Two New South Wales police officers have been jailed for a violent assault on a naked woman experiencing a mental health crisis, an incident a judge described as “committed” and “disgraceful.”
Nathan Black, 28, and Timothy John Trautsch, 30, were sentenced at Penrith District Court for their roles in the attack in an industrial cul-de-sac in Sydney’s west. The officers had been responding to a welfare check on the 48-year-old woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, when the situation escalated into an 18-minute assault.
According to court evidence, the officers attempted to get the woman into an ambulance for hospital care, but the encounter turned violent. Photographs presented in court showed the officers pushing her onto the road, kicking her twice in the head, dragging her by the hair, and punching her. At one point, the two men struggled to handcuff her as she lashed out with her arms.
The woman was pepper-sprayed six times — twice in the face, once on her back, and in other areas, including her genitals after she fell on the road and sustained grazes. Judge Graham Turnbull found the officers’ actions were aimed at inflicting maximum pain and discomfort, stating, “All of this is in the face of someone who clearly may have been best approached in a kindly manner.”
Court documents revealed the woman had been prescribed antipsychotic medication but was not taking it at the time. While Judge Turnbull acknowledged she was belligerent, abusive, and challenging, he rejected claims that the “gym-hardened officers in their 20s” were at risk of serious injury. He criticised their failure to use any method other than striking force to subdue her.
Black pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, using a prohibited weapon without a permit, three counts of common assault, and intentionally publishing protected information after sending body-worn camera footage to another officer. Trautsch pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, three counts of common assault, and using a prohibited weapon without a permit.
The woman was initially charged with assaulting police, but the charges were dropped when senior officers reviewed Black’s bodycam footage.
Acting NSW Police Commissioner David Hudson condemned the officers’ conduct, calling it “one of the worst examples of contravening our core values and ethics I have ever seen” in his 40 years of service.
Black received a sentence of five years and nine months’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of three years and three months. Trautsch was sentenced to five years and six months, with a non-parole period of three years.
The case has reignited public discussion over police handling of mental health incidents and the urgent need for alternative crisis intervention methods. NSW Police have reiterated their commitment to upholding ethical standards and ensuring those who abuse their authority face accountability under the law.
