️ A police officer told a coronial inquest he didn’t have enough time to turn on his body-worn camera before fatally shooting a Sydney man who ran at him with two kitchen knives, amid conflicting statements on the critical moments before the killing.
️ Steve Pampalian, 41, was shot three times by an officer in the driveway of his home in Sydney’s North Willoughby on 25 May 2023 after experiencing a psychotic episode.
️ He was the second of four vulnerable people who died in separate incidents in consecutive months in 2023 after police interactions, triggering increased scrutiny over how police respond to mental health incidents.
️ The first responding officer, Const Jason Bryan, told the inquest that officers typically turn on cameras when exercising police powers or gathering evidence, though it is not mandatory.
️ The second officer, Const Elizabeth Trupiano, was not wearing a camera and stated that 25% to 50% of body-worn cameras at Chatswood police station were “not working” at the time, with none available for her that day.
️ In 2022, the state government allocated $100m for technology to automatically activate cameras when officers draw Tasers or guns, but this was delayed indefinitely in 2023.
️ Neighbors called police after seeing Pampalian muttering to himself and chasing a woman up the street. All but one of six neighbors or bystanders who gave evidence did not recognize him, despite him living with his parents on the street.
️ Pampalian’s brother Eddie described him as a “gentle soul” and said this was his first known psychotic episode. Pampalian visited a doctor 11 days before his death for a new antidepressant prescription, which he had taken since 2014.
️ Officers responded believing it was an active break-in, not a mental health incident. Trupiano said less than 30 seconds passed between Bryan exiting the car and him firing three shots.
️ Bryan recalled seeing a smashed window frame and Pampalian’s feet hanging out a window before calling out. Pampalian then appeared two to three meters away with knives in the air and ran towards him.

Source: www.theguardian.com