I fell next to Doomadgee: Hurley
12.03.2010
By: TONY KOCH
THE policeman who arrested Aboriginal cell death victim Mulrunji Doomadgee yesterday told a coronial inquiry he could not explain how the Palm Islander suffered his fatal injuries.
Senior Sergeant Chris Hurley told Coroner Brian Hine that he had a ``tussle'' with Doomadgee at the north Queensland island's lockup on November 19, 2004.
Sergeant Hurley insisted that they tripped near a doorway leading into the watchhouse and that he fell ``beside'' Doomadgee.
But he said he accepted medical evidence that Doomadgee's massive injuries were consistent with his tall and heavy frame falling on the slightly built Doomadgee.
While he still believed they had hit the concrete floor side by side, Sergeant Hurley said: ``I have since said that is obviously not the case (and) some part of my person has touched Mr Doomadgee.''
Sergeant Hurley said he could not explain exactly how Doomadgee had been so seriously injured.
Asked by counsel assisting the coroner, Ralph Devlin SC, to detail what happened after they scuffled and fell, Sergeant Hurley said: ``I tried to pick up Mulrunji off the floor of the police station by his shirt, which was making a ripping noise at the time. I was telling him to get up and not start again.''
The policeman was giving evidence to a reconvened inquest into the death of the 36-year-old Aborigine, who received fatal internal injuries, including a ruptured liver, and died within an hour.
Sergeant Hurley was acquitted of Doomadgee's manslaughter at a 2007 trial, and applied successfully to quash an earlier inquest finding blaming him for the death.
He agreed yesterday that Doomadgee had not moved after the fall at the watchhouse.
Sergeant Hurley said he and another police officer, Sergeant Michael Leafe, each took hold of one of the prone Aborigine's wrists and dragged him into a nearby cell.
Mr Devlin asked why Sergeant Hurley had not noticed Doomadgee on the video surveillance ``writhing in apparent pain and calling out'', after he was left in the cell. Sergeant Hurely said he had not heard the cries.
Asked why he changed his version of events from that he gave later on the day Doomadgee was discovered dead in the cell, Sergeant Hurley said he had had the opportunity to remember more detail.
In evidence yesterday, Sergeant Leafe said he was a friend of Sergeant Hurley but he had not seen anything happen to Doomadgee as he had been opening the cell door at the time.
Peter Davis, for the Queensland Attorney-General, accused Sergeant Leafe of trying to ``sabotage'' the prosecution case against Sergeant Hurley at the manslaughter trial by not divulging evidence to the crown he provided to the policeman's defence team. The evidence was that he had estimated it took 10 seconds for him to open the cell door and return to find Hurley standing over Doomadgee. But at the request of defence barrister Robert Mulholland QC, he checked the time in a private test and brought his estimate back to ``six or seven seconds''.
Sergeant Leafe denied the proposition.
Evidence was also given by Sergeant Peter Amiguet, who relieved as officer in charge at Palm Island in 2002, that there was not a mirror on the day room wall where it was alleged by another witness, Roy Bramwell, to be, and which he said enabled him to see Sergeant Hurley punching Doomadgee just before he died.
