Latest news with #StLeonardsonSea
Sky News
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Sky News
Police officers who pepper-sprayed and tasered 92-year-old amputee in care home cleared of assault
Two police officers who pepper-sprayed and tasered a 92-year-old disabled man have been cleared of assault. PC Stephen Smith and PC Rachel Comotto went on trial over the incident involving Donald Burgess, a single-leg amputee, at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, on 21 June 2022. Smith, 51, denied with two counts of assault by using Pava spray and a baton, and Comotto denied one charge of assault by discharging her Taser. They were found not guilty following a trial at Southwark Crown Court. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
Daily Mail
28-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Police officers who Tasered and pepper-sprayed 92-year-old amputee in care home are found not guilty of assault
Two police officers who Tasered and pepper-sprayed a 92-year-old amputee in a care home have been found not guilty of assault occasioning actual bodily harm. PC Stephen Smith, 51, and PC Rachel Comotto, 36, were both cleared of charges relating to Donald Burgess, a single-leg amputee and wheelchair user, after he was restrained at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex. The jury at Southwark Crown Court returned a verdict just hours after being sent out for deliberations by a judge earlier today. PC Smith has been cleared of two charges relating to the discharge of Pava spray and a baton, while PC Comotto was cleared of a charge related to discharging her Taser. This is a breaking news story and is being updated.
BBC News
28-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Sussex police officers not guilty of assaulting 92-year-old amputee
Two police officers have been found not guilty of assault occasioning actual bodily harm after a 92-year-old amputee was pepper-sprayed and Tasered at his care Stephen Smith, 51, and Rachel Comotto, 36, denied using excessive force on Donald Burgess at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East care home called 999 in June 2022 after Mr Burgess, a single-leg amputee and wheelchair user, reportedly grabbed a knife and threatened to stab Burgess was taken to hospital where he contracted Covid and died 22 days later, but the officers were not being held responsible for his death.
The Sun
28-05-2025
- Health
- The Sun
Cops CLEARED of assault after video showed them pepper-spray & Taser amputee, 92, who died 3 weeks later
TWO cops have been cleared of assault after they pepper-sprayed and Tasered a 92-year-old amputee who died weeks later. Bodycam footage showed Donald Burgess screaming out during the horror at Park Beck Residential Care Home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex. 8 8 8 PC Rachel Comotto and PC Stephen Smith were called to the residence after Donald poked a worker in the stomach with a butter knife. Smith claimed he did not know the one-legged pensioner was disabled - despite him sitting in a wheelchair - while Comotto denied she was "trigger-happy". The pair have now been found cleared of assault occasioning actual bodily harm following a trial. Southwark Crown Court heard one minute and 23 seconds elapsed between the cops arriving and Donald being Tasered. Bodycam showed him clutching a specially adapted butter knife while sat in his wheelchair when Smith and Comotto entered his room. PC Smith can be heard saying: 'Put it down mate. Come on, Donald, don't be silly. "We can solve it without having to resort to as you're told." He then "emptied all or almost all of his canister" of pepper spray in Donald's face, the court was told. The footage also showed Smith making his way towards the pensioner with his baton extended before striking him. Comotto then deploys her 50,000-volt Taser as Donald screams out in pain before the officers took the knife from him. After shooting him, PC Comotto asked Donald how he was feeling, leading him to reply: "I'm dying, I'm dying." The officers were later seen joking about the shocking incident, jurors heard. 