Police Use Taser Gun On Pregnant Woman
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The woman, Malaika Brooks, was convicted in municipal court on Monday of refusing to obey an officer. The jury could not reach a verdict on a charge of resisting arrest.
Brooks, 33 said she was on Seattle's Beacon Avenue, dropping her son off at school when a Seattle police officer pulled her over for allegedly driving 32 in a 20-mph zone.
Brooks, eight months pregnant, said she pulled over but refused to sign the ticket.
"Basically, I wasn't gonna sign the ticket cause I felt I wasn't speeding," she said. The officer called for backup, and a police supervisor authorized an arrest if Brooks continued to refuse to sign the ticket.
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"He opened the door, twisted my arm behind my back and then officer Jones just started tasing me," she said.
Brooks said she worried about the effect of the Taser gun on her unborn baby. She delivered a healthy baby girl on Jan. 31.
Seattle police defended their use of the Taser gun, saying officers were justified and that a person's pregnancy, age or physical disability do not preclude the use of a Taser gun.
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