Photo: RNZ / Finn Blackwell
Police officers used force more often in 2023 than the previous year, according to a new report.
The Annual Tactical Options Report provides an overview of what officers were facing and the tactics they were using.
Officers used force during 7719 interactions, an increase of 9 percent in 2023 compared to the year before.
Force options include use of firearms, restraints, tasers, dogs, batons and hands.
Māori continued to be over represented in use of force events.
Māori men aged 18-45 accounted for 30 percent of events that resulted in violence charges, despite making up only three percent of the population.
Police said they were committed to continuing to work with Māori communities to improve criminal outcomes for Māori.
Eight percent of use of force events occurred in a custody environment.
Police said custody was a challenging environment and also presented a higher risk of injury to staff.
"Approximately 120,000 people are in Police custody each year, and we must ensure tactical options are available to keep our staff safe and ensure our detainees receive appropriate care," Assistant Commissioner Mike Johnson said.
Gang members accounted for 9 percent of events where police used force, despite making up 0.2 percent of the population, a police statement said.
The report also found that gang members were more likely to be armed with a firearm at 25 percent than non-gang offenders at 8 percent.
"Police are committed to disrupting criminal gangs to ensure communities feel safe from intimidation and criminal activity," Johnson said.
Drop in number of firearms
Overall there was a drop in the number of incidents where offenders had firearms and police used firearms in response.
Police discharged a firearm at seven separate events during 2023, just 2 percent of the events where firearms were deployed by officers.
"We know that firearms carry a higher risk of serious injury and death and so we make every effort to minimise their use," Johnson said.
The use of tasers remained stable, as it has done since 2018.
Tasers were fired at 25 percent of the events where they were presented.
"While we do not want to use force, police at times are required to use force due to the circumstances we face, in order to protect the public and ourselves," Johnson said.
Communication was always the primary method of de-escalation, he said.
Police Association
Despite the increase of 9 percent in TOR events, the use of force continues to be extremely rare at 0.3 percent of all jobs police attend.
Police Association president Chris Cahill said the statistics on gang members were concerning.
"Gang members are increasingly more violent towards police, and putting officers at risk, and the gang numbers have been growing, so that adds to that problem.
"It really has to be looked at, there's multiple things, we obviously have to address why young men are joining gangs and why they are taking this violent approach to their lives.
"Equally though when they do this the courts need to recognise that police need protection," he said.
Cahill also wanted more to be done to ensure police did not have to use force or get injured in a custody setting.
The report found 8 percent of events happened when someone was in custody, with one staff member being injured for every 10 events.
"I think police have to look at how the staffing is handled in there, the training, but also the environment. Are they actually [in a] safe environment to keep prisoners in and to actually look after them in a situation that keeps both the prisoner and the officer safe, and these figures tell me that police have have to do better there," Cahill said.
