A NSW Police officer has been found guilty of dangerous driving causing death over a collision that killed an Indigenous teenager in Sydney in February 2022. Benedict Bryant, a sergeant with over 22 years of experience, was convicted in the NSW District Court on Friday for his role in the death of 16-year-old Jai Kalani Wright.
The teenager died after the stolen trail bike he was riding collided with an unmarked police car driven by Bryant in Alexandria. The court heard that Bryant had been directed not to pursue the bike but instead set up a roadblock that made it impossible for Jai to manoeuvre around it. Crown prosecutor Phillip Strickland argued that Bryant's actions created a risk that the rider would act dangerously to avoid capture.
Judge Jane Culver agreed with the prosecution, stating that Bryant 'so seriously failed to properly manage the vehicle that he created a real danger'. The verdict marks a rare instance of a police officer being held criminally responsible for an Indigenous death in custody or during a police operation in NSW, according to the Aboriginal Legal Service.
Speaking after the verdict, Jai's father Lachlan Wright said the family had expected this outcome from the start. He expressed hope that the case could improve relations between Aboriginal people and the police force. The NSW coroner had been investigating the death as a death in custody because an officer was seeking to detain Jai at the time of the crash.
