Kent Police Officers Tasered 92-Year-Old Amputee Donald Burgess With Excessive Force

Two Kent Police constables have been found by a misconduct panel to have used excessive force against Donald Burgess, a 92-year-old amputee, during an incident at his care home. PC Stephen Barfoot and PC Julia Petry were judged to have deployed unnecessary force against Mr Burgess, who subsequently died five weeks after the event in June 2022. While his death was not directly attributed to the Taser deployment, the circumstances surrounding the officers' actions have drawn significant scrutiny.

The incident unfolded after care home staff reported Mr Burgess, who had dementia and had lost a leg, was threatening people with a knife. Upon arrival, officers deployed a Taser on Mr Burgess twice and struck him with a baton. The panel concluded that both officers acted inappropriately during the encounter.

This ruling highlights continuing concerns regarding police use of force, particularly against vulnerable individuals within care settings. The outcome of the misconduct hearing will now determine any disciplinary actions against PC Barfoot and PC Petry, whose approach to de-escalation in such a sensitive situation has been severely criticised.