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Australia police officer who Tasered 95-year-old woman Clare Nowland in care home found guilty of manslaughter
Sydney, Australia — A police officer who shocked a 95-year-old nursing home resident with a Taser was found guilty of manslaughter in an Australian court Wednesday. A jury found Kristian James Samuel White guilty in the trial in Sydney after 20 hours of deliberation. White, who is on bail, could get up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced later.
Clare Nowland, a great-grandmother who had dementia and used a walker, was refusing to put down the steak knife she was holding when the officer discharged his Taser at her in May 2023. Nowland fell backward after White shocked her and died a week later in hospital.
Police said at the time that Nowland sustained her fatal injuries from striking her head on the floor, rather than directly from the device’s debilitating electric shock.
Reuters
White’s employment is under review and is subject to legal processes, New South Wales state Police Commissioner Karen Webb told reporters after the verdict.
“The court has found Claire Nowland died as a result of the actions of a police officer. This should never have happened,” Webb said, as she offered her “deepest condolences” to Nowland’s family. The state’s police reviewed its Taser policy and training in January and no changes to it were made, she added.
In video played during the New South Wales Supreme Court trial, White was heard saying “nah, bugger it” before discharging his weapon, after the officers told Nowland 21 times to put the knife down. White, 34, told the jury he had been taught that any person wielding a knife was dangerous, the Guardian reported.
But after an eight-day trial, the jury rejected arguments by White’s lawyers that his use of the Taser was a proportionate response to the threat posed by Nowland, who weighed about 100 pounds.
White and other officers were called to the nursing home by staff who told them a woman was “armed with a knife.”
Police said they urged Nowland to drop the serrated steak knife before she started moving toward them “at a slow pace,” with her walking frame, prompting White to fire his taser at her.
The prosecutor argued that White’s use of the Taser was “utterly unnecessary and obviously excessive,” local news outlets said.
The extraordinary case provoked debate about how officers in the state use Tasers, a device that incapacitates people using electricity.
Nowland, a resident of Yallambee Lodge, a nursing home in the town of Cooma, was survived by eight children, 24 grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.
Lawyers for Nowland’s family filed a separate civil suit last year against the New South Wales state government, seeking damages on behalf of her estate for alleged battery and assault. The suit was settled on private terms in March this year.
Reuters
Cooma businessman and community advocate Andrew Thaler, speaking on Australian television not long after the incident, said Nowland was, “about 5-foot-2 and weighs all of 43 kilos [about 95 pounds], she can’t walk on her own without walking assistance.”
“The use of a Taser, when a kind word was all she needed, if she was confused — which is what happens with people who have dementia — she needed kind words and assistance and help,” Thaler said. “She didn’t need the force of the law.”
Inflation-weary Americans still plan to spend more than ever this holiday season.
Individual shoppers are projected to spend $641 on gifts and just over $900 in total, according to the National Retail Federation. Another survey conducted this month by Gallup forecasts the overall holiday spending tab at an even higher $1,012 per person.
The most popular category for gifts? Clothing, according to the trade group, which commissioned a survey of 8,135 adults in early November, followed by gift cards, toys, books, video games, and food or candy. More than 183 million Americans are expected to shop during the Thanksgiving Day weekend, the NRF said.
Holiday spending is expected to hit record levels in November and December, growing between 2.5% and 3.5% from 2023 to upwards of $989 billion, the group forecast earlier in the month.
From the start of November through November 24, holiday shoppers had already spent $77.4 billion, according to Adobe Analytics, which tracks spending data in real time. In good news for retailers during what is a key sales period, Adobe forecasts holiday revenue in 2024 to approach $241 billion, which would surpass last year’s figure of roughly $221 billion.
Holiday spending on gift cards is expected to reach $28.6 billion, with the average shopper buying three to four gift cards and spending an average of $51.18 on each, the NRF estimated.
