Police Conduct Authority: Search of teen who attempted self-harm in his cell found to be inadequate

The 18-year-old fugitive was shot with a sponge round, a non-lethal projectile fired from a gas launcher. Photo / NZ Police

A police search of a teenager who tried to harm himself in a cell with part of his clothing was “deficient”, a watchdog has found.

However, the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) has ruled that the force officers used to arrest the young man earlier, including knocking him down with a 40mm sponge round, was justified.

The teen, identified in the IPCA report only as Mr X, had been on the run for nine months when Manawatū Police found him at a Palmerston North house on June 18, 2022.

“Police believed that the man posed a high risk to the public and were treating his arrest as a priority,” the IPCA report released on Tuesday stated.

The man was at the house but jumped out of a rear window and ran, climbing a fence onto the roof of a small structure about 1.5m high.

Two officers called him to stop and told him he was under arrest, but he continued to run.

When an officer again called to him to stop, and he did not, the officer fired a 40mm sponge round weapon, which struck the man in the back.

A sponge round is a projectile fired from a gas launcher aimed at stopping a person without causing serious injury.

The man fell to the ground after being hit with the round, but then continued running, managing to get away before being apprehended by officers at an outer cordon.

At the Palmerston North Police cells, the man was seen by a doctor who found he did not need medical attention.

However, when alone in his cell, he was able to use part of his clothing in an attempt to self-harm.

“Fortunately, an officer found him before there were serious consequences, and he was taken to hospital where he was examined and found not to have suffered any injury,” the report said.

Mr X’s mother complained to the authority.

Under IPCA supervision, police looked into the incident and found the search of the man to have been deficient.

However, authority chair Judge Kenneth Johnston, KC, said the use of the sponge round was justified.

“Whilst there are risks associated with officers firing the device at somebody from behind, due to the danger Mr X posed to the public and Police, as well as his obvious determination to evade arrest, it was justified in this case,” Judge Johnston said.

Acting district commander, detective inspector Craig Sheridan, said police acknowledged and accepted the report’s findings.

“As a result, Manawatū Police have reviewed our practice in relation to pre-custody searches and have taken learnings from this incident.”

Ric Stevens spent many years working for the former New Zealand Press Association news agency, including as a political reporter at Parliament, before holding senior positions at various daily newspapers. He joined NZME’s Open Justice team in 2022 and is based in Hawke’s Bay. His writing in the crime and justice sphere is informed by four years of front-line experience as a probation officer.