Posted on 09/19/2007 8:44:43 AM PDT by Cagey
CLAY COUNTY, Fla. -- A Clay County woman's family said it's seeking justice after their loved one died shortly after being shocked 10 times with Taser guns during a confrontation with police.
The family of 56-year-old Emily Delafield said it would take the Green Cove Springs Police Department to court, according to a WJXT-TV report.
In April 2006, officers with the police department said they were called to a disturbance at a home in the 400 block of Harrison Street just before 5 p.m.
In a 911 call made to the Green Cove Springs, Delafield can be heard telling a dispatcher that she believed she was in danger:
Dispatcher: And what's the problem?
Delafield: My sister is waiting on my property.
Dispatcher: Your what?
Delafield: My sister (inaudible) is on my property trying to harm me.
Officers said they arrived to find Delafield in a wheelchair, armed with two knives and a hammer. Police said the woman was swinging the weapons at family members and police.
Within an hour of her call to 911, Delafield, a wheelchair-bound woman documented to have mental illness, was dead.
Family attorney Rick Alexander said Delafield's death could have been prevented and that there are four things that jump out at him about the case.
"One, she's in a wheelchair. Two, she's schizophrenic. Three, they're using a Taser on a person that's in a wheelchair, and then four is that they tasered her 10 times for a period of like two minutes," Alexander said.
According to a police report, one of the officers used her Taser gun nine times for a total of 160 seconds and the other officer discharged his Taser gun once for a total of no more than five seconds.
A medical examiner found Delafield died from hypertensive heart disease and cited the Taser gun shock as a contributing factor, the report said. On her death certificate, the medical examiner ruled Delafield's death a homicide.
The family said it plans to sue the Green Coves Springs Police Department now that it has all the reports regarding their loved one's death.
"We're going to try to compensate the estate and the family and try to get justice," Alexander said.
He said he believes the evidence weighs heavily in favor of Delafield's family and that justice will be served.
"I think that this evidence is going to show, along with some of the evidence we've collected outside of here, that there is no reason Emily Delafield should have died that day," Alexander said.
He said he plans to file a notice to sue sometime before the end of the year.
I am getting so sick of the police getting a bad name. She was not following what the police demanding (positional authority - sorry). She deserved what happened. If enough of this type of things happens, people will be less willing to risk getting killed. I am sick and tired of arrogance of criminals. If the cop says stop...stop. If the cop says move...move. If the cop saids hands over your head, then put your f’ing hands over your head. What is so dang hard about it. I am glad that people are going to be forced to learn this. It is a shame that some are losing their lives, but they did it to themselves as far as I am concerned.
She only has to get lucky on one back swing to strike a fatal blow with the knife. Grabbing at a knife is like shooting at tires. You’re only likely to injure yourself.
There is something amiss here...I don’t think we are being given all the facts...
According to the story about the victim was the one who called the cops. While I think a taser was appropriate. I know for a fact that the amount of tasering done way exceeds the manufacturers guidelines for proper use of the device.
The female police officer directly contributed to the death that woman. She should be sued by the family. If it is found by the investigation that her training or supervision were faulty then the local PD should also be sued.
It looks like the woman’s death was preventable.
I don't think I would want to take on anyone armed with knives and hammers.
they said get on the ground! everyone knows the cops should be obeyed no matter what. The state is our lord and master.
The cops think they are on Star Trek and can set their phasers on “stun”. I’ll bet $100 that the tasers give the same jolt of voltage to a frail little lady with a cane as to a 300 pound body builder on crack or whatever the hell they use to get high.
Ten times seems excessive to me. You need help because they need to be hospitalized and you can’t get them to the hospital because they are confused and acting out. You call the police for help and you end up with a dead family member. This is far more common than people realize.
I had a mentally ill family member. I called the police to come help me get him to the hospital, because he was refusing to go and trying to grab the phone from me.
Instead of taking him to the hospital, they took him to jail, although I kept telling them he was diagnosed mentally ill and couldn’t go to jail because he needed his meds.
Because he was so long without medication, he ended up in the hospital for two months. During that time I had to deal with all the legal hassle of him being charged with “domestic violence”. I had to hire a lawyer, and spent nights in worry.
I would NEVER call the police again in such a situation. All they did was add more stress to my family, cost me money I didn’t have and upset the living daylights out of my kids, who saw their sick father hauled off to jail.
They also notified DCF and I had to deal with those people for years, who think they own your family. They made nice money off us, and I didn’t need their help at all, thank you.
Apparently you didn't read the whole article because you said in post 12 : Call cops because a family member is threatening you with deadly weapons. when the article says Within an hour of her call to 911, Delafield, a wheelchair-bound woman documented to have mental illness, was dead.. It was the victim that called and not the family. I wouldn't accuse others of not reading carefully after that misstatement.
The ME here..Duval County is where they are, sucks! Just had to put that in..lazy too.
Seems I've heard that expression before. Or maybe, I read something like it in a history book.
am I sick to have giggled at your post???
Just tip the chair over
just like pro-lifers kneeling on a sidewalk deserve to be tasered and billyclubbed. Zee state is always right. The state is always right. Obey your masters,
vaudine
you are right about one thing, you are sick.
Yup! Just KILL those pesky wheelchair bound mentally ill people that call the police! /sarc
Sure, she could have run someone down and cut them up into little pieces.
" The officers' actions were righteous.
They acted stupid, cowardly and murdered the woman with their toys.
Yieks it does sound bad by itself. Anyway I just don’t have patience for disobedience. I guess it is a pet peeve. I have children and will put up with a lot but don’t disobey me or you will lose all your priviledges (games, TV, playing outside, etc). Not fun, but needs to be learned. These people who are getting hurt or killed are not the best citizens in the community. They are usually asking for it.
cops can be wrong you know
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