Three years following the tragic incident where a police officer used a Taser on a 95-year-old resident in aged care, an inquest is set to delve into how dementia patients are treated and how authorities respond to violent situations.
Back in May 2023, then-senior constable Kristian James Samuel White deployed his Taser on Clare Nowland at the Yallambee Lodge nursing home located in Cooma, southern NSW, after being summoned to the scene.
Weighing just 48 kilograms, the elderly great-grandmother, who was living with dementia, suffered a fall and sustained a head injury.
She subsequently passed away in the hospital a week later, never regaining consciousness due to a brain bleed.
In November 2024, a jury in the NSW Supreme Court reached a guilty verdict, convicting White of manslaughter.
He was sentenced to a two-year good behaviour bond in March 2025, a decision that was later upheld by the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal.
With the criminal process concluded, Judge Teresa O’Sullivan will preside over a three-day inquest at Queanbeyan Courthouse starting on Wednesday.
The probe will look into the circumstances of Ms Nowland’s death and White’s discharge of his Taser.
Judge O’Sullivan will also examine how first responders deal with dementia-related incidents of aggression and the adequacy of dementia treatment in aged care facilities.
Mrs Nowland was holding a knife while using a walking frame and had been ignoring staff attempts to disarm her, White’s trial was told.
During a two-minute and 40-second encounter at Yallambee Lodge, White drew his stun gun and pointed it at Mrs Nowland for a minute before saying “nah, bugger it” and discharging the weapon at her chest.
The then-officer was suspended from his job with pay for about 18 months prior to the guilty verdict.
The 36-year-old Cooma man was then suspended without pay before being removed from the force in December 2024.
He took action against NSW Police in the Industrial Relations Commission to regain his position but dropped that bid in August 2025.
NEVER MISS A STORY: Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.