Key Takeaways
- Brad Kellson suffered five knee strikes from a senior officer while in police custody, resulting in fractured ribs and a punctured lung that required four days in intensive care.
- The arrest was deemed unlawful because officers had no evidence Brad committed the alleged domestic‑violence offence, making all subsequent police actions unlawful.
- Internal police statements showed clear collusion, with officers copying each other’s narratives and repeating the same spelling mistake, a fact highlighted by the magistrate.
- Despite judicial findings of dishonesty and escalation, NSW Police failed to report the adverse comments to the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission, breaching mandatory reporting rules.
- Brad later received a confidential civil settlement; while the amount is undisclosed, he used part of it to buy a caravan, and the settlement contained no admission of wrongdoing by the police.
- Senior Constable Mark Davis remained employed, later serving as a youth liaison officer, illustrating the limited personal consequences for officers involved in serious misconduct.
Overview of the Assault and Immediate Injuries
Brad Kellson was pinned to the ground by a police officer twice his size, who kneed him five times while he was already handcuffed and non‑violent. The repeated blows fractured half of his ribs and punctured his lung, leaving him wheezing and in severe pain as officers dragged him to a cell. The violence occurred inside Blacktown Police Station after a night of drinking at a nearby pub, and the injuries were serious enough to necessitate immediate medical transport to hospital.
Charges, Hospitalisation and Personal Toll
While Brad was still in the ambulance, officers completed paperwork charging him with assaulting police and resisting arrest—offences that stemmed from his drunken attempt to grab a body‑worn camera and hold onto an officer’s leg. He spent four days in intensive care, enduring both physical agony and the psychological shock of the attack. Brad later told Four Corners that the injuries prevented him from working, cost him his job, and plunged him into a deep depression, describing the sensation of being “put in a box” whose walls were closing in.
Brad Kellson’s Background and Prior Police Encounters
Brad’s history with law enforcement stretches back to childhood; he was first bashed by a cop at age twelve and has spent much of his life moving in and out of state care and jail, sometimes for violent offences. The Blacktown incident, however, stands out as the worst assault he has endured in his 43 years. His turbulent upbringing and repeated encounters with police contributed to a deep mistrust of authorities and a sense of vulnerability that the attack exacerbated.
Events Leading to the Arrest: Pub Incident and Unlawful Detention
On 13 November 2021, Brad and his girlfriend visited a Blacktown pub after drinking all day. They were turned away from a nearby hotel, and a report of a man pushing a woman outside the pub prompted police to respond. By the time officers arrived, Brad had removed his shirt and was engaged in a verbal argument with strangers across the street, though neither he nor his partner displayed physical aggression toward the officers. A senior officer decided to place Brad under arrest for a suspected domestic‑violence offence, despite lacking any evidence that he was the perpetrator. Consequently, the arrest was unlawful, rendering everything that followed—including the use of force—outside the scope of legitimate police powers.
Escalation Inside the Blacktown Police Station: Davis’ Use of Force
Once inside the station, Leading Senior Constable Mark Davis escalated the situation. He slammed Brad headfirst onto a metal bench, handcuffed him, and then, when Brad pointed at Davis’s turned‑off body‑worn camera and touched it, Davis swung Brad across the room with what a judge later described as “enormous force.” Davis attempted to push Brad into a perspex cell; when Brad resisted, Davis grabbed him by the neck and slammed him backwards onto the cell bench. With three officers already pinning Brad to the ground, Davis came in from the side and delivered the five knee strikes that caused Brad’s catastrophic injuries.
Medical Diagnosis and Hospital Care
After the assault, Brad was wheezing and unable to catch his breath. An ambulance was summoned, and he was taken to Blacktown Hospital where clinicians diagnosed multiple rib fractures and a punctured lung. He was then transferred to Westmead’s intensive care unit for four days of critical care. The medical report confirmed that the injuries were consistent with the force described by witnesses and the CCTV footage, corroborating Brad’s account of a brutal, unprovoked attack while he was already restrained.
Trends in Police Complaints and Expert Commentary
NSW Police data show that public complaints against officers rose nearly 70 % over the past decade, from 3,130 annually to 5,248, even though officer numbers fell by about 4 %. Professor Tim Prenzler, a leading police‑integrity expert, notes that while blatant corruption such as bribery and evidence fabrication has declined, assaults and excessive‑force complaints remain persistently high or are increasing in many jurisdictions. He stresses that complainants are generally genuine, making complaint trends a vital indicator of systemic misconduct.
Internal Police Investigation and the Cover‑up Attempt
Before Brad even reached the hospital, the officers involved agreed to charge him with assaulting police and resisting arrest. They later exchanged emails containing their statements—a clear breach of police policy that allows officers to align their narratives to support charges. The only officer who voiced concern was a probationary constable fresh from the academy; his complaint was ignored, and he resigned shortly thereafter. The remaining officers, including Davis, wrote statements alleging they feared Brad would assault them and that he had been aggressive and threatening, despite the lack of evidence to support those claims.
Judicial Findings: Magistrate Maher’s Ruling on Collusion and Credibility
Eighteen months after the incident, Magistrate Debra Maher examined the officers’ statements in a Blacktown courtroom. She identified “clear” and “deliberate” collusion, noting that two paragraphs in Davis’s statement and that of a junior officer were virtually identical, down to the same spelling error: “let go off my leg.” Maher concluded that Davis had not given truthful evidence about his statement, damaging his credibility regarding the justification for the arrest. She also found that Davis’s actions had “inflamed and escalated a situation that was relatively under control prior to his interventions,” underscoring that the force used was unnecessary and excessive.
Failure to Report Adverse Comments to the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission
NSW Police are required to forward any adverse judicial comments to the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) when a prosecution collapses due to criticism of police conduct. However, Four Corners confirmed that NSW Police never notified the LECC about Magistrate Maher’s adverse remarks, nor did they report the later adverse comments of District Court Judge Stephen Hanley SC in an appeal. Judge Hanley SC observed that the police attempted to “patch up” their case through collusion and false evidence to avoid an adverse finding against the officers who had brutally assaulted Brad.
Civil Settlement, Secrecy Clauses and Financial Outcomes
Brad subsequently sued NSW Police for the assault. The case settled confidentially; although the exact amount remains undisclosed due to secrecy clauses, Brad confirmed he used part of the settlement to purchase a caravan for living. The settlement contained no admission of guilt or wrongdoing by the police, a common feature of such agreements that shields both the financial details and any public accountability. In the most recent financial year, NSW Police paid out $40 million in settlements and legal costs related to alleged officer misconduct, the highest amount among Australian states and territories, with 478 civil suits filed—about two each working day.
Aftermath: Criminal Charge Against Brad, Davis’s Continued Role and Broader Implications
Three years after the Blacktown assault, Brad was charged with assaulting his partner and convicted, a separate legal matter that further complicated his life. Leading Senior Constable Mark Davis, despite the judicial findings against him, remained a serving officer; social‑media posts from 2024 show him acting as a youth liaison officer delivering talks on bullying to high‑school students. The case illustrates a troubling pattern: serious allegations of police violence can result in substantial taxpayer‑funded settlements, yet officers often face minimal personal consequences, and the lack of transparency prevents the public from scrutinising patterns of misconduct or assessing whether the same officers are repeatedly implicated. The Brad Kellson episode underscores the need for stronger oversight, mandatory reporting of adverse judicial findings, and reforms that ensure accountability rather than reliance on secret settlements.