When deputies approached Russ during the Saturday funeral, he "went wild" and spat on the officers, said New Hanover County sheriff's chief deputy Ed McMahon.
Now ... should we suppose the tazing happened before, or after Mr. Russ took offense at their presence? Hard to say for sure, but logic suggests that Mr. Russ' actions preceded the use of the tazer.
That the cops showed up when they did, only makes good sense. That they made sure Mr. Russ saw them, ditto. It's quite likely that, from the perspective of funereal propriety, they got too close, too soon.
OTOH, if the cops were suspicious of him trying to escape, they may well have wanted to be close enough to cut off his means of escape.
Tough call, but it's probably better that the cops erred on the side of caution. That Mr. Russ gave into his obvious anger management issues as a result is not entirely their fault. (Remember what he's originally charged with....)
The cop haters don't care. But thanks for bringing it forward.