A police officer joked on social media after using a Taser on a 92-year-old dementia patient, a disciplinary hearing was told. PC Rachel Comotto, 37, deployed a 50,000-volt Taser on Donald Burgess, an amputee residing at Park Beck care home in St Leonards-on-Sea, in June 2022. The incident occurred after Burgess threatened to stab staff members with a dinner knife.

Video evidence presented at the hearing showed PC Stephen Smith, 52, pepper spraying Burgess and striking him with a baton when the elderly man refused to put down the knife. Burgess was visibly in pain after the Taser barbs penetrated his chest, delivering a painful electric shock. He died three weeks later from a cardiac arrest.

Both officers face accusations of using excessive force, which they deny, and are currently under investigation for alleged misconduct. The hearing, taking place in Lewes, is examining the circumstances surrounding the use of force.

In addition to the incident itself, the panel was shown a Facebook exchange hours after the event in which Comotto responded to a colleague’s birthday message with a comment reading, “we all know what happens in care homes,” accompanied by a lightning bolt emoji — a reference to the Taser deployment. Comotto told the hearing she had been the subject of ridicule by fellow officers and that her comment was at her own expense.

She acknowledged the remark appeared inappropriate and apologized to Burgess’s family, emphasizing that it was not intended to mock the patient but was instead self-directed humor. The disciplinary proceedings continue as investigators consider the testimonies and evidence related to the case.