Sussex officers dismissed over excessive force against 92-year-old man
Two Sussex Police officers have been dismissed for gross misconduct after a panel found they used unjustified and excessive force against Donald Burgess, a 92-year-old man with dementia, in his care-home room. The case matters because the panel said they failed to assess his vulnerability or try to calm the situation, and instead escalated it.
Officers Stephen Smith and Rachel Comotto had been called to the home in June 2022 after Burgess threatened staff with a dinner knife. Body-worn footage showed him being pepper-sprayed, struck with a baton and Tasered within 83 seconds; the panel found he was isolated in his room and posed no threat to other residents. Both officers were also placed on the College of Policing’s barred list, while Burgess later died after contracting Covid-19.
- Two officers were sacked for gross misconduct.
- A 92-year-old care-home resident was pepper-sprayed, struck and Tasered.
- The panel said officers failed to assess or de-escalate the situation.
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Donald Burgess was a 92-year-old man with dementia who lived in a care home. In June 2022, police were called to his room after he threatened staff with a dinner knife. Body-worn footage showed that within 83 seconds, the officers pepper-sprayed him, struck him with a baton and used a Taser on him.
Burgess was alone in his room and did not pose an immediate threat to other residents. The officers did not attempt to calm the situation or assess his vulnerability before using force. His dementia meant he could not fully understand police instructions or comply with verbal directions.
The incident raises questions about police procedure when responding to vulnerable people in care settings. A disciplinary panel found the officers had used excessive and unjustified force, and both were dismissed from Sussex Police and placed on a national barred list that prevents them from working in policing again.
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The case for
The officers' response to a 92-year-old man with dementia in his isolated care-home room was unjustified and grossly excessive. Body-worn footage demonstrates they escalated to pepper spray, baton strikes, and tasering within 83 seconds without assessing his vulnerability, attempting de-escalation, or recognising he posed no threat to other residents. Professional policing requires heightened duty of care for elderly vulnerable adults, and this response represented a serious breach of professional standards warranting dismissal and barring from future service.
The case against
Officers responded to an emergency call about a man armed with a kitchen knife who had threatened care-home staff, requiring rapid decision-making in an uncertain and potentially threatening situation. Their response reflected standard force protocols they were trained to implement when managing such threats, and the emergency context makes their initial escalation more understandable. Whilst the outcome was tragic and their actions may have been excessive in hindsight, this may reflect a systemic failure in training officers for vulnerable-person interventions rather than gross personal misconduct by officers working within their taught procedures.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Two police officers who Tasered and pepper-sprayed disabled pensioner, 92, in care home are sacked for using excessive force”.