TV1 News

Report Clears Officer – Clark’s Silence Angers – Submarine Rescue Continues

- REPORT CLEARS OFFICER: A Police report released today cleared the officer who killed Steven Wallace in Waitara in August, saying he acted lawfully and in self defense. The 185 page report was released by the Police Commissioner today. The report hasn’t impressed the Wallace family, who say they are disappointed that no charges have been laid against the officer. Reaction from others in Waitara is angry – some saying the report shows that there are two laws – one for Maori and another for everyone else.

Mr Wallace had gone on a rampage through the town destroying property and behaving aggressively. The autopsy showed Wallace had been drinking, but showed no sign of drugs in his system. The report says Mr Wallace approached two constables with a golf club and a baseball bat and continued to advance after warnings the officers were armed. One of the officers, identified as officer A in the report, fired a warning shot. When Mr Wallace continued to advance officer A shot and killed him. Mr Wallace was shot four times, the autopsy showed a shot to his liver killed him. Officer A said he only remembered shooting Mr Wallace three times.

- CLARK’S SILENCE ANGERS: Prime Minister Helen Clark’s silence on the report, after she had been so vocal on the incident at the time, has infuriated members of the opposition. Miss Clark controversially suggested race might have been a factor in the shooting.

- SUBMARINE RESCUE CONTINUES: The Russian Navy is embarking on its third mission to save the submariners trapped at the bottom of the Barant Sea in the Arctic Circle. The rescue fleet is attempting to lower a diving bell to dock with the Kursk and take the submariners to the surface in batches. The next technique to be tried if this attempt fails will be to attach floatation devices to the submarine and raise the whole ship, although experts have said the sub would be virtually impossible to float. Hope is fading for the crew, whose only communication with rescuers is tapping on the sub’s hull. The tapping is becoming fainter.

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