Posted on 10/31/2006 6:44:53 AM PST by Types_with_Fist
JERSEYVILLE, Ill. - A teenager carrying a Bible and shouting “I want Jesus” was shot twice with a police stun gun and later died at a St. Louis hospital, authorities said.
In a statement obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, police in Jerseyville, about 40 miles north of St. Louis, said 17-year-old Roger Holyfield would not acknowledge officers who approached him and he continued yelling, “I want Jesus.”
Police tried to calm the teen, but Holyfield became combative, according to the statement. Officers fired the stun gun at him after he ignored their warnings, then fired again when he continued struggling, police said.
Holyfield was flown to St. Louis’ Cardinal Glennon Hospital after the confrontation Saturday; he died there Sunday, police said.
An autopsy was planned for Tuesday.
The statement expressed sympathy to Holyfield’s family but said city and police officials would not discuss the matter further.
Calls Tuesday to Jerseyville Police Chief Brad Blackorby were not immediately returned. The department has been using stun guns for about five months, according to the statement.
In a report released in March, international human rights group Amnesty International said it had logged at least 156 deaths across the country in the previous five years related to police stun guns.
The rise in deaths accompanies a marked increase in the number of U.S. law enforcement agencies employing devices made by Taser International Inc. of Scottsdale, Ariz. About 1,000 of the nation’s 18,000 police agencies used Tasers in 2001; more than 7,000 departments had them last year, according to a government study.
Police had used Tasers more than 70,000 times as of last year, Congress’ Government Accountability Office said.
Amnesty International has urged police departments to suspend the use of Tasers pending more study. Taser International said the group’s count was flawed and falsely linked deaths to Taser use when there has been no such official conclusion.
The city of St. Louis also drew unwanted attention for crime this week when it was named the most dangerous U.S. city by Morgan Quitno Press. The ranking looked only at crime within St. Louis city limits, not its metro area.
I don't know. That's why I'm asking. Maybe because they trained them to do so?
Usually one stun is enough to incompacitate.
Has this become a crime to speak those words? Why would that deserve being tased?
All I know is, that was a spectacularly stupid thing to do.
It's amazing the office that was cuffing the guy wasn't shot.
the article said this kid turned "combative" and would not follow directions. that's enough to taze. but i think more will come out of this story to support the police.
i have seen guys tazed 4-5 times with limited results. all depends on what kind of drugs your on or your fat content. fat guys do not feel the effects of a tazer as much. the tazer affects your muscles, but if you have a lot of fat, the current cannot get down to the muscle as easily.
"Once again, lazy/incompetent cops think the Taser is an electric squirt gun, not, as intended, a weapon to be used only when you think you need to kill the guy."
This is another unintended consequence of feminism. In the old days, cops were expected to be physically competent to subdue suspects without deadly force, unless the suspect was wielding a deadly weapon himself.
In the old days they might have just wrestled him to the ground, or perhaps bopped him with night sticks a few times, and in all probability there would have been no fatality.
Now, though, you have to let biddy widdle bunny slippers girlywirls pretend that they're harness bulls, and this is the kind of crap you get.
And no, it doesn't matter whether there were any babes in uniform on this arrest or not. The changes are institutional and pervasive, extending to written procedures.
You are likely right, in that the police will likely be exonerated, providing the officers followed their dept.'s protocols. But that may be the underlying problem in situations like this. The protocols may not allow for more creative ways to handle situations like this.
For example, what if one of the officers told this person they would take him to Jesus if he would get in their squad car? Who knows if he would have, but given his diminished mental capacity, he might have complied with them at that point, and now tasering is not in order. Perhaps they tried this, but I would doubt it as that would likely be outside of the protocols. This tragic situation illustrates, IMHO, the difference between the old "peace officer" mentality versus the newer "law enforcement" mentality employed by most police departments, and which many other freepers have commented on over the years.
His comment was that working with physically weaker officers, usually women, was a greater threat to him and other physically stronger officers. Per the officer, in a confrontational situation with a beligerent suspect, he would be most at risk if violence would erupt. The suspect would assess the more physically powerful officer as the greater threat and would want to eliminate that threat first, then go after the weaker officer second, as they would be considered less of a threat.
Baptist ping
An autopsy was planned for Tuesday.
Comments on hold til results of autopsy.
There it is.
I think Tazers/stun guns have become way too much of a crutch for many LEOs.
"Ah, those dangerous bible thumpers. I'm in St. Louis. No, this kid did not look like he was going for a gun. The police were scared because of his "extreme" religious position. Holding a bible and wanting Jesus. He has to be CRAZY. Hey Larry (with the GED education), stun him. Well Sgt. Bob (with a high school education), he is still struggling. Stun him again until he stops moving.
Duh Sarg....I think he would still be moving as we shock the hell out of him."
THAT sounds about right.
as for putting him in the back of a squad car, he would absolutely need to be cuffed first and it does not seem like he would be voluntary. and he would need to be frisked for weapons as well. your point about old school cops and today's cops is well-taken, but it may be a bit romantic. whereas old school cops tend to be good judges of who is really dangerous versus who is just a little off, the old school guys seem to go to the good 'ol nightstick pretty early.
bottom line is that cops don't get paid enough to mess around and get hurt by someone like this and tools like tasers put enough distance between cops and perps to cops can go home at night.
and tools like tasers put enough distance between cops and perps to cops can go home at night.
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Yeah...about 6 FEET of distance, in a grave.
How about an innocent kid going home at night?
regardless, just from reading the article itself, the kids actions warranted tasing. you become combative and then ignore repeated requests to comply with lawful directions means you have given up your rights to be treated like a gentlemen.
Just because you carry a Bible and shout out "I want Jesus" does not allow you ability to resist arrest or whatever he was doing. Why didn't he just calm down, get handcuffed and get in the car? I would have for sure. Now this kid also sounds abit mental and drugged up so we still need details before we find out what really happened.
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