Countdown on for killer cop who tasered 95yo

The countdown is on for a police officer who said “bugger it” before fatally firing his Taser at 95-year-old Clare Nowland inside a rural nursing home.

A police officer who said “bugger it” before fatally tasering a 95-year-old woman at a rural nursing home is set to face sentencing proceedings on Friday ahead of learning his fate.

Senior Constable Kristian White, 34, was found guilty in November of the manslaughter of Clare Nowland, 95, following a trial in the NSW Supreme Court.

He had been called to Yallambee Lodge nursing home in Cooma before 5am on May 17, 2023 to assist with Mrs Nowland, whom a nurse described as a “very aggressive” resident holding two knives.

Senior constable Kristian White has been found guilty of fatally tasering Clare Nowland in an aged care facility. Picture: NewsWire/ Monique Harmer

He has since been sacked from the NSW Police Force. Picture: NewsWire/ Monique Harmer

Mrs Nowland, who used a walking frame to move slowly around the home, was holding a single knife and a penlight when White found her sitting in an office after 5am.

He repeatedly told her to drop the blade during a tense two-minute confrontation before he pointed his service Taser at the great-grandmother and activated the warning signals.

The jury was told Mrs Nowland had undiagnosed dementia which made it difficult for her to follow directions. The Taser was pointed at her for a minute before White pulled the trigger.

“Nah … just bugger it,” White said before deploying the Taser probes at her chest.

“Got her.”

Mrs Nowland fell backwards and struck her head on the floor. She died in hospital days later.

After four days of deliberation, the jury unanimously found White guilty of manslaughter on November 27 last year.

After remaining suspended with pay throughout the trial, he was removed from the NSW Police Force days after the verdict was handed down. White is challenging the decision.

Clare Nowland, 95, died after she was struck with a Taser on May 17, 2023.

He is set to face the NSW Supreme Court on Friday for a sentencing hearing ahead of the determination of his fate.

His lawyer Troy Edwards SC and Crown prosecutor Brett Hatfield SC are expected to tender relevant documents for Justice Ian Harrison to consider when sentencing White for the manslaughter of Mrs Nowland.

It’s possible Mrs Nowland’s family could deliver victim impact statements which highlight how White’s actions and the loss of their beloved matriarch have affected their lives.

White has continued living in the Cooma community since he was found guilty of killing Mrs Nowland and Justice Harrison refused Mr Hatfield’s application to take him into custody.

The maximum penalty for manslaughter in NSW is 25 years imprisonment, but Justice Harrison said during the detention application that a jail sentence was “not inevitable”.

He expressed concern about “the risk of victimisation of, and gratuitous violence directed to, convicted police officers by other inmates in so-called correctional facilities.”

Mrs Nowland’s family attended every day of the trial. Picture: NewsWire / Monique Harmer

White has not spent any time behind bars on remand since he was charged over the fatal confrontation.

Mrs Nowland’s family said they were “disappointed” with the decision not to detain White after he was found guilty of the manslaughter of their matriarch.

“The family is struggling to understand why the Court felt it was appropriate to leave Mr White on bail and free in the Cooma community without any real restrictions in light of that conviction,” they said in a statement issued by their lawyer Sam Tierney.

Mrs Nowland is survived by eight children, 24 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren.

Originally published as Countdown on for killer cop who tasered 95yo