93 Year Old Dementia Sufferer Tasered!

[Ken4155]

Surely they must have had an inkling that tasering a 93 y.o. wouldn't end well?

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/police-tasered-93-year-old-disabled-care-home-resident/ar-AA10iHk6?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=ebb37ce1c067470f95d45fbff658a65b

[Zacs-Master]

Ah, ok. Fair cop. My turn to apologise.

[Gromit]

// Police Taser blind man mistaking his white stick for a samurai sword //

https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/oct/17/police-taser-blind-man-stick

[bednobs]

batty little old men (and women) can be incredibly strong and incredibly single minded, and incredibly surprising, as well as being violent

[douglas9401]

I imagine the deceased could hop into action without warning.

[jno]

I can well believe it, bednobs, but if he's in a wheelchair, is a Taser the only solution?

[Ken4155]

Vacate the room, lock the door behind you and wait until he calms down. If the door cannot be locked, just have someone slam it shut each time he tried to open it. No need for pepper spray and tasers.

[Stargazer]

This is typical of some gungho policemen who should never have been allowed the power they automatically receive on joining the Force. Chasing stolen cars at high speed usually ends up with a young boy dying. Letting the police loose with tasers is irresponsible.

[jno]

I don't want to underestimate the risks of tackling an old man with dementia and a knife, but I would have thought if they wanted to avoid the customary chase scene, a couple of bricks between his wheels would have them saying "He won't get far".

[wolf63]

It was a confined space, it probably kicked off quickly and they had to react. I feel for the officers and the staff at the home as well as the old man and his family.

There are no winners in a situation like this - he may have died of something totally unconnected to the incident.

[FatticusInch]

I’ll go with what Sqad said in post #1.

Police dealt with the threat directly in front of them with a proportionate response.
Nothing more, nothing less.
Nobody was Rodney King’ed, they dealt with an immediate threat of a male with a knife in the correct manner.
He died some 3 weeks later, not immediately after Police action.

He was 93 with dementia and had a knife.
Sad though the circumstances were he was hardly getting ready for the space programme, was he?
Nothing to see here people, move on.

[Canary42]

I agree with wolf - there can be no winners sometimes in such situations. Dementia patients can be very aggressive/violent - I'm a bit surprised care home personnel weren't trained to handle such a situation - and I'm not particularly surprised that a rookie cop wasn't so trained. Having said that, the cop does sound a bit trigger-happy. Let's hope the Enquiry reaches a satisfactory conclusion, and recommends better training for such situations.

[Gromit]

// and I'm not particularly surprised that a rookie cop wasn't so trained. //

It does not say anywhere that the police officers involved were new recruits. Unlikely that they would assign two newbies out together. If there was a rookie (it does not say there was), they are more likely to be paired with a very experienced colleague.

[Spicerack]

//Sad though the circumstances were he was hardly getting ready for the space programme, was he?//

What do you mean, Fatticus?

They should drug test the officers.

[Ken4155]

He was in a wheelchair, Fatti. In a room away from other residents. As i said, vacate the room and lock him in until he calmed down. Or fell asleep.
One of the officers pepper sprayed the old guy "within seconds of encountering him." "Within seconds"!!
Wonder if they were nearing the end of their shift:-/

[pixie374]

While it says "wheelchair-bound", the media aren't always that accurate. Maybe he was using one for convenience, as he had lost a leg, but was still able to mobilise? I don't know, but it's hard to presume anything. One of our "frail elderly" men, took out two solid fire doors with a chair.

[Canary42]

///It does not say anywhere that the police officers involved were new recruits///

Sorry Gromit, my bad. But I doubt many cops (if any) receive specialist training for dementia patients. I may be wrong again of course :-)

[vulcan42]

We seem to be producing police personnel based on the American system, act first, think afterwards.

[davebro]

I think the care home staff should have been able to deal with him without calling the police.

[bhg481]

dave - think you've never seen a dementia patient in full flow.

[pixie374]

Dave, you need the police if they need to be sectioned. If he was threatening himself, or hugely distressed.