A police pursuit that ended with the teenage driver smashing into and killing an innocent member of the public was not justified, the Independent Police Conduct Authority found.
Kenneth McCaul, 64, died when he was struck by a car fleeing from police in Christchurch on October 22, last year.
Just before 4am, police started following a suspicious Toyota as it sped away and used a bus lane to pass a van.
The fleeing driver did not stop when signalled by police.
A pursuit lasted for about four-and-a-half minutes and travelled almost eight kilometres through the city.
The fleeing Toyota passed through eight controlled intersections on red lights and at speeds up to 137kmp/h in a 50kmp/h zone, and 100kpm/h in a 30kmp/h zone.
However, when one officer attempted to spike the tyres of the fleeing Toyota relatively early in the pursuit the spikes malfunctioned.
The pursuit ended when the fleeing driver drove through a red light at the intersection of Glandovey and Idris Roads and collided with McCaul's car. He was the sole occupant in the vehicle.
Today, in its findings, the Authority said not only should the officers not have commenced the pursuit, but that there were multiple occasions when the pursuit should have been abandoned.
The Authority also found that the pursuit controller in the Communications Centre did not formulate or communicate an adequate plan to bring the pursuit to an end.
"In the circumstances, the risk to the public of police pursuing the Toyota at speed and through multiple red lights was without question greater than the risk of letting it go and making inquiries later to locate the registered owner or driver," Authority Chairman judge Colin Doherty said.
"This risk was ultimately borne out by the tragic death of Mr McCaul, an innocent member of the public on his way to work."
Canterbury District Commander Superintendent John Price accepted the findings, but added that "the decision whether or not to pursue a fleeing driver is one of the most complex, difficult and serious decisions police staff face".
"In this instance, the decisions made – both by the fleeing driver and by police staff - had the most tragic consequence.
"The death of Mr McCaul, an innocent member of the public, was an absolute tragedy which devastated his husband, family, friends and colleagues."
The 17-year-old boy admitted manslaughter and dangerous driving, after his car smashed into Kenneth McCaul’s, killing him.
The driver in the fleeing vehicle, who was 17 at the time, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and reckless driving and was sentenced to two years and eight months imprisonment.
The Authority also noted that the circumstances of the pursuit highlighted how assistance pursuit controllers could gain from the greater use of technology to give access to accurate and comprehensive “real time” location and speed data.
A recommendation to assess such technology was contained in the joint report by NZ Police and the Independent Police Conduct Authority, ‘Fleeing Drivers in New Zealand: a collaborative review of events, practices and procedures’, which was published in March last year.
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