Posted on 07/20/2008 1:16:07 PM PDT by LibWhacker
Officer Suspended For 5 Days
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- A teenager died after being hit with a police Taser gun for 37 seconds, and the whole thing was caught on tape by surveillance cameras.
Authorities said that Darryl Turner had been in a confrontation with a supervisor at work at a North Carolina grocery store.
When Officer Jerry Dawson arrived, he fired his Taser gun at the 17-year-old and struck him in the sternum.
"The initial use of the (Taser gun) is not in question," said Charlotte-Mecklenburg police Chief Ken Miller.
However, for 37 seconds, Dawson continued to use the Taser gun against the teen.
An autopsy revealed that Darryl Turner died of a heart attack, authorities said.
NBC Charlotte affiliate WCNC reported that Dawson was given a five-day suspension for firing the Taser gun too long.
"I wouldn't want to be (hit with a Taser gun) for 37 seconds, I can assure you of that," said Joe Kuhns, a professor of criminal justice at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. "It's a lengthy period of time."
Kuhns said he does support the use of the guns, however. "For the most part, their use has been effective. It has reduced officer injuries. It has reduced suspect injuries."
But a recently released National Institute of Justice study indicated that since 1987, there have been 300 deaths from the devices, also called conducted energy devices.
"There may be circumstances in which repeated or continuous exposure is required, but law enforcement should be aware that the associated risks are unknown," the study said. "Therefore, caution is urged in using multiple activations of (Taser guns) as a means to accomplish subdual."
Turner's family said they believe he didn't have to die.
"The officer was not confronted with circumstances that required the use of that type of force," said family attorney Ken Harris.
Dawson won't face criminal charges in the case, but Turner's family is considering a lawsuit, WCNC reported.
The text portion also begins with a different incident, where I still don't get why a lady cop was fired.
More reasons I wouldn't take that job on a bet, and tend to give the cops the benefit of a doubt. You have a split-second to make a decision. Decide wrong one way, you die, maybe others as well. Decide wrong the other way, and Monday-morning quarterbacks roast you like chicken. And not deciding is not an option.
Next time, the cop should use his pistol
Innocent cops (if there are any) get paid to take that risk. Civilians don’t...
The criminals know they are going to be coddled because someone is going to file a lawsuit on their behalf.
There is enough attitude toward police officers that makes me wonder what some people teach their kids. And they wonder why they don't respect authority (in school & in life).
>It’s unfortunate that the suspect died, but this is not a case of wrongdoing by the officer more than just failure to follow procedure.<
When that failure to follow procedure includes a high voltage charge to a human being’s chest, you’re darn Skippy that officer should face consequences. What part of “ONLY 5 SECONDS” didn’t Barney Fife understand?
Yep. He seems to think that most people would cower in fear at the thought of the police not around to “protect” them. Like yours, our home is protected. Our biggest attempted invasion of privacy has been the local police looking for a completely different address banging on our door and trying to look in our windows. BTW, our address is prominently displayed both at the end of the drive and next to our door.
Nice attitude.
No, they don't get paid to get killed but with the nut jobs on the streets who have no respect for anyone's life including their own cause them to get killed.
With attitudes such as yours it's no wonder either. It makes me wonder if you are just jealous of their authority or have no respect for anyone because you are always right (in your world).
Are there any “good” enforcers that work for the mob? Well, the police force is organized crime. Only they get paid by us....
What a bunch of crap.
I can tell you this:
If an officer tells a suspect to stand down, or get up aainst the wall with hands behind back, or get on the floor face down, its best that the suspect follow those directions.
Officers are paid and hired by our governments to keep the peace.
This young man did not follow directions, became more bellicose, and as a result was submitted to force which unfortunately proved to be deadly force in this case.
It is a tragedy. Police officers have to live with tragedy every day.
I am sure the officer would have done things differently in hindsight.
But the days of double teaming a perpetrator and tackling him down are over.Too many injured officers, ripped uniforms.( We used to have to keep two spare uniforms at the station and extra shirts in the cruiser.)
