

Defence barrister David Edwardson QC told the court the US shooting was "entirely different" to the situation confronted by Constable Rolfe, in that the American officer had the benefit of time and distance on their side.

But he said the video showed the man remained a threat even after being shot multiple times.'''''

 

[Trooper]

Murder-accused NT cop defends firing shots | 7NEWS


Rolfe has taken the stand.. he is giving testimony in his own defence.


He was called by his lawyer David Edwardson QC to give evidence at his trial in the Northern Territory Supreme Court on Wednesday.

The former soldier described Mr Walker as a "high risk offender who was prepared to use potentially lethal force against police".

Asked about his NT police force training, Rolfe said he was instructed to shoot when an offender was attacking with an edged weapon.

"If someone uses an edged weapon our first response is to go for our firearm," he said

"You shoot until the offender is incapacitated into the centre of the body mass."

He said the edged weapon attack exercise was called a "shove and shoot drill".

 

[Trooper]

Murder-accused NT cop defends firing shots | 7NEWS

"Only pull (your firearm) if you are prepared to pull the trigger," he said, when asked what the training entailed.

Asked what incapacitated meant, Rolfe said: "The way I was taught it is that a person no longer has the ability to do what they were doing before".

Rolfe was composed in the witness box, speaking calmly and often addressing the jury directly as he explained his job as a constable.

Mr Walker died after Rolfe's second fatal shot ripped through his spleen, lung, liver and a kidney. He died about an hour later.

The Crown has conceded the first shot, which was fired while Mr Walker was standing and wrestling with Sergeant Adam Eberl, was justified.

But it says the second and third shots, which are the subject of the murder charge, went "too far".

 

[Trooper]

well,, what I think is.... Rolfe and his barrister would have preferred not for Rolfe to take the stand.. but 10 days of prosecuting testimony has made it impossible to avoid...

So far, he is being led by his barrister, this is the easy part. It's when Strickland, the prosecutor cross examines him that sparks may fly..

 

[Trooper]

Cop Zachary Rolfe defends firing shots which killed Aboriginal teen Kumanjayi Walker in NT | Daily Mail Online

Rolfe is claiming that he was sent to arrest Mr Walker....

''''A murder-accused policeman who fatally shot an Aboriginal teenager during an outback arrest attempt says he was trained to pull the trigger until an offender is incapacitated.

Constable Zachary Rolfe, 30, contradicted other officers' evidence by saying he was sent to Yuendumu, 290km northwest of Alice Springs, to arrest Kumanjayi Walker, 19.

Rolfe has pleaded not guilty to murdering the teen on November 9, 2019 after he was stabbed with a pair of scissors.

 

[Trooper]

Cop Zachary Rolfe defends firing shots which killed Aboriginal teen Kumanjayi Walker in NT | Daily Mail Online


The former soldier described Mr Walker as a 'high-risk offender, extremely violent, who was willing to use potentially lethal weapons against police'.

He also said he was told by a superior twice that his 'mission' in the remote community was to arrest the teen after he violently threatened two other officers with an axe.

The evidence contradicts testimony by Sergeant Julie Frost that she ordered Rolfe and three other officers to arrest Mr Walker the next morning, when he was likely to be sleeping and could be taken into custody easily.

Asked about his NT police force training, Rolfe said he was instructed to shoot when an offender in close proximity was attacking with an edged weapon.

 

[Trooper]

Rolfe's testimony certainly contradicts (by my count ) 6 other officers recollection, a Snr Sgt.s recollection, a Superintendent's recollection, a District Commanders recollection, an Assistant Commisioner for Police's recollection , and the Commissioner for NT Police.

Not a bad score . If this is his defence.. and he is entitled to it, except that the reason he is facing trial for murder is because his qualified immunity was adjudicated null and void by the High Court.. .. to me, this defence is replaying that Court trial , which he lost.

Comprehensively, because here he is, accused and on trial for murder.

