Inquest into the death of Robert Jongmin
Deceased
Robert Jongmin
Demographics
18y, male
Date of death
2002-10-23
Finding date
2007-12-03
Cause of death
Gunshot wound to the chest and neck
AI-generated summary
An 18-year-old Aboriginal man was fatally shot by Acting Sergeant Whittington during a community dispute in Wadeye. Whittington discharged his Glock pistol four times in response to Tobias Worumbu wielding a loaded shotgun. The deceased ran towards Worumbu, and while wrestling over the shotgun, Worumbu's weapon discharged into the ground. Whittington then fired four shots at Worumbu, striking the deceased instead. The Coroner found Whittington demonstrated serious errors of judgment: firing four rounds at a moving target 40 metres away (beyond his trained distance of 12 metres) with a house as backdrop, failing to scan the area before firing, and continuing to shoot after the threat was neutralized. Whittington's poor marksmanship, inadequate assessment of the backdrop, and panicked response—his first exposure to someone pointing a firearm at him—contributed to the tragic outcome. The police investigation was generally thorough, though delayed by procedural issues.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Contributing factors
- Police presence at and supervision of organized fistfights as a method of dispute resolution
- Tobias Worumbu obtaining a loaded shotgun during escalating violence
- Acting Sergeant Whittington's lack of experience as an officer in charge in remote bush communities
- Whittington's poor marksmanship and lack of training beyond 12 metres with his Glock pistol
- Whittington's failure to properly scan the area before discharging his weapon
- Whittington's decision to fire with a house as backdrop without checking if it was occupied
- Whittington's continued firing after the shotgun threat was neutralized
- Whittington's first exposure to someone pointing a firearm at him, causing panic and tunnel vision
- Community tensions and pervasive violence between gang groups
Coroner's recommendations
- Consideration be given to improving or enhancing training given to all recruits and operational members who participate in weapons training for re-certification, particularly dynamic and interactive training with moving targets and scenario-based judgment calls
- The Commissioner of Police implement a more efficient system of retaining all documents, particularly contemporaneous documents such as running sheets and police notebooks which may be relevant in future investigations
- Greater efforts be made to obtain the services of interpreters when interviewing Aboriginal witnesses
- Disciplinary proceedings should not be withdrawn before the outcome of a coronial inquest where serious errors of judgment have been identified
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