Man awarded $40,000 compensation for pepper spray attack
By Michelle DraperFri Oct 2 01:14:14 EST 2009
Thu Oct 1 15:14:14 UTC 2009
MELBOURNE, Oct 1 AAP - Victoria Police has been ordered to pay more than $40,000 compensation to a tattoist who was sprayed with capsicum spray by a plain clothes policeman four years ago.
Father-of-two Jason Bannerman, a local tattoist from Shepparton in the state's north, was on a night out with friends on November 26, 2005, when he had a verbal altercation with a man, whom he did not know at the time was a plain clothes police officer.
The incident occurred during the SpringNats, a weekend event involving hotted up cars and activities that attracted 30,000 visitors to the town.
Mr Bannerman, who had been drinking at several Shepparton pubs with his mates, became involved in an argument with Sergeant Michael Logan and was sprayed with capsicum spray, the Supreme Court of Victoria has heard.
Justice Katharine Williams said Mr Bannerman had walked with his fists clenched towards Sgt Logan.
In her judgment, handed down at Wangaratta on Thursday, Justice Williams said she believed Sgt Logan had felt under threat from Mr Bannerman.
But, she said, the officer should have made an attempt to identify himself as a policeman and warned Mr Bannerman before using the spray.
"I am satisfied that Sgt Logan's action constituted an assault," Justice Williams said in her judgment.
She said Sgt Logan's reaction was out of proportion with the threat he faced, but she also concluded he had acted reasonably in the course of his duty as a police officer.
Justice Williams awarded Mr Bannerman $40,000 in compensation for pain and suffering caused by the pepper spray, and $2,635 for loss of income and medical expenses.
She said the assault had caused damage to Mr Bannerman's eye, but although he suffered occasional headaches, his eye was otherwise normal.
Mr Bannerman's solicitor, John Suta said that the court's decision was a victory for commonsense.
"We all rely on the police to maintain community safety, but this heavy-handed unwarranted approach taken by Sgt Logan does nothing to make the community feel safe," Mr Suta said in a statement.
"People need to be assured that police will not use dangerous implements such as batons, capsicum spray, Tasers and guns without justifiable reason."
Mr Bannerman said in the statement he was glad his name had been cleared.
"I had an obligation to uphold my family name and my own reputation", he said.