 

[JLZ]

well,, what I think is.... Rolfe and his barrister would have preferred not for Rolfe to take the stand.. but 10 days of prosecuting testimony has made it impossible to avoid...

So far, he is being led by his barrister, this is the easy part. It's when Strickland, the prosecutor cross examines him that sparks may fly..

They are going for self-defence, or failing that, excessive self-defence, which latter would reduce murder to manslaughter. To get excessive self-defence I think they need to supply evidence that the accused genuinely though mistakenly believed the force used was necessary and proportionate. That's why he's on the stand in my opinion.
Murder and Manslaughter (NT) - Go To Court

 

[Trooper]

They are going for self-defence, or failing that, excessive self-defence, which latter would reduce murder to manslaughter. To get excessive self-defence I think they need to supply evidence that the accused genuinely though mistakenly believed the force used was necessary and proportionate. That's why he's on the stand in my opinion.
Murder and Manslaughter (NT) - Go To Court

I've been unable to find out if there is going to be a choice for jurors to pronounce sentence on. At the moment, he is charged with murder, and I am sure that he has already tried to have that scaled back to manslaughter, and, of course , to nothing, merely doing his duty.

Perhaps the judge has leeway to give the jurors alternate convictions.. but .. I don't think so in this case. I think it's a case of guilty to murder, or not guilty of anything. Now that you mention it, JLZ< I hope I have that wrong.

 

[JLZ]

I've been unable to find out if there is going to be a choice for jurors to pronounce sentence on. At the moment, he is charged with murder, and I am sure that he has already tried to have that scaled back to manslaughter, and, of course , to nothing, merely doing his duty.

Perhaps the judge has leeway to give the jurors alternate convictions.. but .. I don't think so in this case. I think it's a case of guilty to murder, or not guilty of anything. Now that you mention it, JLZ< I hope I have that wrong.

The judge will tell the jury what verdicts are open to them to find, based on the evidence that's been presented. Not having reached a plea deal to reduce the charge to one of manslaughter doesn't mean that manslaughter is off the jury's table.

 

[JLZ]

Rolfe's testimony certainly contradicts (by my count ) 6 other officers recollection, a Snr Sgt.s recollection, a Superintendent's recollection, a District Commanders recollection, an Assistant Commisioner for Police's recollection , and the Commissioner for NT Police.

Not a bad score . If this is his defence.. and he is entitled to it, except that the reason he is facing trial for murder is because his qualified immunity was adjudicated null and void by the High Court.. .. to me, this defence is replaying that Court trial , which he lost.

Comprehensively, because here he is, accused and on trial for murder.

BBM, I tend to disagree. Say he's shot someone, and the circumstances are plainly that he's gone against all orders, it's not the disobedience that would make him guilty of murder. It's whether the elements (causation, intention etc) are proved and any established defence that's been raised (such as self-defence) is adequately refuted. To me the disobedience evidence suggests that the accused went looking for confrontation where he could use his gun. If so, arguably he didn't use it in self-defence; it was part of an agenda he had before the scissors scenario arose.

 

[Trooper]

BBM, I tend to disagree. Say he's shot someone, and the circumstances are plainly that he's gone against all orders, it's not the disobedience that would make him guilty of murder. It's whether the elements (causation, intention etc) are proved and any established defence that's been raised (such as self-defence) is adequately refuted. To me the disobedience evidence suggests that the accused went looking for confrontation where he could use his gun. If so, arguably he didn't use it in self-defence; it was part of an agenda he had before the scissors scenario arose.

No , I concur.. it isn't the disobedience.. I am mindful of the prosecution opening statement, that it isn't only the shooting , per se, it's the context and the actions leading up to, ( and I think he said, and after ) that are the components of the murder charge..

I think these elements, the before and after segments will form a large part of Strickland's cross exam of Rolfe, ..

I think he will set the scene, with Rolfe's own statements, of the ambience of that night, the drive down there, the meeting at the station, the disturbing part of no one being given instructions, yet high ranking officers say they were, the search, the shooting and the aftermath.. eg,. the drive back to Alice Springs, and that very peculiar 'Welfare BBQ' for Rolfe, where everyone attended and no one spoke of why they were there...

