Two police officers in the United Kingdom have been dismissed for gross misconduct after using a baton, pepper spray and a Taser on a 92-year-old amputee at a care home.
PC Stephen Smith and PC Rachel Comotto were called to Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea in June 2022 after resident Donald Burgess allegedly threatened carers with a dinner knife.
Burgess, who had dementia and was a single-leg amputee, was in his wheelchair inside his bedroom when the officers used force against him. He was later taken to hospital, where he contracted COVID-19 and died 22 days after the incident.
The officers were not held responsible for his death.
A disciplinary panel at Sussex Police headquarters in Lewes found that the officers had engaged in an “unjustified and excessive use of force” and dismissed both of them without notice.
They were also placed on the College of Policing’s barred list.
The misconduct panel found that Smith and Comotto had failed to properly de-escalate the situation before using force. It said Smith made no attempt to assess or understand Burgess’ vulnerability, while Comotto “showed no compassion”.
During the week-long hearing, force lawyer Aaron Rathmell said the officers “acted, hastily, harshly and lost control”. He told the panel that Smith had drawn his pepper spray nine seconds after entering Burgess’ room.
Body-worn camera footage showed Smith asking Burgess, “Do you want to be sprayed or Tasered? It’s up to you. Can you put that down for us?” Despite repeated requests, Burgess did not drop the knife.
The panel ruled that Smith had failed to consider leaving the elderly man in his room to calm down and described the use of Pava, a type of pepper spray, as unreasonable in the circumstances.
It also found Smith’s tone and language to have been “dismissive in nature”, while Comotto’s was “antagonistic”. Her comments, including “last chance” and “seriously”, and the limited time she gave Burgess to respond were deemed inappropriate.
Assistant Chief Constable Peter Gardner said Burgess was in his own room, isolated from other residents and posed no risk, adding that officers should have obtained more information from care home staff.
He also said Smith had shown a lack of remorse and insight into the inappropriateness of his actions, while the panel remained concerned by his evidence that he would not have done anything differently.
Sussex Police Deputy Chief Constable Paul Court said he was “appalled” by the officers’ actions and apologised to the Burgess family.
He said their conduct “in no way reflects the conduct of those who serve in Sussex Police, particularly when responding to incidents involving vulnerable people and those in crisis”.
Court added that officers often faced “challenging and unpredictable situations” and had to make split-second decisions to protect the public “with measure, compassion and skill”.
“This was not one of those cases,” he said.
Burgess’ great-nephew, Jason Pye, described him as “a much loved family man” and said he should be remembered for his life rather than the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Pye said justice had been served and that dismissal from Sussex Police was “the only outcome there could have been” for the two officers.
He added, “I hope this is a warning to all officers who show that sort of behaviour going forward.”
