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A police officer escaped disciplinary action over his role in a fatal car pursuit because he had quit his position as constable.
Gavin MacDonnell was the lone officer in an unmarked police car when 17-year-old Jamie McElrea died in a high-speed crash at Dairy Flat, north of Auckland, on Easter Monday last year.
Until June, police denied they had been chasing a Subaru WRX, being driven by Troy Anderson at up to 160km/h, in which Jamie, Kayla Hewison and Matthew Anderson were passengers.
MacDonnell had been appointed to a non-sworn job at Henderson but was still working as a constable on the night of the fatal crash.
During several interviews with his superiors, when he was still a constable based at Orewa police station, he denied there was a pursuit.
The Independent Police Conduct Authority is investigating but, in an internal report, Inspector Pieter Roozendaal of the Waitemata Police District professional standards team, found MacDonnell did not comply with pursuits policy.
"Had he remained a sworn officer he would have then been subjected to further disciplinary action - probably in the form of counselling and training on the policy," Roozendaal wrote.
"There is no prospect of his being involved in pursuits in [his current] role and cannot therefore be considered for disciplinary action. He has, however, been reminded of the need to comply with police policy and procedure."
The report has outraged Jamie's family which alleges a cover-up, pointing to inconsistencies in evidence, including witness statements.
"I think it's disgusting [MacDonnell] got off," said Jamie's father, Mark. "If he had followed police pursuit policy, Jamie could very probably be alive today."
Attempts to contact MacDonnell were unsuccessful and Waitemata District Commander Superintendent Bill Searle was unavailable for interview.
In an emailed statement, a police spokeswoman said: "The former police officer who participated in the pursuit had applied for and was appointed to a non-sworn [civilian] police role, prior to the fatal crash occurring."
MacDonnell, who had four-and-a-half years' experience and was rated a gold-class driver by the police, had stopped at traffic lights on East Coast Rd when he saw the WRX speeding.
He did not obtain permission from the police northern communications centre to give chase, as policy required.
Anderson lost control of the WRX on Kahikatea Flat Rd. When the car rolled and hit a bank, Jamie was thrown out, hitting a concrete power pole.
Fifteen minutes after the fatal crash, MacDonnell returned to Orewa police station and spoke to a Police Association representative who advised him to complete a job sheet about the events.
Several days after the crash, MacDonnell denied being involved in a pursuit when questioned by an investigating superior. But during an interview on July 5 last year he conceded that a pursuit had taken place.
MacDonnell resigned from the police on June 17, last year. He started work as a non-sworn scene of crime officer at Henderson police station the following day.
Anderson was convicted of reckless driving causing death, reckless driving causing injury, driving while disqualified and failing to stop for police. He was sentenced on March 18 to two years and six months in jail and disqualified from driving for four years.
Two new IPCA investigations are under way after a 4WD was hit by a police car in central Christchurch last Tuesday.
And in Palmerston North High Court, Constable Timothy Edward Hesketh is on trial charged with reckless disregard causing grievous bodily harm. Hesketh allegedly slammed on the brakes of a police wagon he was driving, injuring a prisoner locked in the back.
