Yuendumu: The Trial

Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe tells journalist Kristin Shorten about the moment he was charged with murder and why he believes he was “thrown under the bus” by police leadership to appease an angry crowd and arrested despite “evidence that cleared me”.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe recounts to journalist Kristin Shorten what he saw, felt and perceived when he found and fatally shot Kumanjayi Walker at Yuendumu and the medical treatment police then performed in their desperate fight to save the 19-year-old’s life.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe talks to journalist Kristin Shorten about that fateful Immediate Response Team deployment to Yuendumu on November 9, 2019: the decision-makers, IRT mission, their ops plan and available intelligence about Kumanjayi Walker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe speaks to journalist Kristin Shorten about growing up in affluent Canberra, his military experience, joining the Northern Territory Police Force and why he felt more comfortable in Kabul than in Alice Springs.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Almost two-and-a-half years after Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe fatally shot Kumanjayi Walker during an arrest at Yuendumu, the 30-year-old has been found not guilty of the Indigenous man’s murder.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been two years and four months since Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe fatally shot Indigenous man Kumanjayi Walker at Yuendumu. Today the jury in Constable Rolfe’s almost five-week murder trial returned its verdict, finding the 30-year-old not guilty on all three charges of murder, manslaughter and violent act causing death. We’ll release a new daily episode of Yuendumu: The Trial about the verdict soon. But in the meantime, now that proceedings are over, we can finally – legally – publish a documentary about this case titled Yuendumu which features Constable Rolfe’s first interview. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The jury in Constable Zach Rolfe’s murder trial has heard that the NT Police top brass have “thrown everything” at the young cop to justify charging him over Kumanjayi Walker’s death. In his closing address David Edwardson QC said it was a “disgrace” that his client had been charged just four days after the shooting “without any meaningful investigation”. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prosecution counsel Phillip Strickland SC has asked a jury to consider what was going through the mind of Constable Zachary Rolfe when he fired the second and third shots that killed Kumanjayi Walker. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

During a combative day of cross examination Crown prosecutor Phillip Strickland has accused Constable Zach Rolfe of “making up” evidence to justify his actions in fatally shooting Kumanjayi Walker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Constable Zachary Rolfe has told the jury in his murder trial that he shot Kumanjayi Walker three times because he feared for his police partner’s life.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Within minutes of the Crown closing its case against Constable Zach Rolfe today, the young cop voluntarily took the stand in his murder trial to give his version of events about what happened the day he fatally shot Kumanjayi Walker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shocking footage of a police shooting in the US has been played during Constable Zach Rolfe’s murder trial after it emerged that the NT Police Use of Force expert shared the video on Facebook as an example of how police should respond to offenders armed with edged weapons.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The star prosecution witness in the murder trial of Constable Zach Rolfe has criticised the young cop and his police partner for entering the house in Yuendumu where they found Kumanjayi Walker and – after he stabbed them with scissors – fatally shot him. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An expert witness in the murder trial of Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe was asked to determine whether wounds suffered by the young cop and his Immidiate Response Team partner could have been self-inflicted after Kumanjayi Walker was fatally shot.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An expert has testified that the scissors Kumanjayi Walker used to stab Constable Zach Rolfe before he was fatally shot must have been open for the sharper blade to cut through his clothing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Immediate Response Team member who first encountered Kumanjayi Walker at his grandmother’s house the night he died said the Indigenous teen was still struggling and resisting arrest even after being shot three times. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The forensic pathologist who conducted Kumanjayi Walker’s autopsy has given evidence about whether the scissors Walker stabbed Constable Zach Rolfe and Sergeant Adam Eberl with could have inflicted a fatal wound. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

