Man stomped on during police arrest in Melbourne's north in induced coma, lawyer says
Footage of the man's arrest was posted to social media, including a moment when one of the officers making the arrest appears to stomp on the head of the man as he lies on the ground, surrounded by other officers.
Robinson and Gill principal lawyer Jeremy King, who is representing the arrested man, said his client had not committed a crime and was being treated for mental health issues at the time of the arrest.
"Really he's a person that the police should be dealing with in a very unique way," he said.
"They should be recognising that he's a vulnerable person and this isn't a situation ... where police are pursuing an offender."
Mr King said information on the injuries his client had suffered, and how, was "limited", but he was in an induced coma at the Northern Hospital.
Doctors were running scans to work out how much damage had been done, he said.
Man's family in 'deep distress' over injuries
Mr King said video of the arrest, including another video which showed the man being hit by a police car, was "sickening to watch".
"I would be fairly confident to say that in the Victoria Police manual regarding their approved tactics, you're not allowed to ram somebody with a vehicle and you're certainly not allowed to stomp on their head," he said.
Further footage of the arrest showed the man running from police and striking a police car before officers appeared to use a car to knock him over.
Mr King said the man's family, which included young children, was in "deep distress" and an independent investigation of the arrest was needed.
"The community needs independent investigation of serious police misconduct to have any faith that it has been investigated properly, that it has been investigated objectively and that those involved in it, if they are found to have committed misconduct, will be held to account," he said.
"There's an inherent bias with police investigating their own and that's why this needs to be independently investigated."
Victoria Police refers matter to internal complaints body
A Victoria Police statement said officers were called to reports of a man behaving erratically at Cooper Street, Epping, about 4:10pm on Sunday.
"Upon arrival the male allegedly became aggressive and damaged a police vehicle whilst attempting to avoid arrest," the statement said.
Comment: The most the police can claim is that the man damaged a vehicle - and how much damage caused is notably absent from the statement - and in turn the police used the vehicle to injure him.
"During the highly dynamic incident a police officer was assaulted and OC spray was deployed before the 32-year-old man, of no fixed address, was arrested and subsequently taken to hospital for assessment.
"The arrest has been referred to Professional Standards Command for oversight."
Police Minister Lisa Neville said body camera footage would be reviewed by Professional Standards before a decision was made on standing the officers down from duties.
She said there were "difficult circumstances" and the man had committed "quite a violent offence" — a point disputed by Mr King.
Comment: What the 'quite violent offence' was is not mentioned, probably because it was relatively minor and, by comparison, would make his treatment all the more shocking.
"[But] there are some concerning aspects of the arrest, particularly at the end of that arrest," she said.
The Opposition's David Davis said he was "horrified" by the footage.
"The community has a high level of support and trust for our police," he said.
Comment: Considering the numerous scandals plaguing Australia's police in recent weeks, it would appear that they are operating on a war footing where the enemies are the citizens and anything goes so long as the perceived offender is dealt with. It's notable that this totalitarian mentality, endorsed by governments, can be seen over much of the locked down Western world: