W.A Police torture Kevin Spratt 41 times with taser.

[creampie]

THE West Australian police have again been embarrassed over their treatment of Aboriginal man Kevin Spratt - who was tasered 41 times in a week in 2008 - after the court of appeal today overturned a conviction against him for obstructing police.
Justice Stephen Hall ruled that a miscarriage of justice had been done when Mr Spratt was convicted of obstructing police by resisting them before he was tasered 14 times in one incident at the Perth watchhouse.

"It is clear that Mr Spratt's plea of guilty was induced by false allegations made by the prosecution," Justice Hall said.

The court heard that the false information was prepared by a police officer who was not present when the incident occurred and took no steps to verify that his information was correct.

When he later learned it was not, he took no steps to advise the court of the error.

The Director of Public Prosecutions today conceded the conviction could not be allowed to stand.

Mr Spratt, 41, was convicted of obstruction after police alleged he violently resisted them at the watchhouse, causing them to deploy tasers.

CCTV footage later showed that Mr Spratt was sitting quietly before the tasering occurred.

Outside court, Mr Spratt's lawyer Steven Penglis said the verdict was a step in the right direction in his client's fight for justice.

"It has the effect of getting rid of the suggestion that Kevin was tasered in the Perth watchhouse as a consequence of some unlawful conduct on his behalf. That's now been blown out of the water," Mr Penglis said.

"The relevance of this to a compensation claim is that Kevin will ultimately make a compensation claim for what happened to him in the watchhouse, and this explodes any suggestion that it was justified because Kevin had undertaken some sort of criminal conduct."

He said he could not comment on what amount of compensation might be sought.

Video of the tasering, which shows Mr Spratt surrounded by nine police while on the floor, sparked international outrage when it was released in October last year.

Mr Spratt said he was pleased with the outcome.

He said he pleaded guilty because he did not recall what had happened and believed what he was told. He was jailed for two months, although the sentence was served concurrently with penalties for other offences.

Opposition legal affairs spokesman John Quigley, who has supported Mr Spratt through his ordeal, said it was clear there had been a perversion of justice by WA police. He said it was essential an inquiry was held into the affair.

"The police minister has totally failed the community," Mr Quigley said.



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