8 8 8 In separate bodycam, Comotto is seen laughing and asking Smith: "Oh my God, is there any left in your can?" Smith replies: "Probably not." The court heard Donald suffered from multiple health conditions including diabetes and carotid artery disease. He was taken to hospital after the incident and died 22 days later after contracting Covid. The court was told the pair were "not responsible for his death". Police had been called to the care home on June 21, 2022, after Donald was seen poking a care worker in the stomach with a knife after flicking food at her. He threatened staff with the blade and told them he would take pleasure in murdering them. Managers wheeled him back to his room and tried for 30 minutes to calm him down before calling 999. The officers were dispatched under a grade one call, meaning it was treated as the highest level of emergency. Jurors were told the care home specialised in support for people with dementia but Donald had not been diagnosed with the disease. Prosecutor Paul Jarvis KC said it "ought to have been obvious by the fact he had one leg that this was a man who wasn't going to be mobile". He added: "This was an elderly, vulnerable man who may not have understood what was going on. "Rather than being met with understanding and sympathy, he was confronted by irritation and annoyance on the part of the defendants." But in their defence, the officers claimed Donald was clutching the knife with a "tight grip". Smith also said he only realised the pensioner was in a wheelchair after he was wheeled out following the incident. He denied two counts of assault by using Pava spray and a baton, while Comotto denied one charge of assault by discharging her Taser. 8 8
The Independent
22-05-2025
- The Independent
Officer's decision to spray amputee, 92, was ‘consistent with training'
A police officer's decision to spray a 92-year-old amputee who threatened to stab care home staff was 'consistent with training', a court has been told. Pc Stephen Smith, 51, faces trial alongside his colleague Pc Rachel Comotto, 36, for allegedly using excessive force on Donald Burgess during an incident at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, in June 2022. Mr Burgess was taken to hospital after the incident, during which he was sprayed with an incapacitant and tasered, and later contracted Covid. He died 22 days later aged 93. The care home had called 999 after Mr Burgess, a single-leg amputee and wheelchair user, reportedly grabbed a knife and threatened to stab staff. Smith previously told the jury sitting at Southwark Crown Court he tried to convince Mr Burgess to drop the knife and warned him he could tasered before deciding to spray Pava synthetic pepper spray into the pensioner's face. Ian Mills, a use of force adviser for the police and expert for the defence, told the court on Thursday: 'That would be consistent with training based on the officer's perception of the threat at the time. 'His (Pc Smith's) use of force, though difficult to watch, was generally in accordance with his training.' Mr Mills said: 'There is the perceived threat of the knife, they (the officers) tried … grabbing the knife, which failed, they tried with threatening Pava, which is not getting a result. 'He (Pc Smith) then states his intention (to use Pava) to ensure the safety of staff and the safety of other residents at the care home.' When Mr Burgess did not drop the knife after he was sprayed, Pc Smith deployed a baton to 'try and knock the knife out of Mr Burgess's hand', the officer previously told the court. Commenting on this incident, Mr Mills agreed the officer used his baton with 'minimal force'. He continued: 'His use of the baton was also in general accordance with training based on the circumstances. 'These choices should be based on the information the officers have at that time and the officers' honestly held beliefs at the time of the incident, even if they are later found to be wrong. ' People are unpredictable, techniques are unreliable, so officers have to adapt to the situation. 'They make split-second decisions based on their perception of the circumstances whilst in fast-moving situations and without the benefit of hindsight.' Mr Mills added the two officers made a 'tactical error' in failing to 'fully explore avenues of information before entering the room' – notably by talking to the care home staff about Mr Burgess. He said: 'There was an opportunity on arrival to the scene to further assess the incident – for example, the medical history and usual behaviour of the subject.' Earlier this week, jurors heard that Smith allegedly emptied a full canister of synthetic Pava spray into Mr Burgess's face and struck him with a baton, with Comotto deploying her Taser – all within one minute and 23 seconds of entering his room. On Thursday, Smith denied this and said he used a 'short burst' of incapacitant on Mr Burgess. Mr Mills seemed to agree with this assessment, stating the can of Pava was used for a total of 2 seconds on Mr Burgess, when it allows for 6 seconds of use at full capacity. Smith denies two counts of assault, relating to his use of Pava spray and a baton, while Comotto denies one count for discharging her Taser. Prosecutors say the force used against Mr Burgess – who had been reportedly threatening staff with a serrated cutlery knife and telling them he would 'take pleasure' in murdering them – was excessive and unnecessary given his age and physical condition. The trial continues.
