A man was shot on State Highway 1 north of Auckland after coming at police with a machete.
Despite bungling its communication and command, and firing 12 shots at man armed with a machete - some as he ran away - police were legally justified in shooting Jerrim Toms near Wellsford, the Independent Police Conduct Authority has found.
The officers should have focused on co-ordinating a safe conclusion, while the shift commander should have broadcast a clear plan over the police radio to all attending officers.
However, the IPCA said the officers' actions - including hitting the man with five bullets - had to be viewed amongst a "highly stressful situation" with officers unsure if other members of the public were in the near vicinity.
The shooting of Toms was the culmination of not only an approximate 40-minute incident with police, but saw him earlier threaten to kill staff at a service station.
But police have also been lambasted after failing to pass on information to the officers on the ground from a call made by Toms' mother 30 minutes beforehand, stating he had left her house armed, high on P, and agitated.
Toms came to police attention about 3.20am on March 31 last year when an officer saw him in a Subaru parked on State Highway 1 at Puhoi, north of Wellsford.
His vehicle was partially blocking a lane, and when the officer stopped to speak with him, Toms got out with a machete in his hand.
The officer reversed away, called for back-up and then followed Toms when he drove off.
Police pursued Toms for the next 40 minutes, using road spikes on three occasions. At times Toms would stop and interact with officers before driving off again.
Eventually he, and the now seven patrol cars which had been following him at a distance, stopped about a kilometre north of the Johnstones Hill Tunnel.
Toms, armed with the machete, got out of his car and approached one of the two closest officers, who also got out of their vehicle.
Toms ignored the officer's shouted commands to stop, drop his weapon and get on the ground.
When he got to within about 1.5m, the two officers - one of whom had recently graduated from police college - began firing shots at him: a total of 12 within about four seconds, with five hitting him.
The machete used by Jerrim Toms on the night he fatally confronted police on SH1. Photo / IPCA
The initial four shots caused two fatal chest injuries.
The authority determined that, although eight of the 12 shots were fired after Toms had turned and started running away from the officers, they were all legally justified as the officers were acting in self-defence and defence of others.
One officer honestly believed he had fired all his shots before Toms turned away, despite other evidence indicating otherwise, while the other officer believed Toms still posed a threat.
He said that after the last time he pulled the trigger: "I think he just turned around and then he ran … I remember my gun going off last when he turned around and ran off."
However, footage from The Eagle helicopter showed he fired five more shots at Toms after he turned and began running away. Two were fired after Toms dropped the machete.
The pair gave evidence that they didn't know that there were five other officers standing behind them, despite them making themselves known over police radio, including a dog handler preparing to release his dog.
Authority chairman Judge Colin Doherty said the latter officer's actions needed to be assessed in light of the fact that he was "making instant decisions in a highly stressful situation".
"He did not know other police were in the immediate vicinity; and he thought that members of the public might have been at the scene.
Police at the cordon on Pine Valley Rd near SH1 at Puhoi, after the shooting of Jerrim Toms in March last year. Photo / File
"Given Mr Toms' prior actions, it is therefore understandable that the officer's mind was focused on neutralising the threat that he believed he posed. As soon as Mr Toms dropped his weapon, the officer stopped firing," he said.
The IPCA also found the officers breached policy by failing to notify the Police Communications Centre and not wearing ballistic body armour.
As for the earlier call by Toms' mother, officers responded but closed the job after failing to find him or his Subaru at his house.
Waitemata District Commander Superintendent Naila Hassan said while no officer ever wants to be put in this position, they were left with no other options.
"These officers showed immense bravery in a high-risk situation dealing with an offender who was on methamphetamine and highly agitated.
"I really want to take this opportunity to acknowledge the two officers involved."
Police shootings had a major impact on the staff involved and their families.
"Police officers every day selflessly put themselves into dangerous and often life-threatening positions like on this occasion, and they do this because they care about our community.
