Police officer who Tasered suspected burglar on shed earlier than fall left him in a wheelchair is cleared of assault

A police officer has been cleared of assault after firing his Taser at a suspected burglar who then fell from a shed and was left with injuries needing a wheelchair.

PC Liam Newman, 31, gave chase and twice discharged his stun gun towards 61-year-old Leonard Sandiford, who suffered life-changing injuries from the incident in Woodford Green, east London.

Police bodyworn footage showed the officer firing his weapon at Mr Sandiford who gave a yell before continuing an escape attempt, only to endure an ‘uncontrolled and supported fall’.

Mr Sandiford fell from a height of up to 6ft and suffered serious injuries that have left him ‘tetraplegic’ and using a wheelchair.

PC Newman, based at Ilford police station, insisted he and others were in ‘imminent danger of harm’ from Mr Sandiford when he fired his Taser.

He also said he was not aware whether the suspect was armed but believed there was a high risk ‘because of the blatancy of the crime‘.

PC Newman denied inflicting grievous bodily harm and was today was unanimously acquitted of the charge by a jury at Southwark Crown Court.

The officer had been on restricted duties since the incident. Scotland Yard now says it will liaise with the Independent Office for Police Conduct over potential misconduct proceedings. 

When summing up, Judge Gregory Perrins told jurors there was no dispute PC Newman had reasonable grounds to suspect Mr Sandiford was involved in an offence, adding: ‘The issue is whether his use of force was reasonable in the circumstances.’

Ahmed Sheikh, prosecuting, said a member of the public had called police to report an attempted burglary of Coral bookmakers in Chigwell Road, Woodford Green, on April 24 2022 just before 5am.

Newman and a colleague, PC Colin Searle, responded to the call and rushed to the scene in a marked police vehicle.

As they approached, PC Searle saw a white Ford van driven by Mr Sandiford facing away, on the pavement, with the rear of the vehicle closest to a line of shops.

The van then reversed as PC Newman banged his baton on the side of the van and tried to pull Sandiford out, shouting at the suspect to get on his knees.

Mr Sheikh said: ‘Mr Sandiford bent his knees slightly, as if going to the pavement onto his knees but instead started to run He ran away from the officers, who began to chase after him.’

As Mr Sandiford was running away, PC Newman fired his taser, the court heard.

The suspect then ran down a cul-de-sac and ended up at a wooden fence, at the back of a residential property.

He climbed through a gap in the fence and over a concrete wall towards a ‘shed-like structure’, the court heard.

The prosecutor said footage from bodyworn cameras worn by the officers ‘captures the moment that PC Newman then fires his taser, twice’, adding: ‘The first time, Mr Sandiford gave out a yell but continued briefly on his way.

‘The second discharge managed to incapacitate Mr Sandiford, leading him to lose control of his muscles. He appears to fall forward and his feet come up in the air.’

PC Newman fired his Taser when Mr Sandiford appeared to have his left foot on the concrete boundary wall and so was off the ground, at a distance equivalent to the height of that wall.

PC Newman had been on training programmes for the deployment and use of tasers, the court was told.

Mr Sheikh said: ‘That training highlighted the risks involved where subjects were running away and the risk of injury being increased as they would be moving at a higher speed. That risk increased further when a subject was at a height.

‘A person being incapacitated in these circumstances would inevitably lead to the risk of an uncontrolled and unsupported fall.

‘The risk of injury being caused in these circumstances, the prosecution say, should have been obvious to PC Newman.

‘The discharge of his taser, in these circumstances, was an unreasonable use of force; the risk of Mr Sandiford falling in the way he did, and you have just seen, once he was incapacitated, should have been obvious to the defendant.

‘Mr Sandiford was simply running away. He was not a threat to these officers.’

The London Ambulance Service was called after the fall and Mr Sandiford was taken by ambulance to nearby Whipps Cross Hospital.

