A prison officer has been charged with manslaughter after an Indigenous inmate was shot dead while trying to escape from a northern NSW hospital.
Dwayne Johnstone, a Wiradjuri man, was fatally injured when he was shot at Lismore Base Hospital on March 15, 2019.
Police say the 43-year-old was attempting to escape the facility, where he had been taken for medical treatment after earlier being remanded in custody on assault charges.
Mr Johnstone was handcuffed and shackled when he allegedly elbowed a Corrective Services officer and ran off outside the hospital.
An inquest in October 2020 heard Mr Johnstone was able to run quickly despite having his wrists and ankles shackled. The incident was caught on CCTV from a distance.
A warning shot was fired before the prison officer allegedly fatally shot Mr Johnstone.
A 57-year-old Corrective Services officer was on Friday charged with manslaughter. He'll face Lismore Local Court on March 29.
Mr Johnstone had disclosed childhood sexual abuse at school and in state care to his parents and was participating in a civil claim against a boys' home at the time of his death, his inquest heard.
