‘Hard day’ for teen’s family as killer cop sentenced

The family of Jai Wright found a measure of closure Friday as the police officer who killed the 16-year-old was sentenced to a two-year intensive corrections order. Sergeant Benedict Bryant was found guilty in November of dangerous driving occasioning death for his role in the 2022 incident.

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It’s a hard day, ’cause you go through a lot of memories.

Bryant parked his unmarked car in front of Jai Wright's stolen trail bike. The teenager, a 16-year-old Bunghutti man, was thrown from the bike and sustained critical head injuries, dying in hospital the next day. The sentence is the first of its kind in New South Wales, where a police officer has been held criminally responsible for an Aboriginal death during a police operation, according to the Aboriginal Legal Service.

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That wasn’t what it was about for us. This shows that something went terribly wrong and people have to be held accountable.

Jai's father, Lachlan Wright, told reporters outside Downing Centre Local Court that the sentence itself was less important than accountability. "This shows that something went terribly wrong and people have to be held accountable," he said. He noted that the 500 hours of community service included in the sentence would give Bryant time to reflect on his mistakes. "A conviction is a conviction no matter what," Wright added.

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A conviction is a conviction no matter what.

Jai's mother, Kylie Aloua, had previously expressed a desire not to see Bryant jailed, so his family would not suffer the same loss she endures. Judge Jane Culver described this wish as

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Your son certainly mattered and continues to matter.