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129 deaths What role did Tasers play?
Deanna Boyd/Star-Telegram | August 14 2005
FORT WORTH - A mechanic suspected of stealing electricity. An architect trespassing at a business. A prostitute struggling against arrest.
All were high on cocaine. All were shocked with a Taser. All are dead.
The fatal encounters came during an eight-month period beginning last November in Fort Worth. But most of the cases that involve Tasers have had better endings.
Fort Worth police have used the weapon since 2001 to subdue hundreds of violent suspects, including a drug-crazed man who tried to beat his father with a piece of lumber, a drunken woman who poured hot grease on her brother's face and set it ablaze and a 12-year-old girl who wielded a meat cleaver and threatened suicide.
The Taser, which delivers a 50,000-volt shock that can temporarily immobilize a suspect, is the latest in a line of weapons designed to give police alternatives to deadly force. It is used by more than 7,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide, including those in Arlington, Dallas and Euless.
"This is the least intrusive way to take someone into custody without doing a lot of injury to them," said Lt. Paul Jwanowski, training coordinator for the Fort Worth Police Department.
But some say Tasers have a dark side, particularly when used on people under the influence of drugs. Some question whether police are using Tasers too often.
And some wonder what role they played in the deaths of 129 people in the United States and Canada, including a 17-year-old in Euless who was shocked several times in July.
"No one is asking whether or not Tasers, by themselves, kill people," said Ed Jackson, a spokesman for Amnesty International. "The question that has consistently been on the table from Amnesty International is, what role do Tasers play as a contributing factor?"
Among those with questions is Dr. Nizam Peerwani, the Tarrant County medical examiner. Peerwani said he believes that Tasers are safe when used on healthy people. But, in the wake of the three Fort Worth deaths, he said he would like to see more studies of the effect on those who are high on drugs, agitated or suffering from heart problems.
Overdose was the primary cause of death in most Taser-related incidents nationwide. Amnesty International is asking for a moratorium on Tasers until an independent study can determine whether they pose a threat to people on drugs or with heart conditions.
Tasers, which use compressed nitrogen as a propellant, are not classified as firearms and are not federally regulated.
"The federal government tests waffle irons, but they don't test Tasers," Jackson said. "When was the last time anyone ever heard of a waffle iron death?"
Rick Smith, co-founder of Taser International, based in Scottsdale, Ariz., said Tasers are safer than other types of force. Batons, pepper spray and physical force may have no effect on a person high on drugs and increase the risk of injury, he said.
"It's not a cure-all," he said. "It's not a magic bullet. It's a tool that's moving in the right direction."
Amnesty International acknowledges that Tasers have saved lives, Jackson said.
"We support the idea of police having an additional tool that they can reach for before they reach for their guns," he said. "The fact that people think we have a problem with a product that would give police more options than shooting people with a gun is laughable."
Drugs and Tasers:
Dangerous combination?
Suspects were dying in police custody long before departments began using the Taser.
"Whether it's with the asp [expandable] baton, the Taser, fighting with officers, or whether the pepper spray was a catalyst or part of it, that's the big, $64 million question," Jwanowski said. "But there's been enough studies -- independent studies -- that showed that it is not the Taser that's causing" deaths.
"In every case, where they've done an autopsy, it shows there's a high amount of drugs in them that's causing them to die."
In at least one case, however, the Tasers might have played a larger role.
In July, medical examiners in Cooke County, Ill., ruled that the primary cause of a 54-year-old man's death was electrocution by Taser. Methamphetamine intoxication was listed as a contributing cause.
Fort Worth police had displayed or fired Tasers in 405 incidents involving people (16 others involved dogs) as of June 21, records show. In at least a quarter of the cases, the suspects were on drugs, records also show.
Peerwani confirmed that the three suspects who died in Fort Worth had significant amounts of cocaine in their systems. He said he believes that the Taser played no role in the death of prostitute Carolyn Daniels, 35, because she did not quickly lose consciousness after being shocked.
In June, Daniels flagged down officer R.A. Elston and insisted that someone was chasing her. Elston determined that Daniels was probably on drugs and handcuffed her after he saw a crack pipe in her purse.
As he tried to place her inside his patrol car, she kicked at him and he fired his Taser. He deployed a second shock after she began spitting blood at a backup officer, the police report shows.
Daniels stopped breathing as she was being booked into jail, and she was pronounced dead at a Fort Worth hospital about 90 minutes after she had stopped Elston. Police are investigating the officer's actions, as is routine with deaths in custody.
Peerwani said he doesn't have enough information to determine whether Tasers contributed to the deaths of mechanic Robert Guerrero and architect Eric Hammock. Both lost consciousness within minutes of being shocked.
"Supposing they would not have been Tazed, would they still have died of acute cocaine intoxication?" Peerwani said. "That's very hard to answer."
His office is reviewing all cocaine deaths in Tarrant County over the past two years to get a better understanding of why people are dying.
Smith of Taser International said he welcomes more studies, but he pointed out that suspects high on drugs are already in a dangerous state.
"In many cases, they're already dying," he said. "Any additional stress possesses some degrees of risk, but the Taser is far less stressful than getting in a fight with a police officer or getting hit by a baton.
