NSW cop failed to heed dead man's threat

NSW Police officers approached the arrest of a psychologically-distressed man as a "routine" domestic violence job before he forced them to shoot him dead, a coroner has found.

The father-of-three, MC, snapped and assaulted his partner at Ettalong Oval, near Woy Woy on the state's Central Coast, in March 2015.

The man threatened to "cause a scene" and get police to shoot him if authorities were called.

His psychological distress had been "continually escalating for months", deputy state coroner Harriet Grahame found on Thursday.

The woman fled when MC, who had a history of self-harm, began searching for a knife.

A senior constable who spoke with the woman was told of the threat to "get police to shoot him" and decided to make an arrest but, crucially, the information was not passed on to two colleagues who also attended MC's house.

"I am of the view that this is because he simply failed to understand its importance," Ms Grahame said in her findings.

When the officers approached the door, MC burst out with two large kitchen knives and was shot in the chest at close range.

"Why didn't you shoot me in the head?" MC said after he was hit.

"I want to die."

Ms Grahame found there was sufficient evidence to classify the death as "self-inflicted" because MC carried out a carefully-formulated plan.

"Police approached the arrest as a 'routine' domestic violence job, with little information sharing or planning by the senior officer involved," she said.

Unbeknown to the officers, MC had prepared for their arrival by placing weapons, including a samurai sword, within easy reach.

He also called his estranged mother to warn her he was going to attack police.

MC's partner had urged him to seek help for years and Ms Grahame said there was no simple solution to prevent the despair he felt in his final seconds while rushing at police.

"This pain and anger had been brewing for many years," she said.

Ms Grahame, who was wary of hindsight bias, suggested there were "more cautious" approaches police could have taken, including contacting MC by phone.

She recommended NSW Police use the circumstances as a guide for future training.

Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.

MensLine Australia 1300 78 99 78.