As the Police Investigation into how and why a senior constable of 12-years used a taser to disarm Clare Nowland at an aged care facility last week, the 95-year-old has been visited by her local priest.
The Daily Telegraph spoke to Father Mark Croker, who visited Mrs Nowland in Cooma Hospital on Sunday, where she is receiving end of life care.
“She looks peaceful, she’s not conscious but she certainly looks comfortable,” Fr Croker, who conducted a bedside mass yesterday told The Telegraph.
Fr Croker said Mrs Nowland's eight children had been with her.
“They are a big family, so they’re coming in and out ... but they’re speaking to Clare, they say the last of your senses to go is your hearing, so we know she can hear us,” Fr Croker said.
Police were called to aged care facility Yallambee Lodge at about 4am on Wednesday morning after Nowland, who has dementia, was holding a steak knife.
Nowland, who weighs 43 kilograms, was allegedly using a walking frame, holding the knife and approaching police "slowly". The police officers attempted to negotiate with Nowland to drop the knife, which she refused to do.
A male senior constable with more than a decade working for the police force, then tasered Nowland, causing her to fall and hit her head on the ground. She has been left with critical injuries, including a fractured skull and brain bleed and is not expected to survive the attack.
Patrick McGrath, director of community engagement at St Vincent de Paul, where Nowland volunteered for 50 years, described her as a "tireless worker" and said there has been a "level of shock" in the community following the incident.
Video footage of the incident, which has been described by Assistant Commissioner Peter Cotter as "confronting" was captured by the officers' body cams and will now form part of the investigation being led by homicide squad detectives.
Top Comments
I wasn't there, I didn't see it, but I can 100% guarentee that I could disarm a 95 year old woman on a walker with a knife without tasering her. That office did not fear for his safety, my guess he was frustrated.
Not sure why you are going so hard to defend this police officer when his own team aren't.