The husband of a man killed by a fleeing driver last year disagrees with an IPCA report.

The Independent Police Conduct Authority ruled police should not have conducted the pursuit that resulted in the death of Mr Kenneth McCaul in Christchurch on 22 October 2019.

Just before 4am on Tuesday 22 October 2019, a police patrol was travelling along Main North Road in Christchurch and saw a Toyota Caldina stop at the intersection with Grassmere Street.

The officers were suspicious of the Toyota, so began following it as it accelerated away and used an inside bus lane to pass a van.

The driver of the Police car signalled the driver to stop by activating lights and siren and when the Toyota failed to stop, commenced a pursuit.

The pursuit lasted for about four and a half minutes and travelled approximately 7.7 kilometres in areas of the CBD and suburbs of Christchurch.

The fleeing Toyota passed through eight controlled intersections on red lights and at speeds up to 137kph in a 50kph zone, and 100kph in a 30kph zone.

One officer attempted to spike the tyres of the fleeing Toyota relatively early in the pursuit but the spikes malfunctioned.

The pursuit ended when the fleeing driver drove through a red light at the intersection of Glandovey and Idris Roads and collided with another car, killing the driver and sole occupant of that car, Mr Kenneth McCaul.

The Authority found that not only should the officers not have commenced the pursuit, but that there were multiple occasions when the pursuit should have been abandoned. It also found that the pursuit controller in the Communications Centre did not formulate or communicate an adequate plan to bring the pursuit to an end.

Kenneth McCaul’s husband Owen Fraser told Chris Lynch on Newstalk ZB Christchurch he disagrees with the report, and said police were doing their job.

Owen Fraser husband of Kenneth McCaul speaks to Chris Lynch

“The police weren’t in wrong, it was the driver who wouldn’t stop who’s in the wrong.”

Mr Fraser said “I can understand what the report was trying to say but what are you going to do, let this guy go wild across the city – no way, it’s not their fault at all”

“If you’re asked to stop, stop.”

The Authority believes that the circumstances of this pursuit highlight the assistance pursuit controllers would gain from the greater use of technology to give access to accurate and comprehensive “real time” location and speed data. A recommendation to assess such technology is contained in the joint report by Police and the Authority, ‘Fleeing Drivers in New Zealand: a collaborative review of events, practices and procedures‘, which was published in March 2019.

Authority Chair, Judge Colin Doherty, said “in the circumstances, the risk to the public of Police pursuing the Toyota at speed and through multiple red lights was without question greater than the risk of letting it go and making inquiries later to locate the registered owner or driver. This risk was ultimately borne out by the tragic death of Mr McCaul, an innocent member of the public on his way to work.”

Police accept the findings of the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA), in relation to a fleeing driver incident that resulted in the death of Christchurch man Kenneth McCaul in October 2019.

The IPCA found that officers should not have initiated a pursuit of the fleeing driver, and that there were multiple occasions when the pursuit should have been abandoned.

Canterbury District Commander Superintendent John Price said “the death of Mr McCaul, an innocent member of the public, was an absolute tragedy which devastated his husband, family, friends and colleagues.”

“I know that the coming week, marking the first anniversary of Mr McCaul’s death, will be an incredibly difficult time for his loved ones and my heart goes out to them.” 

“The decision whether or not to pursue a fleeing driver is one of the most complex, difficult and serious decisions police staff face.

“In this instance, the decisions made – both by the fleeing driver and by police staff – had the most tragic consequence.”

In March 2019 Police and the IPCA released the thematic review Fleeing Drivers in New Zealand: A collaborative review of events, practices, and procedures.  

The review made eight high level recommendations in relation to Police’s management of fleeing driver events, including improving how some of our staff conduct risk assessment, providing enhanced cognitive-based training for managing these complex and high-risk events, and improving communication between our frontline staff and communication centres. 

Progress towards implementing the recommendations from the review is published via quarterly reports, which are available on the Police website. 

“One of the recommendations from the review was to research the motivation of fleeing drivers,” says Superintendent Price. 

“Part of ensuring fleeing driver events are managed as safely as possible is us better understanding why they happen in the first place, and this work is ongoing.” 

“But what we do know already is that whenever drivers flee from police, their actions can cause crashes that seriously injure or kill people.” 

“I cannot reiterate this enough – when you are signalled to stop by police, please pull over immediately and stop.

“Doing otherwise is not worth the risk to yourself, your passengers, and innocent members of the public like Mr McCaul.” 

The driver in the fleeing vehicle, who was 17 at the time, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and reckless driving and was sentenced to two years and eight months imprisonment.