Motorbike thief on the run struck a police constable at Rokeby and sent him flying

“It was like being hit by a brick wall.” A motorbike thief has been jailed after he struck a police officer, flipping him and sending him flying.

• Two inmates’ rampage at Risdon Prison caused $100,000 in damage
• Talking Point: Shocking figures reveal toll of stress on police force
• Cop hospitalised after laying road spikes and getting mowed down
• Constable left police force after breaking wrist in Glenorchy

A MOTORBIKE thief who rode into a police constable and sent him flying, causing him to flip and hit his head on a Hobart roadway, has been jailed for at least six months.

Jackson Elijah Mansfield, 23, stole a Honda motorbike from Purdy’s Lane in January last year after its owner left the keys in the ignition.

In her published sentencing comments, Supreme Court judge Helen Wood said Mansfield then drove dangerously across the Tasman Bridge, speeding to evade police, before a police car waited for him at a Rokeby intersection.

Riding with a pillion passenger, and neither wearing helmets, Mansfield tried to avoid the constable, who was standing in the middle of the road wearing a high-visibility vest, but struck the right side of his body.

“He became airborne and was flipped in the process. He was subjected to the forward momentum of the motorcycle,” Justice Wood said.

“(The) constable … had travelled approximately 18m from the point of impact to the area where he came to rest on the road.”

The police officer suffered extensive bruising and abrasions and pain to various parts of his body, his right upper arm, left forearm and hand, right lower leg, and his spine, with a splint used to immobilise his arm.

“He described the impact and that it was like being hit by a brick wall,” Justice Wood said.

“Once the adrenaline wore off, he could not walk and the pain throughout his body was severe.

“He had difficulty walking for a few weeks … he underwent surgery to have several pieces of gravel removed from his elbow.”

Mansfield pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, committing an unlawful act intended to cause bodily harm, motor vehicle stealing, evading police, and driving while disqualified dating back to January 30 last year.

He was jailed for two years and two months, backdated to October 2020.

He must serve a minimum of six months, with the remainder suspended.

Follow @ambervwilson