That there was a degree of premeditation, or predisposition that inevitably lead to the death. . ? perhaps. . .. that's how I have come to see it after the prosecution, but I am open to finding Rolfe a charming chap caught up in a terrible accident, too. A bit.

 

[Trooper]

NT police officer Zachary Rolfe takes the stand in murder trial over fatal shooting of Kumanjayi Walker - ABC News

a bit more detail. ..

Constable Rolfe said he first became aware of Mr Walker on the Thursday before the shooting, when he was told Mr Walker had threatened Yuendumu officers with an axe when they sought to arrest him for breaching a court order.

Constable Rolfe accessed body-worn camera footage of the incident, which he said showed officers freezing in "an extremely potentially deadly situation."

He told the court he was concerned that Alice Springs-based officers had not been alerted to the axe incident by senior management.

 

[Trooper]

NT police officer Zachary Rolfe takes the stand in murder trial over fatal shooting of Kumanjayi Walker - ABC News

"From my reading of ... the initial job write-up, it seemed to me that this incident ... was being swept under the rug," he said.

Constable Rolfe said residents often travelled between Yuendumu and Alice Springs and that "it seemed that this is the kind of incident that we should all be alerted to.

"This offender was potentially a risk to Alice Springs members."

He said based on the body-worn camera footage, and Mr Walker's criminal history — which he looked up on a police database — he formed a view about Mr Walker's propensity to violence.

"I characterised him as a high-risk offender, extremely violent, who was willing to use potentially lethal weapons against police," he told the court.

 

[Trooper]

NT police officer Zachary Rolfe takes the stand in murder trial over fatal shooting of Kumanjayi Walker - ABC News

Constable Rolfe said he and about six other officers went to look for Mr Walker at the Warlpiri town camp in Alice Springs on the Thursday afternoon, but he was not located.


(??? am I reading this correctly? Rolfe and a gang were already on the hunt for Mr. Walker, in Alice Springs? ? )

Two days later, on the Saturday, he said he received a call from a supervisor, who told him that he and three other members of a specialist police unit known as the Immediate Response Team (IRT) were being deployed to Yuendumu to arrest Mr Walker.

 

[Trooper]

NT police officer Zachary Rolfe takes the stand in murder trial over fatal shooting of Kumanjayi Walker - ABC News

The prosecution has previously told the court the IRT was deployed to provide support to fatigued officers in Yuendumu, and to assist with the arrest of Mr Walker early the next morning.

Prior to leaving Alice Springs, Mr Rolfe said he briefed the other IRT members about their mission.

"Our task was to travel to Yuendumu to arrest Kumanjayi Walker for the reasons of the axe incident on Wednesday night," he said.

He said he showed the body-worn camera footage of the axe incident to two of the IRT members who had not seen it.

During the three-hour drive to the remote community, he told the court he had recalled a brief conversation with another officer.

"The only comment that I can recall myself making is that 'We should’ve been sent out earlier', as in, days earlier, not hours earlier on that day," Constable Rolfe said.

The defence is yet to ask Constable Rolfe about what happened after his arrival in the community, which he said was at 6.30pm.

Constable Rolfe will continue being examined by the defence tomorrow, after which he is expected to be cross-examined by the prosecution.

 

[Trooper]

It seems that Rolfe saw himself as in charge, of tactics, strategy, action, a Snr.Sgt. , a dog handler and 2 other constables. ( Eberl and Kirstenfeldt) .....

No wonder he and Kirstenfeldt were not going to be insulted by a woman Sergeant in Yuendumu, giving them instructions! the nerve....

If they talked like that about their 'mission' on the way TO Yuendumu, it's not a far stretch to imagine the conversation between them all on the way BACK to the Alice after 'mission accomplished'.......

Crikey. This trial is going down a very tricky path, with no good ending at all. At ALL .