Editorial: TV turns spotlight on police role

THE "LINE of Fire" item in the Sunday programme was current affairs as it should be.

One of the media's roles is to show tenacity on issues, a role that is increasingly being lost as the refresh button becomes all-powerful. We move on from breaking news stories very quickly to the next new thing to eliminate boredom.

But kudos to the Sunday team for again visiting the shooting incident on an Auckland motorway in January, 2009.

That this incident started was entirely the fault of Stephen McDonald, high on drugs, who had been stealing cars at gunpoint and shooting at police for almost an hour.

How it finished, with one passing motorist dead and another injured, was the responsibility of the police. This was outlined in a report by the Independent Police Complaints Authority, which called the shooting "inaccurate and unsafe". It was still deemed lawful.

However, the case is not yet closed, with the injured motorist, Richard Neville, suing the police for $1.4 million.

Mr Neville's recollection of the incident differs from the official police line. He says they shot through the truck front window - and through him - to get to the gunman on the truck deck. Police say McDonald was on the ground to the side of the truck when the officer fired.

Two new pieces of information made the item worthwhile - that the police guns used in the shooting hadbeen dismantled before theinvestigation, losing a largeamount of their evidential information; and that photographs had been popped in Mr Neville's mailbox which appeared to show a police mock-up of Mr Neville's scenario of events.

The case for a review of the shooting was strong already. These two new features add weight. There is something off here that deserves the scrutiny of a High Court hearing.