An inquest into the death of a Dunghutti teenager has been halted, with the State Coroner referring the matter to the Director of Public Prosecution.
Jai Wright was 16 years old when his trail bike collided with an unmarked police vehicle in Sydney in February 2022.
The officer behind the wheel was Sgt Benedict Bryant.
Wright was taken to Sydney's Prince Alfred Hospital, but died the next day as a result of blunt force trauma to the head.
A coronial inquest began on Monday, with family and supporters gathering at Lidcombe State Coroner's Court to witness the proceedings.
However news broke on Tuesday of the decision to suspend the inquest, and refer Sgt Bryant to the DPP, prompting cheers from supporters of the Wright family.
Jai's parents, Lachlan Wright and Kylie Aloua, welcomed the news.
“Almost 2 years ago, we received a call, one of the calls that as a parent you never want to receive, about Jai having an accident," they said in a statement.
We rushed straight to the hospital and we were by our son's side as he passed away. Ever since then, we have been searching for the truth. We need to know the truth so that we can live our lives and move forward.
“This referral has given us a lot of hope, we have faith that we will get justice for Jai."
Coronial inquest suspended after one day
A large group of supporters had gathered at the state coroner's court in Lidcombe on Monday to mark the opening of the inquest into the teenager's death, with a smoking ceremony held and a performance from dancers.
Lanchlan Wright expressed his gratitude for the display of support.
"Solidarity in numbers," the Dunghutti man told NITV.
"It's very important, especially for our mob, to stick together ... to support each other, and to carry on the memory of Jai in our hearts."
Almost two years on since the young Dunghutti teenmager's death, Mr Wright described his emotion going into the first day of the coronial investigation.
"Really difficult, this last week especially ... it's been a difficult two years as any parent out there would understand.
"Losing a child is the worst thing that could possibly happen."
In a public statement soon after the incident took place, NSW Police said officers from the Inner West Police Area Commanded sighted two suspected stolen vehicles, a black Mercedes and a blue 2019 Sherco trail bike near the intersection of Enmore Road and King Street in Newtown at around 7am on February 19, 2022.
Jai, who was travelling on the bike, was last seen by those officers turning right onto Sydney Park Road in Alexandria. Shortly after, at 7:35 am, he “collided with an unmarked police vehicle” and was “ejected from the bike”.
The 16-year-old died the following day at Prince Alfred Hospital.
