Jury deliberate over force used on amputee, 92

The jury in the trial of two police officers accused of using excessive force against a 92-year-old amputee have begun their deliberations.

PCs Stephen Smith, 51, and Rachel Comotto, 36, have denied using excessive force on Donald Burgess at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex.

The care home called 999 in June 2022 after Mr Burgess, a single-leg amputee and wheelchair , reportedly grabbed a knife and threatened to stab staff.

Mr Burgess was taken to hospital where he contracted Covid and died 22 days later, aged 93, but the officers are not being held responsible for his death.

Judge Christopher Hehir, summarising the evidence on at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday, told jurors: "The reason for his behaviour that day, we now know, is that he was delirious as a result of a urinary tract infection."

PC Smith sprayed synthetic Pava pepper spray into Mr Burgess's face and struck his wrist with a baton, with PC Comotto deploying her Taser, all within a minute and 23 seconds of entering the pensioner's room, the court was told.

PC Smith denies two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm for his use of Pava spray and for using a baton, while PC Comotto denies one count related to her use of a Taser on Mr Burgess.

Judge Hehirsaid jurors should reach their decision "with their heads, not their hearts".

Prosecutors claim the force used against Mr Burgess, who had been reportedly waving a serrated cutlery knife around and telling staff he would "take pleasure" in murdering them, was "unjustified and unlawful" given his age and physical condition.

PC Smith previously told jurors he did not see that Mr Burgess was disabled and using a wheelchair as he was focused on the knife the pensioner was holding in his hand.

During his evidence, he denied emptying a full can of Pava in Mr Burgess's face, saying it was "a short burst".

He also denied hitting Mr Burgess with a baton, claiming he instead flicked the baton towards the pensioner's wrist to "knock the knife out" of his hand.

During her evidence, PC Comotto said she believed using the Taser was the safest way to "protect" Mr Burgess as she feared her colleague using the baton again would cause more harm.

"I'm not a trigger-happy officer," she told jurors.

"It's the first time I've fired my Taser."

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