A man accused of running over and killing a policeman in a bid to avoid arrest has told a jury the officer shot him with a stun gun and it caused him to lose control of a stolen car.
Reagan Ainslie Chown, 25, pleaded not guilty to manslaughter in the West Australian Supreme Court on Monday over the June 8, 2023 incident that led to Constable Anthony Woods' death.
Prosecutor Justin Whalley told the jury Chown and two others fled from police in a stolen Holden Cruz before stopping in a cul-de-sac.
Const Woods, 28, opened the Holden driver's door and attempted to detain Chown.
Chown allegedly attempted to drive off and Const Woods fired his Taser before "falling and being dragged under the accused's vehicle to his ultimate death".
Mr Whalley said the Taser's two barbs struck Chown in his right elbow and left upper thigh.
CCTV footage showed the Holden reversing at speed, mounting a kerb and stopping after it hit a bollard.
During the video, Const Woods can be heard twice saying "stay where you are" and "Taser" as the vehicle moved backwards.
A loud crack can be heard, with Mr Whalley explaining to the jury it was the sound of Const Woods' Taser firing, before he disappears below the moving car.
"Const Woods became trapped under the accused's car," Mr Whalley said.
"He was taken to hospital but his injuries were not survivable."
The jury heard his death several days later was due to complications of cardiac arrest caused by mechanical compression of the chest and abdomen.
Chown's barrister Paul Bevilacqua said the Taser had deprived his client of the capacity to control his body and he was not responsible for Const Woods' death.
He said the CCTV showed after the stun gun was fired, the car was out of control as it moved backwards.
Mr Whalley said Chown was attempting to flee the scene before Const Woods Tasered him and expert evidence would show the electrical pulse into his body had nothing to do with the car continuing to reverse.
Const Woods' partner on the night, then-Sergeant Michael Fisher, said the officer "got caught up somehow and dragged under the front wheels".
Sgt Fisher's body-worn camera footage, played for the jury, showed him move to the front of the Holden and bend down with a torch to check on Const Woods.
"How are you doing, mate?" he can he heard saying in the video.
Sgt Fisher said Const Woods was unresponsive and he and other officers used a trolley jack to lift the Holden off their colleague.
The footage showed Sgt Fisher handcuffing Chown and the two other people in the Holden when Const Woods was struck.
In the video, Chown can repeatedly be heard asking "is he OK?" in reference to Const Woods, as Sgt Fisher finds a knife in his possession.
Trent Reeves, who was in the back seat, told the jury Chown "stiffened up" when the Taser barbs hit him.
He said Chown had one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the gear stick at the time and the car started moving backwards.
Mr Whalley told the jury Chown was under the influence of methamphetamine and in possession of the drug when the incident happened.
He detailed Chown's interview with investigators before Const Woods died, when he allegedly said: "if I didn't get shot with the Taser none of this would have happened".
The trial continues.