The prosecutor said: ‘A CT scan of the cervical spine reported as fracture to Cervical 5 of the vertebral body. An MRI scan revealed ligamentous injury and some damage to the spinal cord.

Mr Sandiford was later transferred to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, where surgery was carried out to repair the injury and damage to the spinal cord.

A neurological examination revealed Mr Sandiford had no strength in the upper and lower limbs and nor could he feel any sensation in those limbs.

In an interview read to jurors, PC Newman told how he and PC Searle were called to the Coral bookies after reports of ‘loud banging’ in an apparent break-in.

He said: ‘They were using a large vehicle, based on the banging,’ said the officer. At this point I wasn’t sure that the suspects had weapons.

‘I thought the risk was quite high because of the blatancy of the crime. There was damge to the property and the risk of burglary. The driver was revving the car very loudly.’

He said the van began to roll backwards as the driver tried to get into gear, adding: ‘I feared for my life.’

PC Newman described pulling out his baton and banging on the side of the van, saying: ‘I hit the window as hard as I could but it didn’t break.

‘There was a genuine and immediate threat to my life. I was really scared.’

He said Mr Sandiford did not say anything but kept trying to get the van into first gear, as he shouted at the suspect: ‘Stop. Police. Get on your f***ing knees.’

PC Newman insisted the driver had just tried to run him over, as he told his interview ignored him before fleeing down Chigwell Road as both officers gave chase.

PC Newman said he was concerned for any children or elderly people in the properties as Mr Sandiford slipped through a gap in fencing.

The officer said: ‘His lack of regard was incredibly worrying. He had already driven at police officers. I had an honest belief that people in the properties were at imminent risk of harm from the suspect.

‘The only tactical option was to activate my Taser with the intention of stopping him before he went into a rear garden.’

Pc Newman said Mr Sandiford was on a ‘flat surface’ when shot for the second time and the officer did not believe the suspect was in danger, adding: ‘He took a couple of steps and fell down out of my view.’

PC Newman described the powers used to apprehend Mr Sandiford as ‘common law’, telling how he himself was in ‘imminent danger of harm from the suspect’ while he described the Tasering a ‘pre-emptive strike’.

The officer added: ‘There were multiple occasions when he could have given himself up to the police – I believe I have acted lawfully and was doing my job.

‘My job is to stop this person from harming me, from harming Colin and to not get away with this offence.’

He also told of his concerns following the death in Berkshire in August 2019 of PC Andrew Harper, who was ‘dragged along and killed’ when he tried to stop three teenagers in their getaway car after the theft of a quad bike.

Pc Newman added: ‘You think about these things.’ 

Giving evidence, Mr Sandiford had told the court he remembered running from police and something hitting him in his neck or back.

He added: ‘Then my lights went out. I woke up in the Royal London Hospital about two months later.’

Kevin Baumber, defending, asked whether he had been trying to burgle the betting shop, which Mr Sandiford denied.

He told the court he ran from police because he had been ‘spooked’ after seeing a truncheon and a Taser, adding: ‘I made a promise to my children that I wouldn’t go down that road again and I wouldn’t go back to prison. 

‘I just told myself, I ain’t going to jail for something I ain’t done.’

Speaking following PC Newman’s acquittal, Chief Supt Stuart Bell, responsible for policing in Redbridge, said: ‘Our thoughts today are with Mr Sandiford who has been left with life-changing injuries following this tragic incident.

‘It is always a matter of huge regret when an individual comes to harm following contact with police and vital that in such circumstances officers be held to the highest level of scrutiny.

‘They face challenging situations everyday and have to make difficult decisions in the moment.

‘We understand the concern caused by incidents of this nature and will be working with our local residents, partner agencies, and key members of those communities directly affected to understand any impact and provide support.

‘We believe that Taser remains a vital tool but will continue to review its use and provide regular training to officers to ensure they are using the tactic appropriately.’

The force added: ‘PC Newman has been on restricted duties since the incident. Now that criminal matters have concluded, we will liaise with the IOPC around misconduct proceedings.’