"The best chance these people have of surviving is getting them restrained quickly so you can get them medical attention."
'Don't be stupid'
Jwanowski calls the manila folder his "stupid file."
The newspaper articles describe questionable Taser encounters such as:
• A 6-year-old Florida boy who was shocked by Miami-Dade County police after he threatened to commit suicide using a piece of glass.
• A woman who was shocked 12 times by police in Washougal, Wash., when she refused to sign an animal-control citation.
• A grandmother who was shocked by police in Kansas City, Mo., when she resisted after being cited for honking a horn too loudly.
"We point these out [to officers] and say, 'Hey, look, don't be stupid,' " he said.
The Fort Worth Police Department has about 525 Tasers in use. Another 330 were ordered in June, which should allow all uniformed officers who respond to calls to be armed with a Taser.
Rules for Taser use are left to the discretion of law enforcement agencies. Taser International makes few recommendations.
"A scalpel manufacturer does not tell a doctor how to use it. Doctors are the experts," Smith said.
"In this case, law enforcement has the use-of-force experts. It wouldn't be appropriate to dictate to police how to do their job."
In Fort Worth, all officers issued a Taser undergo eight hours of training, including two spent reviewing the use-of-force policy. Officers participate in three scenarios in which they decide whether to display the Taser, fire it or place it directly against the skin. Police call that "drive-stunning."
"What we tell them is, 'If you're using force on a person, you better be taking them to jail,' " Jwanowski said. "Otherwise, the officer is just assaulting the man."
Officers are told to avoid using a Taser on anyone younger than 11 or older than 70, but there is no specific prohibition against doing so.
Only about 6 percent of those shocked or shown a Taser were younger than 18, Fort Worth police records show. The 12-year-old with the meat cleaver was the youngest person shocked. That incident, in February, also involved Elston.
Elston fired his Taser after the girl raised the weapon and stepped toward him and her mother. She dropped the knife and fell, but she was shocked again when she reached for the weapon, reports show.
She was taken to Cook Children's Medical Center for psychiatric evaluation. Elston's supervisors deemed the use of the Taser justified.
Multiple shocks
In April, an officer fired his Taser at least 15 times during an encounter with Eric Hammock, a Midland man who was trespassing at the Waste Management facility on Riverside Drive.
It's not clear how many times Hammock, 43, was shocked. Officer C.P. Birley said he shot Hammock twice and repeatedly drive-stunned Hammock as he tried to take the 6-foot-2, 250-pound man into custody. A backup officer also drive-stunned Hammock twice, Birley's report says.
Birley was running and battling a combative suspect, so Hammock was probably shocked far fewer than 15 times, police officials say.
The case was one of two in which Fort Worth police fired their Tasers 15 times or more. The other involved a violent burglary suspect who remained combative after being hit with a baton and sprayed with Mace.
About 39 percent of the time, police fired once, the data show.
Fort Worth officers are trained to deliver one five-second charge, then give the suspect time to recover before delivering another shock if needed.
"Sometimes it takes two or three shocks for people," Jwanowski said. "There isn't a maximum. You're trying to get control of this person."
Taser International advises departments that the five-second burst should be viewed as a "window of opportunity," Smith said.
"While the current is on, you've got to go hands-on, get cops on them and get them restrained as quickly as possible," he said.
Results of the investigation into Hammock's death have been forwarded to Police Chief Ralph Mendoza, who will decide whether Birley's actions were justified.
Hammock's widow, Kathi, has filed a lawsuit against Taser International. The suit contends that Tasers are unsafe, especially when used to deliver multiple shocks in a short time.
"I think they need to call an ambulance as soon as they Taze them," she said. "I'm not saying ... [Tasers are] wrong, because police need to protect themselves; but give me a break. There's been enough deaths."
Keeping track
In November, two Fort Worth officers found mechanic Robert Guerrero hiding beneath a large black trash bag in a closet.
They had responded to a report that a man had been tampering with an electrical meter at an apartment complex. An apartment manager directed them to a unit, where an occupant pointed to a hallway door and said, "He's in the closet."
When Guerrero, 21, ignored officers' demands to leave the closet, officer P.R. Genualdo fired his Taser. He delivered four shocks before Guerrero slumped forward and was handcuffed.
Officers carried Guerrero down the stairs, noticed that he was not breathing and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation. He was pronounced dead an hour later at a Fort Worth hospital.
In April, Genualdo accepted a 16-day suspension in lieu of being fired for several violations, including shooting Guerrero with a Taser despite having no probable cause to arrest him.
Police say they carefully monitor the use of Tasers to ensure that officers use them appropriately. After a Taser has been fired or displayed, officers must fill out a report in which they give their justification for using the weapon and provide information about the suspect and the number of shocks delivered.
Every report is reviewed by Jwanowski and supervisors within the officer's chain of command. Officers may be ordered to undergo additional training and may have their Tasers taken away.
The date and time of each shock can be downloaded, which aids in the investigation of in-custody deaths or allegations involving excessive force and improper use.
Genualdo is the only Fort Worth officer disciplined for his use of the Taser.
