Friday, March 12, 2010

Gorilla cop gives very vague evidence at inquest

He doesn't remember what happened even though a guy had just died on him? One would have thought the preceding events would be seared into his brain

FORMER Palm Island policeman Chris Hurley fought back his emotions as he was asked "how Mulrunji went from a fighting, resisting man to a dead man in under 50 minutes?".

Senior-Sergeant Hurley, speaking publicly for the first time since he was acquitted of manslaughter and assault of Cameron Doomadgee in June 2007, today gave evidence in the third inquest into the nation's most controversial black death in custody.

He said he still believed he fell beside the Aboriginal father-of-one on the floor of the Palm Island watchhouse on November 19, 2004. The death led to riots a week later. "I now accept some part of my person has touched Mulrunji," Snr-Sgt Hurley told the fourth day of the inquest in Townsville.

Sen Sgt Hurley had been accused of fatally injuring Cameron Doomadgee, 36, known as Mulrunji, by "dropping a knee" into the man as he lay on the floor of the Palm Island police station, off Townsville.

The powerfully built, 203cm policeman, who had to duck to enter the courtroom, denied he ever punched or kneed the victim. In a short break, the uniformed officer stood alone at the front of the court, his eyes visibly red after a gruelling cross-examination by counsel assisting the coroner, Ralph Devlin, SC.

SOURCE

3 comments:

Fairlie said...

Hurley doesn't believe he fell on Mulrunji, but now concedes that he must have.

Did Hurley wonder why there was such a change in Mulrunji after the fall - did he think it even a little strange that Mulrunji's state of consciousness had suddenly and dramatically altered?

Did Hurley or the other police notice that they had to drag an unresisting Mulrunji to the cell?

So Hurley not notice that Mulrunji was critically injured? Are all policeman trained to be this unobservant?

I don't think so. So why wouldn't Hurley call for urgent medical assistance.

Because Hurley IS GUILTY OF MURDER.

warramunga said...

How many times does this upstanding officer have to undergo trials and Coroner's reports?
If you can't do the time then don't commit the crime.
Murder? You must be nuts.
This Officer did his duty and nothing more.

Unknown said...

Fairlie, I'm quite sure 'dramatically altering his state of consciousness' was the desired effect. A month ago a much smaller policeman put a knee into me when I was already on the ground beneath he and another huge gorilla-like policeman. This despite never resisting, or committing any crime. He then put an arm around my throat when I began to scream in pain. That was a month ago and I am still in pain. Despite being released without charge, I can't afford justice against the men (four over two separate occasions that day).

They fought this 16yo girl in court despite attacking her for the crime of caring for an unconscious woman: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dasbpCBU0hI

They fought these men despite it also being on video - their crimes: a man throwing his own bag on the ground near a policeman, the other coming to the man's aid when he was attacked http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pDwc1Kr8SU&feature=related

They also mention another incident in that last report of a homeless man being beaten apparently because he didn't come straight out of a public toilet because he was getting changed at the time. Once he's on the ground, more police rush to join in on the beating. All these people had government video footage.

Check out the new laws that make it illegal to do anything a police officer doesn't like. They call it 'public nuisance' laws, but leave it up to individual policemen to decide what that constitutes (not why I was beaten - they never bothered to try to charge me with anything).