Cop Not Guilty of Tasing Man 3 Times Because He Could Have Been Stronger than He Looked

NewstalkZB

November 10, 2022

At trial, Smith’s defence was that he believed he was justified in tasering Andrew for safety reasons and believed he could be stronger than he appeared. He cited Andrew’s mental health issues as a risk factor.

“It really killed the whole case, unfortunately,” Andrew said.

The Herald applied to the Tauranga District Court for a copy of the tasering video as well as a transcript from the trial.

At a hearing to argue the application, Smith’s lawyer Rachael Adams said Andrew was “extremely unwell” and the footage showed an “extremely degrading and painful moment”.

Judge Bill Lawson declined the application for the “graphic” video.

“Viewed in isolation without appropriate context [it] can leave an unbalanced and inappropriate impression of the overall case,” he said in his written decision.

“Publishing the CCTV footage even if it is balanced with material from the transcript will likely result in unfair focus on the footage.”

Judge Lawson also declined the application for the transcript but did not provide reasons aside from noting media could have attended the trial at the time it was happening.