Warning to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers: This story contains images and references to a deceased person.
A police sergeant who was told not to pursue a 16-year-old riding a trail bike has been told he caused the death of the teen when he positioned his unmarked car in the boy’s path.
Benedict Bryant, 47, was found guilty on Friday of dangerous driving occasioning the death of Indigenous teen Jai Kalani Wright in the inner Sydney suburb of Alexandria in February 2022.
Police officer Benedict Bryant has been found guilty over the death of Indigenous teenager Jay Wright.Credit: Flavio Brancaleone
Judge Jane Culver ruled that Bryant should have known that placing his car without its lights and sirens activated could have caused a collision that posed a serious risk to the boy.
Bryant was behind the wheel when he parked the car at the end of a bike path he knew the teen was riding down at speed. After colliding with the car, Jai was thrown off his bike and suffered critical head injuries, dying at Prince Alfred Hospital the following day.
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While there was no evidence the sergeant was intending to injure or kill the teenager, the judge found a person of his experience should have known creating the obstacle would pose a danger.
Culver found Bryant also failed to consider how other parked cars in the intersection would have impacted the boy’s ability to see the police car in his path.
More than 40 members of the teenager’s family packed the Darlinghurst courtroom, while dozens of others filled an overflow room. There were gasps and tears as the judge revealed her verdict while Bryant sat with his head bowed and eyes closed for most of the proceedings.
Jai’s father Lachlan Wright said he hoped the verdict could mark a reset of relations between police and First Nations people.
“If things can change in the future, in regards to relationships between Aboriginal people in this country and the police force, maybe this won’t happen again,” he said.
Bryant will return for sentencing on April 17.
AAP
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