A Sydney jury found police officer Kristian James Samuel White guilty of manslaughter on Wednesday for using a Taser on a 95-year-old nursing home resident.

Following a 20-hour deliberation, White, currently on bail, faces a potential 25-year prison sentence at his upcoming sentencing hearing.

The incident involved Clare Nowland, a great-grandmother with dementia, who was holding a steak knife when White deployed his Taser in May 2023. Nowland fell, hitting her head, and died a week later in hospital.

The court determined Nowland’s fatal injuries resulted from the head injury sustained in the fall, not directly from the Taser.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb announced that White’s employment is under review, pending legal proceedings. Webb expressed deep condolences to Nowland’s family, stating that Nowland’s death, resulting from a police officer’s actions, “should never have happened.” She also noted that a January review of the state’s Taser policy and training resulted in no changes.

Court video footage revealed White saying “nah, bugger it” before using his Taser, despite officers having repeatedly, 21 times, instructed Nowland to drop the knife. White, 34, testified that his training dictated that anyone wielding a knife was considered dangerous.

The jury rejected the defense’s argument that White’s Taser use was a proportionate response to the threat posed by the approximately 100-pound Nowland.

Prosecutors argued that White’s actions were “utterly unnecessary and obviously excessive,” according to local news reports.

This case sparked widespread debate regarding the use of Tasers by police officers in New South Wales.

Nowland, a resident of Yallambee Lodge in Cooma, is survived by eight children, 24 grandchildren, and 31 great-grandchildren.