They were the frantic final moments of Kumanjayi Walker’s life when, after he’d been shot three times by Constable Zach Rolfe, IRT members – including Rolfe – desperately fought to save him.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Northern Territory Police Force’s own Defensive Tactics Training package has been used to defend Constable Zach Rolfe’s actions when he fatally shot Indigenous man Kumanjayi Walker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The senior NT cop who ultimately approved the IRT’s deployment to Yuendumu claims the team was not sent to arrest Kumanjayi Walker due to their specialist skillset, but simply because they could travel at short notice.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Just minutes before Kumanjayi Walker was fatally shot, a family member had tried calling his girlfriend’s mobile phone to warn them that police were on their way, a court has heard. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first Immediate Response Team member – and the officer who drove to Yuendumu with Constable Zach Rolfe the night he shot Kumanjayi Walker – has taken the stand at his colleague’s murder trial.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The highly experienced cop who hand-picked Constable Zachary Rolfe to arrest Kumanjayi Walker says "my firearm would be out" and he would be "100 percent" prepared to pull the trigger if threatened with a knife. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The officer in charge at Yuendumu has faced a brutal cross examination about whether she withheld notes made about what happened the night police fatally shot indigenous man Kumanjayi Walker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A senior Northern Territory cop with almost two decades experience has told a court that if he had been sent to arrest Kumanjayi Walker he would have – based on the intelligence – been “prepared and ready to draw (his firearm) at a moment’s notice”.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Confronting body-worn footage played in court has shown the terrifying moment a veteran bush cop begged Kumanjayi Walker for mercy when the 19-year-old threatened him with an axe just days before the teenager was shot dead by a different police officer. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The police phrase “knife equals gun” is set to “loom large” throughout the murder trial of Northern Territory police officer Zach Rolfe, a court has heard. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than two years after a fatal police shooting in a remote outback community, The Queen v Zachary Rolfe is finally underway. Follow The Australian's coverage of the trial here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After nine long months of COVID-related delays, suppressed legal arguments and High Court interventions, the murder trial of Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe begins today. Kristin Shorten and Matt Cunningham will preview what to expect from the first day in court. This podcast will cover each day in court. Subscribe to listen to every episode so you don't miss a thing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A new voir dire will be held before Christmas to thrash out whether tendency evidence can be presented to a jury in the highly anticipated murder trial of Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The High Court of Australia has delivered its highly anticipated decision about what defences are available to Northern Territory police officer Zachary Rolfe when he faces trial next year over the alleged murder of Kumanjayi Walker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lawyers for Northern Territory police officer Zach Rolfe have gone head-to-head with prosecutors in the High Court this week over what the young constable can argue in his defence when he faces trial over the alleged murder of Kumanjayi Walker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The highest court in the land has agreed to hear a challenge by Northern Territory prosecutors in the murder trial of police officer Zachary Rolfe. Last month Justice Jacqueline Gleeson delayed the trial in the NT Supreme Court until the decision to hear the case was made by the High Court on Friday, saying there would be an injustice if there was an acquittal on the basis of a wrong legal construction. Join Kristin Shorten and Sky News' Matt Cunningham as they discuss where to from here. Special guest this week is federal politics reporter for The Australian, Olivia Caisley.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The murder trial of Northern Territory Police officer Zachary Rolfe -- over the shooting death of Indigenous man Kumanjayi Walker -- was set to start in the Supreme Court in Darwin today.  Instead, it has now been postponed indefinitely after the High Court granted a last minute application to stay proceedings. So will the trial go ahead?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A crucial High Court decision on Monday morning - then a trial? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kumanjayi Walker's troubled early life in a community "without hope" is revealed by his great-aunt as the trial approaches.  Subscribe to The Australian for full coverage of the trial and more.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three seconds. Three gunshots. One explosive murder trial. As a young cop faces life in jail for killing a young Indigenous man in outback Australia, The Australian newspaper's Kristin Shorten and Matt Cunningham bring you unmissable daily insights.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three seconds. Three gunshots. One explosive murder trial. As a young cop faces life in jail for killing a young Indigenous man in outback Australia, The Australian's Kristin Shorten and Matt Cunningham bring you unmissable daily insights.  For full, ongoing award winning journalism covering The Trial search for and download The Australian app or go to theaustralian.com.au/subscribeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.