Posted on 09/05/2010 12:19:47 AM PDT by The Magical Mischief Tour
MIDDLETOWN — Police and school officials are investigating why a student at Middletown High School was tasered at lunchtime Friday after stealing food from the cafeteria.
Police said the student was "dry-stunned." Unlike a typical act of tasing, dry-stunning eliminates the use of projectiles. The Taser is held against the person’s skin and is intended to cause pain without incapacitating the victim.
Around noon, a 17-year-old student was caught stealing a Jamaican pattie and was approached by officers Kurt Scrivo and school resource officer Alex Rodriguez, of the Middletown Police Department. When the two officers told the senior that he was under arrest and began placing handcuffs on him, he allegedly became violent.
Soon after, his brother, a ninth-grader at the high school, attempted to defend his brother and reportedly joined in on the fight.
At that point, the older student was dry-stunned by one of the officers and was arrested for breach of peace, interfering with an officer and larceny, according to Sgt. Mike Marino. He is currently being held on a $5,000 bond.
His younger brother was arrested for breach of peace and interfering with an officer but has since been released into his mother’s custody. He was also found to be in possession of marijuana.
“Had this gentleman been compliant, he wouldn’t have been tased,” Marino said. I think it was justified. (Tasing) was very appropriate for the incident.”
He added that Scrivo was sent to the hospital after the fight with a hurt shoulder.
In the past several years, Taser guns have become increasingly popular non-lethal weapons of choice by police officers stirring up debate across the nation. Tasers use electric pulses and human muscle contractions to incapacitate people considered to be a threat to law enforcement and the public.
After the deaths of three Canadian men who died after Tasers were used on them in 2007, debate over the degree of harm they can cause have led many to question the necessity of Taser guns, especially within police departments.
The Scottsdale, Ariz.-based TASER International stands by its product, stating that the energy emitted by the Taser does not affect internal organs. Rather, the tool’s energy follows the grain of a human’s muscle, impacting sensory motion and motor control. According to the company there has never been a proven case of a death directly caused by a Taser.
No representatives from Taser International could be immediately reached to comment Friday.
The police, who have admitted to the use of a Taser at the scene, said they used it as a last resort after attempting to control the student verbally. However, many parents are up in arms over the officers’ choice to use the weapon on a minor.
“Age is just a number,” Marino said. “Personally, I would’ve rather gotten tased any day of the week than get pepper sprayed, which was the alternative.”
Currently, there are approximately 10 operational Tasers within the Middletown Police Department, according to Marino. Each officer is certified to use a Taser and is eligible to sign one out at any time.
In an article published by the Press in July, Acting Police Chief Patrick McMahon said, “Tasers are very safe if used properly. They are designed to minimize any injury to individuals and injury to police officers. It eliminates the need to use a nightstick or police dogs that can bite and harm someone.”
To date, there are no existing regulations that restrict or prohibit the use of Tasers on anyone, including minors within a school.
“All in all, we can tase anyone who’s out of control,” Marino said.
Superintendent of Schools Michael Frechette said that he did not know of any regulations controlling the use of Tasers within any of Middletown’s 11 schools.
Frechette, who received notice of the incident around 2:30 p.m., said that the school is in the process of obtaining the video tapes and will hold interviews with student witnesses after.
“I am deeply concerned about the use of force but I reserve all comment until further investigation,” Frechette said.
Taser use prompts talk of policy
Cary case stokes discussion of uniform standards governing police on school campuses.
http://www.carynews.com/2010/09/04/20227/taser-use-prompts-talk-of-policy.html
Still does not justify its use.
A tazer according to the FBI is less-lethal, not non-lethal and it falls just under firearms on the use of force continuum.
Also two cops could not handle a school yard fight?
Come on...
What the hell are these two cops gonna do if they ever have to patrol a real neighborhood and apprehend someone who is a true criminal?
Yeah, they’ll just shoot them regardless if they are armed or not...
I wonder... before the days of the easy Taser solution... how cops handled unruly children.
There doesn’t seem to be any evidence of an epidemic of pepper-sprayed children. So maybe cops understood how to put a high-schooler down without resorting to pepper-spray, Tasers, or guns?
Makes one go ‘hmmmm’.
A Jamaican pattie? Did the cops know what’s in those things? The kid was doing a public service by keeping someone else from ingesting it.
The FBI doesn’t write use of force policy for all police departments, troll. A drive stun is on the level of pepper spray in most agencies. Further, it is below hard hand control, and the police do not have to coddle violently resisting criminals.
I’m glad this didn’t happen in Washington they would had shot him! Reason He was trying to hit them with a tray!
A 17 year old thug is not a little child. Further, fighting hand to hand with someone can often cause far more injuries than the mild discomfort caused by a taser.
No... they just investigate the police when they violate our civil rights and they apply the standard continuum they developed to "justify" the use of a tazer.
So if they say it is to be used as a last resort to firearms, and they are the ones that will be coming in to investigate you and your ilk once the civil rights violation complaint has been filed by my attorney then you might better consider the consequences before you act.
...
ASP baton
PR-24 side handle baton
OC spray
Taser pistol
Taser 12 gauge round
Non lethal force .....but like a good mechanic you have to know what tool to use an why....
ASP is what most pack in my area ....
Yep. The headline could, just as easily, been inaccurately worded "Student stunned with Taser by police after allegedly crying out during his birth".
Stealing from the school cafeteria didn't have anything to do with him being tasered.
Yes it did, it was the event that sparked police intervention. You logic here is like saying "Radical Islam and its preachings" had nothing to do with the war in Afghanistan...
There is people on FreeRepublic who hate cops as part of the “establishment” and there are those who believe they’re heroes of freedom.
Then there are those who believe they are overworked joes who often have to make painful decisions in a very short amount of time.
I thought you didn’t speak to or call the police for any reason. The FBI are federal police. Further your understanding of both the FBIs use of force policy, and the reasonableness standard that is applied to all use of force by police is sadly lacking. Finally, troll... why would the police be tasing you for any reason? Are you planning on committing a criminal act and violently resisting arrest? Well considering your copyright infringement... perhaps you are?
So stealing is ok in some circumstances? As in a high school cafeteria? What other places are ok to steal from? Your home? Intellectual property?
You make excellent points. I would only add that the “establishment” talk is very common among hippies and other 60s radicals.
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