A paramedic has told an inquest she felt 'absolute shock and disbelief' when a police officer fatally tasered a 95-year-old woman with dementia in a New South Wales nursing home. Intensive care paramedic Anna Hofner was present when then-senior constable Kristian James Samuel White fired his stun gun at Clare Nowland at Yallambee Lodge in Cooma on 17 May 2023.
Hofner told Queanbeyan coroner's court on Wednesday that the use of the Taser seemed 'excessive' and disproportionate to the incident. Emergency services had been called after Nowland, who had symptoms of dementia, took two serrated steak knives from the kitchen and refused to give them up. The 48kg great-grandmother fell and hit her head after being struck by the Taser's barbs, and died in hospital a week later from a brain bleed.
The inquest heard that a 'pause point' for first responders to discuss next steps could have been valuable, given Nowland's mobility issues. Counsel assisting Sophie Callan SC said one alternative was to wait it out, closing the only door and monitoring her through the window. Callan described the death as having 'rocked her family, the local community and the broader NSW community to its core'.
Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan is examining systemic issues, including dementia care and training for aged care staff, police and ambulance officers. The court heard that one in four people over 80 has dementia, with numbers expected to double in 20 years. At the time of the incident, neither NSW police nor ambulance officers had specific training for responding to people with dementia.
White was found guilty of manslaughter in November 2024 and sentenced to a two-year good behaviour bond in March 2025, a decision upheld on appeal. He was dismissed from the force in December 2024 and later dropped a bid to regain his position.
