Top Dunedin cop's punch left partner with bruised eye, swollen lip, court hears

Dunedin District Court. Photo / File

The partner of a senior Dunedin police officer said he punched her in the face during a domestic spat but she was unsure whether she hit him first.

The defendant – who has interim name suppression – is before the Dunedin District Court for a judge-alone trial after pleading not guilty to assault in a family relationship and possessing a firearm without a licence.

The court heard from the officer's partner on the first day, earlier this month, and evidence continued today from police who were tasked with attending the family home early on December 21.

Constable Courtney Jones said she immediately noticed a bruise to the complainant's eye and a swollen lip.

The woman described how she drank a bottle of wine before her partner returned home from a night out.

He became immediately aggressive, she told Jones, complaining about the volume of the music.

The witness said the complainant became "visibly upset" when speaking about how she was punched in the face.

However, she was unsure of the force of the blow or whether she had hit him first.

"Good luck getting the kids," the senior police officer allegedly said as he went to the bathroom.

The defendant, the court heard, retired to the sleep-out.

The complainant initially agreed to make a statement at the station but then changed her mind, telling police she did not want to "ruin his job".

Before investigating officers left the scene they asked whether there were firearms at the address.

The woman showed them to a locked cupboard in which there was a rifle in a camouflage bag beside some Christmas presents.

Meanwhile, the defendant spoke to Sergeant Keith Braithwaite in the sleepout.

He seemed "very intoxicated", Braithwaite said; he smelled strongly of alcohol, had bloodshot eyes and used the toilet several times.

The defendant told the officer his partner's alcoholism had caused issues within their relationship and she began "nutting off" when he came home.

The reaction, captured on video from the defendant's cell phone, was played for the court on day one of the trial.

He would never do anything to hurt his partner or the kids, he said, and he expected to lose his job over the incident.

The woman had made the complaint to "derail" his career, the defendant suggested.

The high-ranking officer was taken to Dunedin Central police station where he was served with a police safety order and was informed there was an allegation of assault.

Officers present accepted the defendant was shocked and became extremely upset by the news his partner had suffered injuries.

Defence counsel Anne Stevens QC suggested her client was crying.

Senior Sergeant Darryl Lennane could not confirm that but said the man's eyeballs appeared "moist".

The next day, the complainant went to the police station to say she had lied about her original complaint.

She had received injuries from hitting her head on the table, she said, it was her fault for being an alcoholic.

Detective Grant Miller cautioned the woman when he believed she may be implicating herself in a criminal offence.

She then told him she had actually punched herself in the eye, the court heard.

After speaking with a lawyer she declined to make a formal statement.

The trial continues.