But according to the Independent Police Conduct Authority finding, released today, the dog handler could have used lesser force to arrest Ms X.
"The female was a passenger in a stolen vehicle. She was giving herself up to police. The use of the dog was neither proportionate to the circumstances or the offence she had committed or appropriate when she was surrendering," the report stated.
"The female's injuries were substantial and required admission to hospital and surgical repair to her arm. The force used by the dog handler to apprehend the female was excessive," said authority chair, Judge Colin Doherty.
"The authority is of the view that there were lesser tactical options available to Officer C to apprehend Ms X, such as communication and empty hand techniques," the report stated.
"The Authority has therefore determined that Officer C used excessive force to apprehend Ms X by deploying the Police dog.
"Police did however provide appropriate medical assistance to Ms X following the incident."
Waikato District Commander Superintendent Bruce Bird acknowledged the dog handler could have and should have used "other tactical options" before unleashing his dog.
These included "verbal communication and 'empty hand' tactics [physical restraint]", he said.
"Our staff work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment, and make a number of
risk assessments on a daily basis.
"On the occasions we don't get these right, we work to ensure lessons are
learned so better options are taken in the future."
While acknowledging his officer did not make the right choice, Bird said the dog handler did conduct a risk assessment and "considered a range of factors" when arresting Ms X.
"These included the suggestion she may be armed, that the location of the other offenders was unclear, there was difficult terrain, and that distance between the officer and female made other tactical options more difficult," he said.
The woman had earlier been spotted in a stolen Mitsubishi Cedia wagon driven by a man identified as Mr Y when it was spotted by police at a petrol station in Paeroa on the evening of April 23.
The car had licence plates that were registered as belonging to a Subaru Legacy.
But when the stolen car was directed to stop by police, Mr Y instead sped up and drove "several circuits around the Paeroa township at speeds of up to 100km/h in a 50km/h
zone".
It then drove up a cycle path as its passengers hung out the window and gestured towards police.
"A male passenger specifically was pretending to aim at and shoot them with an
imaginary pistol," Doherty wrote in his report.
"The passengers then started throwing items out of the vehicle, including a
bandanna, a guitar, and a guitar bag.
"Police continued to follow the vehicle approximately 20 metres behind in order to avoid being hit by the items."
The pursuit lasted nine minutes before the car slowed down at Claremont Av and three occupants jumped out and fled on foot.
Ms X and Mr Y then ran through private properties before hiding in a drain pipe for about an hour.
The police dog handler, identified as Officer C, then tracked the two to the drain pipe where he approached them on his own, although two other officers were close by.
Ms X and Mr Y claimed that Ms X surrendered immediately.
Officer C, however, said he deployed the dog because he was concerned about his safety because the two other men from the stolen car might be nearby and because he thought he might not be able to catch Ms X if she ran.
But Doherty said Officer C could have called to his close by companions if he was worried about his safety and that he did have other options open to him to make the arrest.
