Dramatic moment girl, 10, tasered by cop after she threatened mum with shears – as officer cleared of gross misconduct
THIS is the shocking moment a 10-year-old girl is tasered by a cop after she threatened her mum with shears.
A terrifying call from the desperate woman, who feared her daughter was going to attack her with the garden tool and a hammer, was made to the Met Police in January 2021.
Two officers raced to an address in south west London moments after the plea for help to 999.
PC Jonathan Broadhead entered the property with his colleague to find the youngster holding the garden shears.
Seconds after the mum opened the door, PC Broadhead shouted to the girl, named only as Child A: “Put it down now. Put it down now.”
Bodycam footage shows him then charge through the home – following Child A to the staircase.
Before she could make a getaway, PC Broadhead then tasered the girl shouting: “Taser, taser.”
Loosing control of her body, Child A collapsed on the stairs with the shears falling at her side.
As she screamed out in pain, PC Broadhead continued to press down on the button – sending volts through the child.
His response led to a lengthy investigation which saw him accused of using force “which was not necessary, reasonable and proportionate” against the girl.
But on Thursday, during his Met Police gross misconduct hearing at Palestra House, in London, the panel’s chairwoman, Catherine Elliot, said that PC Broadhead had not breached police standards.
She said: “Having considered the evidence in great detail… the panel has concluded that PC Broadhead’s use of Taser on Child A was necessary, reasonable and proportionate in all the circumstances.
“The allegations are therefore not proved.
“The panel concludes that in discharging the first Taser, PC Broadhead’s action was based upon his honestly held belief she presented a risk to himself and others, and that this belief was reasonable in all the circumstances.
“It follows that when the first activation failed it was necessary and reasonable for him to discharge the Taser again.”
PC Broadhead told the panel “taser was the best option I had” as he described Child A as being armed.
Giving evidence on Tuesday, he said: “I was worried what her intentions were with the shears, why, as soon as she’d seen us, she’d picked the shears up.
“I was worried what she was going to do with them.”
Olivia Checa-Dover, presenting the case for the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) watchdog, argued Child A posed “no immediate threat”.
She also claimed her age was not properly factored into PC Broadhead’s decision making.
The child’s mother, referred to only as Miss A, previously said she was “shocked [by] the way things were handled” and she only wanted cops to de-escalate the situation.
Miss A called the police after Child A threatened her with the tools when she confiscated her mobile phone due to a safeguarding concern, the panel previously heard.
She feared the girl’s behaviour may have been affected by consuming cannabis edibles and on Monday said that Child A hit her with the hammer after she called 999.
The incident left Child A with “three barbs in her skin” which had to be removed by paramedics and she spent a night in hospital, it was heard.
Met Police Commander Jon Savell said it was “an extremely rare and unusual case”.
He added: “In the immediate days after the incident, a senior officer visited the address to apologise for the trauma caused to the girl and her family.
“Although no misconduct has been found, we repeat this apology today.
“The panel found that PC Broadhead did not breach professional standards based on the information known to him at the time and the clear threat presented, and that he had acted in accordance with his training for the safety of all those involved.”
The IOPC launched an investigation into PC Broadhead’s conduct in March 2021, after the force referred a complaint from Child A’s dad.
IOPC regional director Mel Palmer said: “Following our investigation, it was our view that an independent disciplinary panel could – based on the evidence – find that the officer had committed gross misconduct by breaching the standard of professional behaviour for use of force.
“But only a disciplinary panel – led by an independent, legally-qualified chair – can decide if the gross misconduct allegation is proven and the panel has now decided that the officer’s use of force was reasonable and proportionate in the circumstances.
“We did find the officers provided adequate aftercare to the child by calling paramedics to remove the Taser barbs, performing a partial search and keeping her in handcuffs.
“This meant that the barbs were not moved, which may have caused her further pain.”