VICTORIAN police officers were warned not to shoot at moving vehicles following an incident in Wodonga involving three rounds being fired at a wanted man.
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A Wodonga officer fired three shots into the tyres of a vehicle stolen by Keith King on September 11 last year.
King had slammed the Hyundai through a closed roller door in Castle Creek Road after entering the home, before ramming it into five vehicles, including three police cars.
Several people were almost struck.
The 22-year-old had sped on the wrong side of the Hume Highway from Wodonga to Albury at 150km/h the previous day in a bid to avoid arrest.
In an email to all officers across the state following the Wodonga ramming, which was leaked this week, Deputy Commissioner Andrew Crisp told officers shooting at a moving car would not stop it, and shooting the driver could cause the vehicle to lose control.
He told officers there was “a significant risk of injury to your partner or members of the public”.
“Plan your approach and response when intercepting a stolen or suspect vehicle – time is on your side,” he said.
King was sentenced in Wodonga Magistrates Court to at least three years in jail on Wednesday, with a maximum of four years.
Amid growing concern over Victoria Police’s restrictive pursuit policy and a culture that is increasingly risk adverse, Deputy Commissioner Crisp on Wednesday said officers frequently made split-second life and death decisions.
“If you want to talk about being risk adverse, I’ll talk about safety,” he said.
“It’s critical our members go home at the end of the day.”
Shooting at a moving car was “not like movies”, Deputy Commissioner Crisp said.
“It’s not like Lethal Weapon where in fact the driver dies immediately and the vehicle will stop immediately,” he said.
“The adrenaline will kick in and there’s no telling what will happen after that.”
Deputy Commissioner Crisp said it was concerning that some offenders knew they would not be pursued if they drove dangerously.
Police Association secretary Ron Iddles said some officers were frustrated at the zero-harm approach to policing.
“It's often talked about as a safety swindle,” he told 3AW.
“What zero harm is, it tells workers that all incidents are preventable.
“And we know that's just not achievable. It's an aspiration, not a goal.”
