Assault accused police officer Benjamin McLeod wins separate trials over ‘excessive force’ allegations

Allegations against a police officer accused of using unreasonable force during arrests have been revealed in court for the first time.

A police officer held his knee on the neck and head of a suspect lying on the ground, dropped an accused on a gutter edge and punched another multiple times during arrests using “unreasonable and unrequired force”, a court has heard.

Suspended SA Police officer Benjamin Oliver McLeod, 40, of Bridgewater appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Thursday.

During the hearing, Magistrate Kym Millard delivered a ruling that McLeod – who is charged with eight separate charges of aggravated assault stemming from four separate incidents in August and December 2020 – may face separate trials for each alleged incident.

“It will form part of the prosecution case in the trial of these matters that the acts committed by the defendant … in each case and on each count demonstrates a tendency to use excessive force beyond what would reasonably be required,” he said.

Benjamin McLeod leaves the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Thursday. NewsWire / David Mariuz

He said that in the first alleged incident, on August 6, 2020 at Glandore, Mr McLeod was captured on body worn camera footage allegedly kneeling on the neck and head of a suspect.

“Some approximately five minutes after the handcuffing commences the defendant is seen, on the prosecution case, dragging (the suspect) across the road and dropping him on a gutter’s edge,” he said.

He said it was also suggested McLeod threw the accused to the ground while making comments to suggest his actions were “potentially deliberate”. Mr Millard said those comments included Mr McLeod saying “whoopsie” or “oh sorry” while “knowingly forcing conduct to the upper body”.

“It is the prosecution case that the use of that force was unjustified, unnecessary, unwarranted and therefore constitutes an assault,” he said.

In a second incident on Jetty Rd, Glenelg, on December 3, 2020 he allegedly “struck” the suspect “multiple times around the neck and head” in retribution after complaints about himself being assaulted.

Three days later, on December 6, 2020, he was allegedly involved in two separate and unrelated arrests at Black Forest and Glandore

In the Black Forest incident, McLeod allegedly twice struck a suspect during the arrest. In the Novar Gardens incident, Mr Millard said McLeod allegedly repeatedly punched the detainee.

The detainee was handcuffed, forced to the ground where Mr McLeod allegedly used his hand to push the detainee’s head to the ground and then holding it there with his knee “for some time”.

Mr Millard found that Mr McLeod should face trial separately for each incident.

He said Mr McLeod’s defence counsel had argued at an earlier hearing that there would be issues of prejudice if the four incidents were tried together.

“Ultimately, the proper application of the legal principles in this case suggests that these are entirely separate and unrelated incidents and the prejudice to the applicant is real,” he said.

“Each individual case must be looked at on its own merits and in my view, to look at these matters as a whole is to potentially fall into an error, the detriment I accept clearly outweighs any probative value.”

Police will allege Mr McLeod was arrested and charged after a “proactive investigation” involving a review of body worn camera footage during an audit, rather than a complaint form other officers or any alleged victim.

Mr McLeod will return to court in June for trial dates to be set.