Inquest into the Death of Stevo Baricevic
Deceased
Stevo Baricevic
Demographics
30y, male
Date of death
2004-02-26
Finding date
2005-08-01
Cause of death
Head Injuries
AI-generated summary
Stevo Baricevic, 30, died from head injuries after losing control of his motorcycle on Gnangara Road, Landsdale on 26 February 2004. He had consumed alcohol (0.108% blood alcohol level) and traces of amphetamines, methylamphetamines and cannabis were detected. After leaving a pub, he was observed by police riding erratically on Wanneroo Road. When police activated lights and sirens, he accelerated and attempted to evade them. During the pursuit, his motorcycle reached estimated speeds of 160-200kph while the police vehicle reached 130kph (exceeding the Priority 2 limit of 20kph above the 60kph speed limit). The deceased failed to negotiate a gentle left-hand bend on Gnangara Road, crossed onto the incorrect side, and became airborne before colliding with a fence at Cape Salvage. The coroner found the death was accidental and that while police exceeded their speed parameters, this was unlikely to have contributed to the death. The coroner noted supervisory complicity in allowing the speed exceedance.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Drugs involved
Contributing factors
- Alcohol intoxication (blood alcohol 0.108%)
- Presence of amphetamines, methylamphetamines and cannabis in system
- High speed motorcycle operation
- Failure to negotiate a left-hand bend
- Police pursuit with speeds exceeding Priority 2 limits
- Deliberate attempt to evade police
- Motorcycle speedo non-functional, rider unable to gauge speed
Coroner's recommendations
- Adherence to Priority 2 pursuit speed parameters (not more than 20kph above posted speed limit)
- Enhanced supervisory oversight of police operations centre to prevent de-facto complicity in exceeding speed limits
- Clearer acknowledgement of necessity when police vehicles exceed Priority 2 parameters
Full text
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