The sentencing of former police officer Kristian White for the manslaughter of 95-year-old Clare Nowland has ignited fierce debate, with compelling statistical evidence highlighting just how lenient his punishment appears.
White, convicted of fatally tasering the frail great-grandmother in an aged care facility, received a two-year community correction order and 425 hours of community service instead of prison time.
When viewed against sentencing trends for manslaughter in New South Wales, this outcome stands out as a striking anomaly, fuelling outrage among the victim’s family, the public, and legal voices like Sydney Criminal Lawyers, who have decried the decision as a failure of justice.
A Sentence Out of Step with the Norm
Data from the Judicial Commission of New South Wales paints a clear picture of how exceptional White’s non-custodial sentence is. Since 24 September 2018, 146 individuals have been sentenced for manslaughter in the state.
Of these, 144 ( 98.6%) were ordered to serve prison terms, with an average full-term sentence of 8.5 years and an average non-parole period of 4.5 years.
Only two offenders, a mere 1.4%, received community correction orders, a sanction akin to a good behaviour bond with conditions like community service.
White’s penalty, which spares him incarceration despite a maximum possible sentence of 25 years, places him in this tiny minority, raising serious questions about its adequacy.
The circumstances of the case make this leniency even more jarring. On 17 May 2023, White, then a senior constable, responded to a call at Yallambee Lodge in Cooma, where Mrs Nowland, a 45-kilogram dementia patient reliant on a walking frame, was holding a steak knife during a mental health episode.
Rather than de-escalating or disarming her without lethal force, he discharged his taser twice—once into her chest and once into her back—causing her to fall, fracture her skull, and die in hospital.
Unlike cases where community correction orders might apply, such as near-accidental deaths, White’s actions were deliberate and reckless, a far cry from the norm justifying such a light penalty.
A Statistical Benchmark Ignored
The near-universal imposition of prison sentences for manslaughter underscores a judicial expectation that taking a life, especially through intentional acts, warrants significant punishment.
The average 8.5-year term reflects a balance of factors like deterrence, accountability, and the protection of the community – principles that appear sidelined in White’s case.
With only 1.4% of offenders avoiding jail, the statistics suggest that non-custodial outcomes are reserved for exceptional circumstances, typically involving minimal culpability or unintended consequences.
Tasering a vulnerable elderly woman twice, however, aligns more closely with the 98.6% of cases deemed serious enough for imprisonment, not the rare exceptions.
This disparity is particularly striking given White’s training as a police officer.
Guidelines from the New South Wales Police Force caution that tasers can be lethal, especially to physically frail individuals, and should not be used in situations like this.
His decision to deploy the weapon against a 95-year-old who posed no credible threat deviates sharply from expected conduct, yet the sentence fails to reflect this breach.
Statistically, such recklessness would typically land an offender among the 144 incarcerated, not the two who walked free with conditions.
Sydney Criminal Lawyers and Public Outrage Amplify the Critique
Prominent legal firm Sydney Criminal Lawyers has seized on these statistics to argue that White’s sentence is manifestly inadequate.
Led by Principal Ugur Nedim, a veteran criminal defence lawyer with over 26 years of experience, and supported by writer Emma Starr, the firm has echoed the dismay of Mrs Nowland’s family and the wider public.
The Nowlands, grieving the loss of a cherished mother and great-grandmother, called the penalty a “slap on the wrist,” a view Sydney Criminal Lawyers shares, pointing to the statistical norm of prison time as evidence of a miscarriage of justice.
Their stance resonates with a public stunned that a trained officer could escape jail for such a grave act.
The firm has highlighted how the sentence undermines accountability, especially for law enforcement. They argue that the 98.6% incarceration rate reflects a societal demand for punishment and deterrence – goals unmet by a community correction order.
Sydney Criminal Lawyers suggests that White’s former police status may have swayed Justice Ian Harrison’s decision in the Supreme Court, a perception that only deepens the family’s and public’s sense of betrayal.
They join calls for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to appeal, citing the statistical precedent as grounds for a review by the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal.
A Call for Justice Grounded in Numbers
The statistics leave little room for doubt: White’s sentence is an outlier that defies the established pattern for manslaughter in New South Wales.
For Clare Nowland’s loved ones, the public, and advocates like Sydney Criminal Lawyers, this leniency feels like a denial of her worth and a failure to uphold justice.
With 144 out of 146 offenders serving time, the question looms – why not White? As pressure mounts for an appeal, the numbers stand as a stark testament to a punishment that falls far short of what the crime, and the data, demand.
