Australia’s High Court intervenes in police shooting trial

By ROD McGUIRK
Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s highest court has agreed to hear a challenge to a police officer using his law enforcement job as a defense against a charge of murdering an Indigenous man. Constable Zachary Rolfe could become the first police officer to be convicted in Australia of unlawfully killing an Indigenous person. Rolfe shot Kumanjayi Walker three times in central Australia during an attempted arrest in 2019. Three High Court judges on Friday agreed to hear a challenge by prosecutors to the Northern Territory Supreme Court’s interpretation of defenses available to Rolfe. Five Supreme Court judges found that Rolfe could claim immunity from criminal liability under a law that protects police officers acting “in good faith.”