The investigation into Guerrero's death found that officers illegally entered and searched the apartment and that Genualdo violated department policy when he administered one of the four shocks for 10 seconds rather than five, civil service documents show.
A Tarrant County grand jury declined to indict Genualdo.
"The chief did not find him at fault" for Guerrero's death, Genualdo's attorney, Craig Driskell, said at the time.
Officer G.R. Gray, who searches for fugitives in east Fort Worth, doesn't have to draw his Taser to intimidate suspects.
"They call it 'the Chair,' " he said. "They'll look and see it and say, 'Oh, he's got the Chair.' "
Gray has never fired his Taser, and he has only displayed it once. He said the weapon is safer than batons for officers.
"This creates distance," he said. "With asps, you have to be within a much closer proximity, where with this [the Taser], it's 21 feet. Distance is safety."
'It was needed'
Suspects complied almost 93 percent of the time after an officer displayed or used the Taser, the Fort Worth data show. About 4 percent of suspects were injured after being shocked.
Courtney Reese, 24, said he is relieved that officers used a Taser rather than a gun while trying to restrain his uncle during a domestic dispute in September.
When officers arrived, the uncle was beating a piece of lumber against the front door as his father struggled to hold the door closed, according to a police report.
The uncle was bleeding from a cut on his hand, and relatives warned officers that he had AIDS, so they tried to avoid contact with him. When officer S.C. Sikes ordered the man to drop the board, he raised it over his head and turned toward Sikes, the report states.
Sikes fired his Taser, tried pepper spray and drive-stunned the man before officers could take him into custody, the report says.
Reese said he is generally critical of Taser use by Fort Worth police. But in this case, he is happy with the police response to his uncle.
"It was needed. He was trying to kill my grandfather. He was trying to do damage," Reese said. "I'd much rather they shoot him with a Taser. At least you know he will probably survive.
"If he got shot with a gun, they would have probably killed him."
IN THE KNOW
Taser incidents
First-ever Taser death?: In February, a 54-year-old man died in Chicago after a police sergeant shocked him twice with a Taser. Police say Ronald Hasse tried to kick and bite officers and threatened to infect paramedics with HIV. The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office ruled that the primary cause of death was electrocution from a Taser, with methamphetamine intoxication as a contributing factor. A deputy medical examiner said one of the shocks lasted 57 seconds. Amnesty International said the ruling was the first in which a Taser was listed as the primary cause of death.
A local controversy: On New Year's Eve 2002, a 36-year-old man died after he jumped from an elevated ramp at Texas 360 and Interstate 20 in Arlington. As negotiations failed, police fired a Taser at Ronald E. Wright, 36, to try to take him into custody. Seconds later, Wright went over the side, raising questions about whether the Taser might have played a role. Police said only one of the Taser's two probes struck Wright, preventing the weapon from delivering a shock. His death was ruled a suicide, and investigators later determined that the officers had acted appropriately.
Waiting for answers: In July, a 17-year-old Grapevine man died two days after he was hit three times with a Taser as officers tried to control him. Kevin Omas had reportedly taken Ecstasy and LSD at a party before friends dropped him off at a Euless elementary school. Euless police found Omas standing in his boxer shorts and socks, yelling "I am God!" The cause of death is pending.
A tragedy averted: On Aug. 4, emergency workers in Fort Worth were trying to lead a suicidal man to a stretcher when the man brandished two knives and a garden weeder that he had been concealing. A firefighter and a paramedic suffered minor cuts as they tried to wrestle the weapons away. Fort Worth police officer B.D. Kammer told the pair to back away and fired his Taser, causing the man to drop the weapons and fall to the ground. Police say the Taser defused what could have been a deadly situation.
IN THE KNOW
Escalating response
Fort Worth police are instructed to follow a "continuum of force" when seeking to gain control of a suspect. The Taser appears in Level 3.
Level 1. Officer presence. The officer tries to stop a suspect by simply using his authority -- as established by a marked police vehicle, verbal instructions, a uniform or a visible badge or other identification.
Level 2. Verbal commands. The officer uses clear and appropriate communication, including ordering the suspect to place his hands behind his head or telling him he is under arrest.
Level 3. Open-hand control. If a suspect ignores an officer's instructions, then he must first use force with a low potential for injury. This includes "escort holds," generally defined as a firm physical grasp, or joint manipulation. If the resistance continues and further soft open-hand control would result in a higher potential for injury, the officer may use his Taser in a drive-stun capacity, which means placing the probes directly against the skin and administering a localized shock. If the suspect is aggressive, the officer can add hard open-hand control, such as striking or kicking a suspect as a distraction. If the officer perceives a physical threat, he may use pepper spray or a Taser -- as long as there is probable cause for an arrest and if engaging the suspect would expose the officer to a reasonable risk or distinct tactical disadvantage.
Level 4. Intermediate force. If a suspect aggressively resists and/or is a physical threat to the officer or the safety of another person, the officer may use a higher degree of force, such as striking a suspect with an expandable baton.
Level 5. Deadly force. If an officer or a third party faces an immediate and undeniable threat of death or serious bodily injury, officers may shoot or strike the suspect with an instrument designed to stop him.
