KEY POINTS:
A police officer on trial for careless use of a pistol while on duty attended a course on the use of force one month before the alleged incident, a court was told today.
Inspector Peter Gibson was giving evidence at the second day of a trial in Auckland District Court of Constable Allan Windrum, accused of carelessly using a pistol in June 2004.
Windrum was charged after firing his Glock pistol in a police swoop in Auckland on Zeke Lowe, a man who had been on the run for three months.
Lowe was suspected of being a methamphetamine user and was known to have stolen a rifle in a Wellington burglary a month before.
The constable had been knocked over as Lowe tried to escape in a car and had fired a shot through the rear window of the car.
Nobody was injured and Lowe was eventually caught by officers using pepper spray.
Windrum is arguing he was not acting recklessly when he pulled the trigger, contesting crown evidence that a second officer was in the car when the shot was fired.
Windrum had graduated from police college in December 2002, Mr Gibson said. On his intake he received seven days of firearms training , including a practical scenario training.
Following his posting to Auckland Central, Windrum had attended firearms refresher courses in April 2003 and May 2004.
Both involved going over what type of force was appropriate given the circumstances an officer faced.
There was also extra practical training in firearms use, Mr Gibson told Crown prosecutor Emma Priest.
Police were trained to quickly consider in each situation they faced what level of force they needed to use, he said.
Under cross-examination from Windrum's lawyer Richard Earwaker, Mr Gibson said officers were told to consider what they knew of the offender when deciding whether to use force.
These included whether the offender could be armed and dangerous and whether they could be acting irrationally through methamphetamine use, as officers at the scene involving Lowe had been told.
Officers had to make their own decisions and the situations were not easy, Mr Gibson said.
Mr Gibson also told Mr Earwaker that officers needed to consider their own ability to use a firearm properly, which included their level of experience.
The refresher courses had not involved acting out any practical scenarios, he said.
The trial before Judge Michael Lance and a jury of six men and six women is expected to finish next week.
- NZPA
