Police accepts the findings by the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) which found two Police officers were justified in using force while arresting a man in Christchurch last year.
The arrest took place after Police were called to a domestic incident at a block of flats in Hei Hei, in March 2017.
The attending officers were advised that a man had assaulted his partner and punched another person. The man was known for resisting and assaulting Police.
The man actively resisted Police in this instance and became aggressive when they attempted to place him under arrest for assault.
The IPCA found the officers were justified in using pepper spray, a police dog and a Taser due to the man's behaviour.
The authority determined that the man was bitten by the Police dog after the Taser was used, but due to the speed at which the situation had escalated, the bite was unintentional and the Police dog handler did not have sufficient time or space to prevent it from occurring.
Police have recognised the learnings from this incident and have since implemented training for the police dog team to avoid this happening again in the future.
“I commend the professionalism shown by the staff involved, in what was a difficult and unpredictable situation,” says Canterbury District Commander, Superintendent John Price.
“They successfully protected themselves and the public from further harm with their use of appropriate force and a correct risk assessment of the situation."
The authority also found that an appropriate level of care was provided to the man after his arrest.
ENDS
Issued by Police Media Centre