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A senior New South Wales police officer was caught on camera drinking and dancing with colleagues before he left a Sydney venue and crashed a work car into a barrier on the NorthConnex tunnel before fleeing the scene.
The officer, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was fined $1,500 and handed a two-year community corrections order at Sydney’s Downing Centre local court on Tuesday after being convicted of mid-range drink-driving.
A magistrate previously found the evidence could not support a more serious high-range offence that had been pursued by prosecutors.
The 47-year-old was also suspended from driving for six months, after which his vehicle will be fitted with an interlock device for 12 months.
The court was told the officer is taking a period of paid absence from work but has not been suspended from duty.
Footage was shown to the court of the moment the officer slammed his unmarked police-issued vehicle into a barrier in the Sydney NorthConnex tunnel on 13 May 2023.
He then parked the car in a sidestreet, where he left the vehicle, later admitting to investigators that he fell asleep at the wheel, the court had heard.
The court was told that, several hours earlier, CCTV captured the officer at the Mercantile Hotel in the Rocks, where he can be seen drinking at a table with several other people including fellow officers.
The group can be seen dancing and socialising, and the officer briefly does a “floss” dance before going back to his drink.
He was also captured walking down George Street, where he attempted to steady himself on a bollard, which he missed before stumbling, the court had heard.
Crown prosecutor Eric Balodis said there was no accurate evidence of how intoxicated the officer was at the time of the crash since he left the scene, and therefore was not breathalysed.
Investigators alleged he had more than 20 standard drinks across a nine-hour drinking window, with one expert placing his blood alcohol level at 0.137 when he crashed.
In calling for leniency, the defence lawyer, Tim Lowe, said his client had worked on the frontline of the police force throughout his career.
“He is someone who has demonstrated courage in the course of his occupation,” Lowe said.
“He has put himself in harm’s way time and time and time again.”
As a result, Lowe said the officer suffered from ongoing and serious mental health issues due to the “many traumatic events and nature of the duties he has performed”.
He added the officer accepted responsibility for his actions, including paying for the damage.
The officer was previously found guilty of serious misconduct by the state’s Law Enforcement Conduct Commission for leaving the scene of the crash to avoid the blood alcohol reading.
He was on a paid break from the force but was not suspended, the court was told.
The officer was not charged until six months after the crash and police did not issue a public statement about the incident until it was reported in the media, prompting suggestions of a cover-up.
But the commission did not find evidence the lack of disclosure involved any impropriety.
