A police officer has told the Northern Territory coroner that police actions were "reasonable" during a police pursuit resulting in a fatal crash that killed a 36-year-old woman in Darwin in 2021.
Northern Territory Coroner Elisabeth Armitage is examining the actions of police during the three-day coronial inquest into the fatal crash.
Ms Thompson, as her family requested she be named in reporting, died after the car she was travelling in as a passenger ran two red lights while evading police and collided with a vehicle in the Darwin suburb of Alawa.
Ms Thompson was not the target of police during the pursuit, but because her death was linked to the pursuit it is being investigated as a death in custody, which triggered a coronial inquest.
Members of the Northern Territory Police Force gave evidence on Thursday, during day two of the inquest, and were asked if they believed the incident could be deemed a "pursuit".
NT Police Sergeant Sean Rimmer, a police driving instructor, told the inquest there were "grey areas" around the incident and that he did not believe it was a pursuit.
"A lot more has to happen before we engage in a pursuit," he said.
Counsel assisting the coroner Chrissy McConnel questioned Sergeant Rimmer about a trap manoeuvre police performed during the pursuit, where three separate vehicles formed a "box" around the car in an attempt to corral and stop the driver.
Sergeant Rimmer told the inquest the manoeuvre resembled what's known as a "box trap", but that it was unorthodox and that none of the officers were trained to perform it.
Responding to questions about communication between officers during the incident, Sergeant Rimmer said the situation could have benefited from an incident controller.
But he said "the decisions that were made by the officers in this particular point, in my view, were reasonable".
Sergeant Rimmer said police body-worn video of the incident could potentially be used in future driver training.
Coroner Elisabeth Armitage questioned the decision to attempt a trap twice during the incident instead of deploying other methods, such as the use of a tyre deflation device (TDD).
Sergeant Rimmer said he believed the TDD would not have stopped the driver.
NT Police Assistant Commissioner Travis Wurst defended the actions of officers and said it was "appropriate to conduct a trap".
However, Assistant Commissioner Wurst said there was no resolution strategy in place on the night.
The coronial inquest continues on Friday.
