Police Commissioner speaks on 95 year-old Clare Nowland’s unlawful killing at the hands of Senior Constable Kristian White

Police officer Kristian White walked out of court on Wednesday after being found guilty of unlawfully killing a 95-year-old woman with a taser.

Police officer Kristian White leaves the Supreme Court on Wednesday after being found guilty of Manslaughter. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short

The death of 95 year-old Clare Nowland due to the actions of a police officer should “never have happened”, NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb has said, after a jury found Senior Constable Kristian White guilty of manslaughter.

Constable White walked out of court on Wednesday after he was found to have unlawfully killed the great-grandmother’s death when he fired his service taser at her chest at the Yallambee Lodge nursing home in Cooma on May 17 last year. The judge said he first wanted to consider the conditions under which the cop would be held.

The jury heard Constable White issued several warnings as Mrs Nowland approached him with both hands on her walking frame and holding a knife, saying “bugger it” and firing the weapon at her. Mrs Nowland fell backwards and struck her head on the floor, sustaining critical injuries.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb at a press conference in Sydney CBD. Picture: Rohan Kelly

“I want to start by saying the death of Clare Nowland is a terrible tragedy, and my deepest condolences again go to the Nowland family,” Commissioner Webb said at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon, adding that she planned to speak with the family in the near future.

“The court has found Clare Nowland died as a result of the actions of a police officer. This should never have happened.”

She said Constable White’s employment was under review, and the process would likely be dealt with on Wednesday afternoon. His ongoing employment will likely come before the Commissioner next week, and she said it was appropriate that she had not spoken to the Constable since the events took place in anticipation of the decision.

Following the verdict, Justice Ian Harrison continued Constable White’s bail, saying “I will not commit a policeman to custody until I understand the conditions under which he will be held, if he is to be held. It goes without saying, in the interim, I propose to continue bail until that issue is determined to my satisfaction.”

A detention application brought by the ODPP will be heard in court tomorrow to determine whether his bail should be revoked until his sentence date.

Constable White faced an eight day trial in the NSW Supreme Court this month after pleading not guilty to manslaughter.

After four days of deliberation, the four women and eight men of the jury found Constable White guilty of unlawfully killing Mrs Nowland either by way of criminal negligence or a dangerous or criminal act. The police officer will face sentencing later this year.

Clare Nowland was allegedly tasered by police at an aged care home in Cooma. Picture: Supplied

The jury were persuaded by Crown prosecutor Brett Hatfield SC that Constable White breached the duty of care he owed to the grandmother because his actions “involved such a high risk that really serious bodily harm would occur to (her).”

Mr Hatfield argued the discharge of the taser was a disproportionate response to the situation, given the great-grandmother’s advanced age, frailty, lack of mobility, and symptoms of dementia.

“This was such an utterly unnecessary and obviously excessive use of force on Mrs Nowland that it warrants punishment for manslaughter,” he told the jury during his closing statement on Tuesday.

In delivering a guilty verdict, the jury rejected the arguments put by Constable White’s barrister Troy Edwards SC that the response was proportional to the threat posed by Mrs Nowland carrying a knife.

He maintained Constable White’s decision to deploy his taser was in line with his duty as a police officer to protect others and prevent a breach of the peace.

Constable White and Acting Sergeant Jessica Pank were called to Yallambee Lodge to respond to a triple-0 call for assistance with a “very aggressive resident” who was holding two knives.

The court has heard Mrs Nowland entered the rooms of four residents prior to their arrival just before 5am, and she had thrown a knife at one of the nursing home staff.

“It’s not the case that the accused could have turned on his heels … It was his job to obtain a resolution,” Mr Edwards said in his closing statement on Tuesday.

“He had to disarm her.”

Mr Hatfield dismissed the defence, telling the jury they might consider that Constable White’s words “bugger it” showed he was “fed up, impatient, not prepared to wait any longer.”

Constable White’s interaction with Mrs Nowland lasted less than three minutes, one of which was spent holding a Taser at her before pulling the trigger.

The jury heard the great-grandmother found it difficult to follow instructions and became uncharacteristically aggressive before her death, which a geriatrician attributed to her undiagnosed dementia.

She weighed less than 48 kgs and relied on her walking frame to shuffle around the nursing home, the court was told.

Mrs Nowland is survived by eight children, 24 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren, many of whom sat in the public gallery throughout the duration of the trial.

Additional reporting: NEWSWIRE