An Australian police officer has been charged with manslaughter after tasering a 95-year-old woman with dementia.
Clare Nowland, a great-grandmother, died in hospital a week after she was tasered at the nursing home where she lived in May.
Police had been called out to the home in Cooma, New South Wales, by staff who reported a resident was armed with a knife.
A 33-year-old senior constable, Kristian White, is alleged to have tasered Nowland at the home after asking her to drop a steak knife she was holding.
Nowland, who had a walking aid, fell and hit her head, fracturing her skull.
White, who has since been suspended with pay, was initially charged with multiple offenses including recklessly causing grievous bodily harm and assault.
In a statement published online on Wednesday, New South Wales Police said: “Following advice from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad have today laid an additional charge of Manslaughter against a 33-year-old Senior Constable attached to the Monaro Police District.”
Australian journalists reported Mrs Nowland had thrown a knife at staff before police arrived.
Court documents said when White and another officer found her, accompanied by ambulance staff, she was in a room holding one of the knives.
The other officer attempted to grab the knife, but Nowland is said to have moved towards them with her walker.
White then allegedly pulled out and activated his taser, telling the victim: “Clare, stop now, see this, this is a taser, drop it now, drop it, this is your first warning.”
She then raised the hand holding the knife to chest height, according to the court documents, and he struck her with the taser in the chest area, causing her to fall and hit her head, still holding her walker.
Mrs Nowland is said to have weighed under seven stone and was 5ft 2ins tall.
White, who is due to appear in court on December 6, has yet to enter a plea.