Hot toys
The NRF poll also asked people what kind children’s toys they planned to buy. Here are the top 10 for boys and girls:
Boys
- Legos
- Hot Wheels
- Cars
- Video games
- PlayStation
- Remote controlled cars
- Video game consoles
- Nerf products
- Spider-Man
- Trucks
Girls
- Barbie
- Dolls
- Legos
- Makeup/beauty
- Disney items
- Baby dolls
- Barbie Dreamhouse
- Clothes
- Electronics
- Squishmallows
Toys, video games and electronics will be key drivers of holiday spending, according to Adobe. Among other predictions, the company. expects Bluey Ultimate Lights & Sounds Playhouse to fly off virtual and physical shelves as a gift with strong appeal to the show’s fan base of 3- to 4-year-olds. Popular gifts this holiday season, Adobe found.
- Bluey toys
- Smartphones
- Bluetooth headphones
- MGA’s Miniverse items
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 video game
Not all fun and games
The holidays are also a time to consider safety in buying toys, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
“From online shopping to in-person gatherings, safety and protecting our children should be a top priority this holiday season,” CPSC Chair Alex Hoehn-Saric said in a statement. “By being mindful of product hazards, checking for recalls and purchasing from reputable sources, you can protect your loved ones and ensure a joyous and accident-free holiday for all.”
In 2023, an estimated 154,700 children 12 years or younger were treated in emergency rooms due to toy-related injuries, and 10 kids died in toy-related incidents, the federal agency stated.
Non-motorized scooters accounted for the largest share of injuries — 53,000 — in 2023, and were involved in more than one in every five toy-related injury for children under 15, CPSC found.
Most toy-related deaths related to:
- Choking on small balls or rayons
- Drownings linked to flotation toys
- Entrapment inside a toy chest
- Ingestion of water beads
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The Trump transition team said Wednesday that several of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet and administration picks were targeted in overnight attacks that ranged from “swatting” incidents to bomb threats.
Trump transition spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that law enforcement and other authorities responded quickly to the reported threats to ensure the safety of the targeted people in Trump’s orbit. “Swatting” is the action of falsely calling emergency services in an effort to send armed police officers to a specific address or target in a threatening way.
“Last night and this morning, several of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees and administration appointees were targeted in violent, unAmerican threats to their lives and those who live with them,” Leavitt said in a statement. “These attacks ranged from bomb threats to ‘swatting.’ In response, law enforcement and other authorities acted quickly to ensure the safety of those who were targeted. President Trump and the entire transition team are grateful for their swift action.”
Leavitt didn’t offer specifics about who was targeted or where, but Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump’s pick to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, was among the targets, her office said, with a bomb threat to her New York home.
“This morning, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, her husband, and their three year old son were driving home to Saratoga County from Washington for Thanksgiving when they were informed of a bomb threat to their residence,” Stefanik’s office said in a statement Wednesday morning. “New York State, County law enforcement, and U.S. Capitol Police responded immediately with the highest levels of professionalism. We are incredibly appreciative of the extraordinary dedication of law enforcement officers who keep our communities safe 24/7. We want to share our best wishes to the Upstate NY community for a happy and safe Thanksgiving. We are especially grateful to our law enforcement officers and military families who are on duty over the holiday season.”
The home of Howard Lutnick, Trump’s pick to be secretary of commerce who is a transition adviser, was also threatened, according to the New York Police Department. NYPD said a 911 call came in reporting a terrorist bomb threat at his home.
The FBI said in a statement that it’s aware of “numerous bomb threats and swatting incidents targeting incoming administration nominees and appointees” and is working with law enforcement partners.
“We take all potential threats seriously, and as always, encourage members of the public to immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement,” the agency said.
The White House, Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Capitol Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The incidents come months after Trump himself was the target of two attempted assassinations —one in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, that left him wounded and another on Sept. 15, when a man was arrested with a gun 500-700 yards away from Trump at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida. And on Tuesday, the Justice Department said an Arizona man was arrested on Nov. 21 for allegedly making threats against Trump and his family.
Since Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election, he has announced most of his picks for top posts in his administration as he prepares to return to the White House. Some of the selections have been the subject of scrutiny, facing questions about their viability in the Senate’s confirmation process. One pick, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, withdrew himself from consideration last week.
Robert Legare and
contributed to this report.