Cop taking anxiety, bipolar meds when he shot man dead in Windsor
Dramatic dashcam footage has captured the moment a man was shot dead by a police officer after the pair became involved in a confrontation during a routine traffic stop in Windsor. SEE THE VIDEO.
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Dramatic dashcam footage has captured the moment a man was shot dead by a police officer during a routine intercept.
The video has been released as an inquest into the death of Vlado Micetic, 44, opened in Victoria’s Coroner’s Court on Monday.
It shows then Senior Constable Timothy Baker get into a confrontation with Mr Micetic after stopping his car with stolen number plates on Union St in Windsor on August 25, 2013.
Mr Baker repeatedly tells Mr Micetic to put his hands behind his back, in which he initially remains calm, turning around and complying.
But when Mr Baker tries to stop his female passenger from leaving the scene, Mr Micetic became agitated.
SEE THE VIDEO IN THE PLAYER ABOVE
As he told her to “just go” he wrestled with Mr Baker before tripping on the kerb and falling over.
As he gets to his feet, Mr Micetic then urged the officer to call his superiors, implying he was a police informer.
His final words were: “Why are you doing this for man? You’re going to get in trouble, man. You got no idea who I am.
“You’re going to lose your job. I’m telling you now, you will.”
The video then showed the pair go out of view in front of Mr Micetic’s car and almost instantly, three loud bangs were heard.
After the shots were fired, noises can be heard, before Mr Baker uses his radio to call for an ambulance.
“I’m going to need a MICA,” he said. “One offender down, shot.”
Mr Baker has consistently said it was self defence, claiming Mr Micetic pulled a knife on him. He was charged with murder but later acquitted by a Supreme Court jury.
His actions on the day, if police protocols were followed and whether he was fit for duty are set to be the key areas probed at the two-week inquest.
The inquiry will also look at how police command managed Mr Baker’s mental health.
The court heard he was taking “mood stabilisers” and had 15 months earlier failed his firearm safety and tactical training.
Counsel assisting the coroner Rachel Ellyard said Mr Baker was taking five different medications for anxiety, bipolar and hand tremors at the time of the shooting.
He had been assessed by Victoria Police’s psychology unit three times in his 23-year career: in 2008 following a suicide attempt, in 2009 as part of a return to work assessment, and again in May 2012 where he was deemed fit to return to work after failing the firearm course.
“It’s not clear what degree of monitoring Mr Baker was under after his return to operational duties,” Ms Ellyard said.
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The court also heard Mr Baker had seen a psychiatrist monthly from October 2008, with those treatments becoming weekly after the shooting.
Mr Baker is not at the inquest, and his lawyer Anthony Lewis told the court he planned to apply for him to be excused from giving evidence due to his mental health.
The move will be opposed by Mr Micetic’s family, who have been waiting six years for answers into their loved one’s death.
The inquest, before Coroner Audrey Jamieson, continues.