A Latrobe Valley police officer who was caught on camera punching a man in the head multiple times will learn next month if he is guilty of assault.

Senior Constable Dallas Howell has pleaded not guilty to two charges of unlawfully assaulting Daniel Hornsby while he was held in the Moe police station cells just after 11pm on Friday, September 8, 2017.

Magistrate Ann Collins is expected to hand down her decision when the matter returns to the Latrobe Valley Magistrates' Court on Monday, March 4.

The Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC), which is prosecuting the matter, argued Senior Constable Howell unnecessarily punched Mr Hornsby in the head multiple times.

Security footage was played to the court showing Senior Constable Howell entering the cell where Mr Hornsby was kept and the altercation between the two men.

Defendant says strikes were 'defensive'

The defendant told the court the fight occurred after he entered the victim's cell to do a welfare check.

He said he approached Mr Hornsby, who was lying on a bench inside the cell and yelling, and told him he did not have to yell and offered him a coffee.

Senior Constable Howell said he pulled Mr Hornsby to the ground after he "kicked out" at him and hit him in the thigh.

He said he used his right fist to hit him multiple times, describing the blows as "defensive strikes".

The defendant told the court during the scuffle, Mr Hornsby grabbed his jacket and spat at him.

The scuffle then ceased, the court heard, but Senior Constable Howell said the fight resumed after Sergeant Melissa Blair verbally abused the prisoner, telling him "that's what you get you f***ing c**t".

Sergeant Blair was the officer in charge of the Moe station on the night the fight occurred.

Under cross examination, Sergeant Blair said she did not see the victim spit and denied verbally abusing Mr Hornsby.

Senior Constable Howell said after the comment, Mr Hornsby again kicked him and hit him three more times before he gained control of Mr Hornsby.

He said Mr Hornsby grabbed him by the throat when the fight resumed.

Senior Constable Howell then dragged the victim away from the door and left the cell, he told the court.

Counsel for IBAC Elizabeth Tueno questioned Senior Constable Howell's actions in the cell.

During cross-examination of the defendant, Ms Tueno told Senior Constable Howell that no other witnesses testified to seeing spitting.

"That's because he didn't actually spit on you," she said.

The IBAC barrister also told the defendant no other witness testified hearing Sergeant Blair abuse Mr Hornsby.

Two other constables gave evidence that they witnessed the incident in the cells.

When footage of the incident was again played to the court, the IBAC barrister put to Senior Constable Howell that Mr Hornsby's hands were visible and he did not grab his jacket during the first part of the fight or grab his throat when it resumed.

She said he could have used other tactics to restrain the victim instead of punching him in the face and described his kicks as "feeble".

The defendant rejected her assertions.

"I wasn't thinking of techniques at the time," Senior Constable Howell said.

Defendant got his 'justice'

The court heard Senior Constable Howell told a colleague he had his "justice" following the fight.

Traralgon Sergeant Joanne Sinclair was overseeing police patrol units in the Latrobe Valley the night the alleged assault took place.

Sergeant Sinclair told the court she received a phone call from the defendant after the fight advising her of what took place.

She said she later emailed Senior Constable Howell to ask him if Mr Hornsby would be charged with assaulting police.

Sergeant Sinclair told the court the defendant said in the email charges would not be necessary because he has "his justice".

During cross examination, Ms Tueno put to the defendant he used the wording because "you got your revenge" on Mr Hornsby by punching him "not just once, but multiple times".

But Senior Constable Howell said the email "didn't have this context" and that it meant he restrained him, which the IBAC counsel described as "nonsense".

Ms Tueno told the defendant he would not be getting "justice" if he was acting in self-defence.

Gun in the cell

Sergeant Blair told the court she noticed Senior Constable Howell had a gun in his holster while in the cell, which she said was not allowed.

She told the court she spoke to the defendant after the incident in the section sergeant's office, where he said he "just snapped" in the cell.

He apologised for carrying his weapon in the cell, the court heard.

"He just said it had never happened before and would never happen again," Sergeant Blair said.

Incident reported 24 hours later

The matter was not reported to Victoria Police Professional Standards Command until 24 hours after the fight took place.

Sergeant Blair told the court she planned to report the matter to the Senior Sergeant in charge of the Moe police station at the time, Peter Fusinato, on Monday, September 11, 2017.

"It would be an issue for Victoria Police if the footage got to the media," she said.

But the witness said the incident did not meet the criteria to be immediately reported to professional standards.

Sergeant Blair told the court she was upset by the incident and did not sleep much afterwards.

After viewing the footage, she told the court she thought the defendant's actions were "excessive".

The next night Sergeant Blair discussed the matter with Sergeant Farnham Molesworth, who was overseeing the Moe afternoon shift, and it was decided to refer the matter to Detective Senior Sergeant Ian Ricardo.

During cross examination, the defendant's barrister, Nadia Kaddeche, questioned her decision to delay reporting the incident.

Ms Kaddeche put to Sergeant Blair that her concern was that her own conduct would be examined.

Inspector Ricardo told the court the fact the matter was not reported for 24 hours was not the "primary concern" and he was more concerned about what he saw in the footage.

Victim had been drinking, taking drugs

Mr Hornsby said he had smoked marijuana, taken the drug ice and consumed scotch before his arrest on September 8, 2017.

He was arrested and taken to the Moe police station after an alleged family violence incident, the court heard.

There were gaps in his memory, Mr Hornsby admitted during cross-examination, but he said he "might have" kicked at Senior Constable Howell but could not remember spitting at him.

"But I do remember being assaulted in the cells and I will to the day I die," he said

After the incident, Mr Hornsby was later released.

He told the court he did not make a complaint about the fight until contacted by IBAC.