An Australian police officer was found guilty Wednesday of the manslaughter of a 95-year-old woman, who died of her injuries after allegedly groping her during a confrontation at a nursing home.
Senior Constable Christian White is called to a nursing home in May 2023 as Claire Noland – who has shown signs of dementia – slowly wanders the halls with a steak knife.
After repeatedly telling an agitated Noland to drop the knife, White said “bugger him” and fired his stun gun, the NSW Supreme Court heard.
The great-grandmother fell backwards, hit her head, and died in hospital a week later of a brain haemorrhage.
Noland reportedly weighed less than 50kg at the time, and police would later describe him as “frail”.
A jury on Wednesday found the 34-year-old white man guilty of manslaughter after three days of deliberations, a court official said.
White pleaded not guilty, saying he took legitimate steps to address a potential threat.
Police rejected allegations that they tried to cover up the scandal by scrubbing terms like “teaser” from the initial statement.