Former NSW Police officers Timothy Trautsch, Nathan Black assaulted mentally ill woman at Emu Plains

Footage of two former western Sydney cops assaulting a naked, mentally ill woman has been played in court where their lawyer insisted the victim posed a threat to the officers. Warning: Graphic

Two former police officers have faced court again after a horrific assault on a mentally ill, naked woman in Sydney’s west which included spraying her genitalia with pepper spray.

The ex-cops faced Penrith District Court for a second day of their hearing on Tuesday when they sat motionless in the dock.

The court heard the men were called to an Emu Plains street in January 2023 for a welfare check after a mentally ill woman was spotted bathing in puddles.

Nathan Black, 28, pleaded guilty to common assault, using a prohibited weapon without a permit and two counts of intentionally publishing protected information.

Timothy Trautsch, 30, who lives in the Camden area, pleaded guilty to common assault and using a prohibited weapon without a permit.

Timothy Trautsch leaves Penrith District Court on Tuesday.

Nathan Black leaving Penrith District Court.

They have both also been charged with assault causing actual bodily harm in the company.

At the court appearance, Crown Prosecutor Nick Marney played CCTV vision of the incident and argued the former police officers treated the 48-year-old woman “inhumanely” and with “no common decency”.

Trautsch sat motionless throughout the proceedings.

The officers sprayed the woman with capsicum spray several times which included her genitalia and her grazed back from where she had scraped it on the ground, Mr Marney said.

“When you look at the video, it jumps out at you,’’ he said.

“That was done to inflict pain.

“The sprays to her face were within centimetres, they are not allowed to spray people that close.

Nathan Black covered up before he jumped into a getaway car.

“From the first spray to when Black held her head back, they were clearly acting with a common purpose,” he said.

Mr Marney said Black dragged the woman by her hair and both offenders kicked her in the head and body several times when she was not a threat.

“When she was unattended she walked away, sat in a puddle and talked to herself,” he said.

The offenders would have known the woman needed help and she had the right to be treated with respect and compassion, Mr Marney said.

“They were trained professionals and could have explored other options before resorting to violence. It was dehumanising,” he said.

“After this incident, she was charged with assault but once this video came to light, the charges were withdrawn. When the woman was taken to hospital, the paramedics and nurses were disturbed about what had happened.

“This wasn’t two officers who snapped but two offenders who did not do the right thing.’’

Mr Marney said the offenders were not remorseful and more concerned with “shifting the blame and demolishing their own criminality.”

This a reflection of their abuse of power, police are in an important position to provide safety to the community. People need to trust officers will use their powers correctly, he said.

The offenders’ lawyer Paul James argued the woman was a threat and would lash out at the officers when they approached her.

“She bit Trautsch’s finger. Saying she is not a threat is a misunderstanding of the evidence and the footage,” he said.

The bite was not captured on video and there was no hospital record submitted to the court.

The woman had defecated on the officers, called them “dumb c--ts” and told them to “f--k off”, Mr James said.

The offenders were trying to stop her from running and hurting someone else and the redness on her back came from her using it as leverage to kick the officers, the court heard.

“She was not dragged across the ground, she was trying to grab the handcuffs. Black was pulling them away and she was refusing to let go,” he said.

It was a “frustrating” time for the offenders. Black suffered liver issues afterwards from the faeces but there was also no medical evidence of this being handed to the court.

Judge Graham Turnbull told the court he was “shocked” the woman was sprayed on her grazed back which he described as the officers demonstrating “pernicious cruelty”.

He said the way the victim was being handled would have just increased her agitation and Black appeared to be the most violent of the two.

The hearing will continue on Wednesday.