Body worn footage from the night of Kumanjayi Walker's shooting death in Yuendumu was "not consistent" with a plan put in place to arrest the 19-year-old, a senior member of the Northern Territory police force has told a coronial inquest.
WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that this article contains an image of a person who has died, used with the permission of their family.
After being shown vision from the minutes leading up to the shooting, Superintendent Jody Nobbs told Coroner Elisabeth Armitage he had spent "six months not sleeping, going 'how can something so simple in my mind have become what it ultimately became'?".
The three-month inquest into the police shooting death of Mr Walker is underway in Alice Springs. Constable Zachary Rolfe was unanimously found not guilty of any charges relating to the death earlier this year.
Superintendent Nobbs told the coroner that before the Immediate Response Team (IRT) in Alice Springs was deployed, there was a plan in place to carry out "high visibility patrols" from 11pm in the community.
He said there was also an agreement before the specialist team was sent in, not to arrest Mr Walker until 5am the next morning.
But in the video, just after 7pm, the officers are seen visiting different houses in the community searching for Mr Walker.
Superintendent Nobbs said the footage he was shown in court was "outside the scope" of his instructions to Yuendumu Sergeant Julie Frost and he wasn't made aware on the night of any changes to the plan or "intelligence gathering" operations by the IRT.
Asked to reflect on the racist text messages exchanged between some members of the team, and their thoughts on remote policing, Superintendent Nobbs conceded he would not have sent the officers into the community that night if he had known.
He admitted he could see how the members' potential views might have jeopardised the operational plan he had designed.
"Anything that will flow from [those views] is destined to fail," he said.
Leave entitlements 'abused' to dodge disciplinary action
The coroner also heard details of a text exchange between Constable Rolfe and a fellow officer, where Constable Rolfe suggests the officer take "stress leave" to wait out an investigation into the other officer's conduct.
Superintendent Nobbs said he "suspects there is a degree of abuse" of the force's "generous" sick leave entitlements.
Judge Armitage heard these entitlements are supposed to support officers experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions experienced by police and that they "bring about substantial periods of absence from the workforce".
The court heard Constable Rolfe tell a sergeant over text that abusing stress leave in this way was "what everyone else does".
Sergeant: Well, f*ck me, I'm having to answer more questions about an incident over a year ago. Some turd claimed I knocked him off his pushbike.
Constable Rolfe: Over a year ago?? F*ck they're gay c*nts … they just find a name and go for you over and over. F*ck 'em, just let them waste time and then if they ever have enough evidence just stress leave until they let it go. Seems what everyone else does.
The officer of 25 years attributed this to what he called a "leadership deficit" in the force.
He said despite the very real stress an officer being investigated might experience, he suspected "there is some abuse" of stress leave.
Racism 'certainly the attitude of some'
Superindent Nobbs was also asked to comment on racist text messages tabled earlier in the inquest, where Constable Rolfe and fellow officers were seen referring to Aboriginal people using racist slurs.
Commissioner Jamie Chalker has previously called the text messages an "isolated incident" but on Tuesday the coroner heard Superintendent Nobbs – who at the time of the shooting death oversaw the running of 11 Central Australian remote police stations – offer a different view.
"I acknowledge that that's a broader issue than – broader than an isolated issue," he said.
"I won't say the prevailing attitude, but it's certainly an attitude of some."
Among other questions, the coroner is investigating systemic racism in the Northern Territory police force.
Superintendent Nobbs said he had not personally heard that language used by serving officers, however said it was part of the broader Alice Springs community.
"I consider Alice Springs a community that I'm passionate about, I've seen it sort of deteriorate over the years," he said.
"It has a relatively intolerant community."
