A PSNI officer’s decision to use lethal force after a stolen car failed to stop at a checkpoint almost 18 years ago was “proportionate”, a coroner has found.
Steven Colwell, 23, originally from Belfast, died on Easter Sunday 2006 after police fired at the stolen BMW he was driving which failed to stop at the checkpoint in Ballynahinch, Co Down.
The officer responsible, identified only as Officer O during the inquest, fired two shots into the car after it engaged in dangerous driving manoeuvres at a vehicle checkpoint.
Judge Neil Rafferty, acting as coroner, said the officer had a reasonable belief that there was a threat to his life and the lives of others.
He said: “The force used by the officer was no more than was absolutely necessary.”
The inquest heard that there were five passengers in the vehicle with Mr Colwell, four of whom were in the back seat.
The coroner said that the occupants of the stolen BMW were a “chaotic group of young people” under the influence of alcohol and, in most cases, drugs.
After detailing evidence relating to a party and an altercation following an attempted burglary prior to the shooting, the coroner said the young people had been “running amok” in the car driven by Mr Colwell, who toxicology reports found was likely to have been severely impaired by ecstasy.
The levels of MDMA in Mr Colwell’s system were described as much higher than usually associated with recreational use and fell within the range found in fatal poisonings.
The coroner said the officers at Ballynahinch had a lack of information required to bring the vehicle to a stop and arrest the occupants.
He said their “undeveloped plan” was conceptually flawed and tactically inappropriate, and seems to have been based on erroneous information that the driver was not likely to attempt to evade the stop.
He said Officer O and a constable who was also involved in the stop were taken by surprise when the vehicle attempted to avoid the checkpoint and started conducting dangerous driving manoeuvres.
Officer O, who was the senior officer on the team at the checkpoint, attempted a “hard or firm stop”.
This typically involves pointing a weapon at a suspect and informing them they are dealing with armed officers prepared to shoot.
The coroner said Officer O made clear and loud instructions to stop but did not find that he had informed Mr Colwell he was armed or prepared to shoot his Glock pistol.
He said Mr Colwell had a “clear determination” to drive away irrespective of what dangers he was causing.
Judge Rafferty added: “I find the danger was real.”
The coroner said he was not satisfied that Officer O had positioned himself in front of the vehicle deliberately, adding “several things were happening at the same time” including the BMW colliding with a Ford Mondeo.
He said Officer O did not have a viable or realistic avenue or option of retreat when the BMW then accelerated forward.
He said Officer O was not unreasonable to believe the BMW was coming straight at him and that it would have been unreasonable for him to have checked the direction of the tyres, which were pre-set for a lefthand steer, in the split second time frame.
The coroner said, on the balance of probabilities, he could not be aware the vehicle would sharply turn left.
It was therefore a reasonable mistake to believe the vehicle was coming straight for him.
However, in his conclusions, the judge said the PSNI had failed to provide a satisfactory or convincing explanation that the operation had been planned and controlled with care to minimise the risk to life.
He said obvious control and planning improvements could have improved the prospects of the tragic events being avoided.
He said a call from a witness about the vehicle was “inappropriately handled” and vital information was missed.
A separate investigation into the incident was previously carried out by the Police Ombudsman.
Then-ombudsman Al Hutchinson found in his report in 2011 that the actions of a policeman in shooting dead the driver of a stolen car were “critically flawed”.
Speaking outside Belfast Coroner’s Court, Mr Colwell’s brother expressed disappointment with the inquest findings.
Neil Colwell said the family were glad to see the end of the “long haul” inquest, which had its first hearing in 2017.
He said he felt that if the PSNI “had managed their response better” his brother might have been alive today.
Solicitor Padraig O’Muirigh, who represents the family, said they intend to consider potential future steps.
“There is no doubt there are aspects of these findings which are very disappointing for the Colwell family,” he said.
“We will study this, it’s very detailed, and look at what other avenues might be available to the family in light of those criticisms.”
Police Federation chair Liam Kelly welcomed the coroner’s findings.
“The loss of life in this incident is deeply regretted. A family still mourns and no judicial process will diminish their sense of loss,” he said.
“The Coroner found that the officer’s belief that his life was in danger was genuine, reasonable and honestly held. This outcome will come as great relief to the individual involved who was assisted at every stage in this protracted process by the Police Federation for Northern Ireland.”