However , in Japan, the Tokyo police force is trained to be physically expert in physical restraint. So is the Strathclyde Police Force in Scotland. There are many other such departments as well. No tazers. Tazers were brought on by the dininuitive nature of women officers and new age police officers who are not trained in expert physical restraint.
If this young man had proper respect for the officers, he would still be alive. It is a citizens duty to respect officers and to follow their directions during an incident.
It is extremely unfortunate that such ignorance on the young man's part caused the loss of this young man's life.
But ask yourself this: What if the officers let the situation escalate? What would have happened then?
The officers would have been criticized for NOT acting soon enough!
I have been in similar situations, and when the dice are tossed, the outcome sometimes cannot be predicted, as was the case here.
Also the reason we have tasers is that there is little respect for the law these days, or indeed for any authority, young people are not socialized to respect authority anymore, in school or at home. This the need for "tasers".
Of course the officer not havin a taser could have decided to step in and hit the kid with a baton, or his fist, or put a reverse strangle hold on him.Then everyone present would have started screaming "excessive force."
I regret the loss of life in this incident. But if you have ever worn blue, you will understand how difficult and indeed hairy such situations can be.And officers frequently have to engage 3 or 4 of these on every shift. I worked with one old hand who was a gentle giant, who used to escalate the situation verbally by telling the perp to take his best shot, then they always went down, hard.No taser.But they were alive.
The officer did what he could in these circumstances. (You should look at the series of tazer deaths that have happened in Canada, where there have been so many.I do not like tazers either.)
Perhaps a good bop with a sap or a baton would be a lot better remedy in these situations, like used to happen in times past to those "resisting arrest."
Well,the boot licker force is strong with this thread. It's all yours. Taze away!!!!!
“No, they don’t get paid to get killed but with the nut jobs on the streets who have no respect for anyone’s life including their own cause them to get killed.:
This was not a nut job. It was a 17 YO that had a dispute with his boss.
(:
Your welcome to your boot licking opinion I guess...
“If this young man had proper respect for the officers, he would still be alive. It is a citizens duty to respect officers and to follow their directions during an incident.”
....you’re right, the kid precipitated his own death....I live in NC and this whole incident went on for a lot longer than the sound bite the media showed....the kid was given plenty of chances to chill out and comply....BUT.....we all know that when the inevitable law suit comes up the kid’s family will get a big pay day....a minority jury will give it to them.
“It is a citizens duty to respect officers and to follow their directions during an incident.”
Says who? Is it in the Constitution or the Bill of Rights?
I would encourage them to get with their local force, and request to ride the 4 to 12 shift with a pair of officers on a Friday or Saturday night.
That would be a definite "Gestalt" experience for each one of this threads arm chair experts!
And for each one of them, what would THEY do if they were in a situation of violence? They each would dial 911 so fast your eyes couldn't follow their fingers.
Read a few criminal cases. Its criminal law regarding the use of force and compliance with a peace officers directives.
Constitutionl rights protect citizens from the misapplication of the law. Most police offices do NOT misapply the law, or our system of keeping the peace would not work, nor would it be the exemplary force it is nationally, admired by the rest of the world. Try seeking police assistance in places like Thailand or Mexico and you would quickly understand what I am saying.
It is your duty to comply with the directives of officers in dangeous situations , and there are very few instances where resisting or preventing such police work on the part of a citizen are justified. Those that are become notorious. Try what you advocate some time, like not following an officers directive on a highway at a car accident and see what happens!
That was not a statement, it was a question. You can distinguish this by the question mark, which looks like this: ?
I was seeking to clarify your earlier statement:
“When the justice system is committing the injustice, it’s time for vigilantism IMO. I have always been an “eye for and eye” sort of guy. Perhaps it would make an impression on them if one of their kids were elecooctuted (by accident, of course). If they didn’t have any kids, then maybe a wife or two nieces or nephews...”
It certainly sounds as though you would like to see the child, wife, niece or nephew of this officer die. This is implied in your statement that you are an “’eye for an eye’ sort of guy”, which refers to a system of punishments meted out in the Old Testament.
I ask you again, are you stating that you would like to see someone who is innocent die because you are angry that you believe an innocent has died?
I will ignore the suggestion you make that I am “using some great stuff...” and the insult implied therein.
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