A confidential affidavit from the assistant commissioner of the NSW Police will be tendered during the trial of an officer accused of causing the death of 95-year-old Clare Nowland, a court has heard.
Senior Constable Kristian White pleaded not guilty to a single charge of manslaughter during his arraignment at the NSW Supreme Court earlier this year, and will stand trial in November.
The 33-year-old officer was called to Yallambee Lodge nursing home in Cooma in the early hours of May 17 last year after great-grandmother Clare Nowland was found holding a knife.
Police allege the Cooma police constable asked Ms Nowland to drop the knife before saying “bugger it” and discharging his Taser at the 95-year-old, who used a walking frame.
Ms Nowland, who was also living with dementia and weighed just 43kg, suffered a brain injury when she fell backwards, and died in hospital days later surrounded by family.
NSW Police Commissioner barrister Rob Bhalla told the Supreme Court on Tuesday a number of confidential documents would likely be used as evidence in the trial.
Among the documents were a confidential affidavit from the NSW Police Assistant Commissioner, Anthony Cooke APM, as well as confidential training manuals.
Chief Judge at Common Law Justice Ian Harrison told the court he “anticipated in due course those documents will gain significance in the proceedings”.
“It may be necessary during the course of the proceedings to receive some evidence in closed court,” he later added, speaking about the tendered documents.
Senior Constable Kristian White was not required to appear before the court on Tuesday, and as of April remained suspended from the NSW Police with pay.
The trial is expected to take four weeks and comes after the family of Ms Nowland settled a lawsuit against the NSW government on “confidential terms”.