Washtenaw County sheriff's deputies Taser man with loaded handgun, suspected marijuana
A 19-year-old Ypsilanti man was Tasered Monday after police say he threw a loaded handgun under a car, fought with deputies and tried to run away.
The incident occurred after a Washtenaw County sheriff's deputy saw an occupied vehicle in the 8000 block of MacArthur Boulevard in Superior Township, violating the apartment complex’s loitering policy, according to a media summary.
Deputies smelled a strong odor of suspected marijuana coming from the vehicle and asked the man inside to get out, the summary said. He got out and started fighting with deputies, pulled out a handgun, threw it under the car and kept fighting, the summary said.
Deputies Tasered the man, and he took off running but was quickly caught, the summary said.
Deputies recovered several small plastic bags of suspected marijuana, and the fully loaded handgun was recovered, police said. The man was wanted on a felony warrant, according to the summary.
Police said the man was taken to the county jail and is expected to be charged with multiple felonies.
Comments
Joe Hammerhead
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 9:11 p.m.
Hey, Why not let them use the taser so they can conserve their energy in case there's a occurrence where they have negotiate a 72 hr. hostage situation. Remember bushy tailed and bright eyed is much better then worn out ! Many of these officers encounter multiple events a shift.
Michael Schils
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 7:03 p.m.
The first line of this article states the subject was tasered AFTER he tried to run away which seems to contradict the later statement, "Deputies Tasered the man, and he took off running but was quickly caught...". So was he tasered before or after he ran? If it was before, then the taser failed to achieve anything because the subject was able to run away, anyway. If it was after, then the reason seems to have been solely *PUNITIVE*, as the tasering seems to have been punishment for running away and doesn't appear to have served any other purpose (the gun had already been tossed under the car). Either way, I fail to see how the taser was helpful in this situation. I don't care if the police were ticked off that the subject fought with them and then ran , they still should have let the courts decide the punishment. I welcome a correction if I have misunderstood the facts due to the very limited amount of information provided.
rusty shackelford
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 4:44 p.m.
As someone who regularly questions the unnecesary use of Tasers, I've always said if they are to be used at all, it should be in place of a pistol, not a tackle. Given that the subject was brandishing a weapon, if this story is accurate, this doesn't seem like an inappropriate use of the Taser weapon. That said, no one can reasonably deny that there have been an uncountably high number of cases of inappropriate use of the Taser: cops basically using them for torture, frequently on people who did nothing worse than mouth off.
rusty shackelford
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 7:37 p.m.
Michael Schilis--links can now be included in comments.
rusty shackelford
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 7:35 p.m.
Here's but one list of death by Taser shocking. It is far from exhaustive: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taser_safety_issues#Deaths_and_injuries_related_to_Taser_use" rel='nofollow'>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taser_safety_issues#Deaths_and_injuries_related_to_Taser_use</a> Here's a story about their use on children:<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/11/14/children.tasers/index.html" rel='nofollow'>http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/11/14/children.tasers/index.html</a> Note how many of the suspects were restrained yet continued to receive Taser shocks, or obviously posed no physical threat to officers. Countless more news stories of such events are easily available from neutral sources on the Internet. Tasers may make police officers' jobs easier, but so would many other things that we do not allow. For example, unreasonable searches and seizures would make things easier for police. The ability to search us or enter our homes without a warrant would lead to more arrests. Allowing police to beat suspects would result in more confessions. Should we allow all of those just because it would make the police's job easier? I ask again, if Tasers are so great at immobilizing suspects, why are so many suspects Tased multiple times? Either they don't work that well or officers are regularly Tasing people unnecessarily (which is in effect torture). Pistols also immobilize suspects. Tasers should be subject to the same regulations, if not entirely banned.
Michael Schils
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 7:32 p.m.
The problem with the taser is that it seems to have suffered from "mission creep". A report from Amnesty International in 2004 found evidence that "…far from being used to avoid lethal force, many US police agencies are deploying Tasers as a routine force option to subdue non-compliant or disturbed individuals who do not pose a serious danger to themselves or others." (Please Google it--I don't want to provide a link else this comment will be flagged for moderation.) The taser is not only "employed against dangerous individuals where the alternative is lethal force, but also against school children, mentally ill individuals, people in handcuffs or other restraints, and people passively resisting or simply arguing with the police". If "torture" is too strong a word for some, then let's just say that the taser is increasingly being used merely as a tool to force compliance, rather than for its original use, which was to prevent injury or death.
Mick52
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 6:37 p.m.
I can reasonably deny that Rusty. I will give you some slack if you come up with some reliable evidence that proves your torture statement. The taser's implementation into police work solved a long time problem, getting suspects to comply with police orders with less physical battery. There was a progression of "non lethal" weapons used to gain compliance once physical force was needed. When I started in the field, not really that long ago, saps were still being issued. Other non lethals were fists, batons, wood, then metal, pepper spray, and now tasers. The issue with pre taser weapons were that they inflicted injury and required the police officer to be in very close proximity with the suspect. So often there would be injuries to officers as well as suspects. Tasers allow an officer to either immobilize from a distance and/or very quickly end a physical confrontation. The result is less physical harm due to hand to hand combat. Keep in mind that women in police work has grown and women are excellent officers, but sometimes the differences in physical sizes between women and suspects makes the job much more dangerous for women. In my opinion because of that, the standards for application of force between women officers and men facing aggressive suspects should be lowered. To say officers basically use tasers for torture is baseless and an insult to these people who have a very difficult job.
Tru2Blu76
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 12:01 p.m.
Yes, this is an example where law enforcement officers come out looking like professionals and worthy of our admiration. I agree: those who make it a habit of complaining about police lacking restraint or ability just look foolish when they "find a gripe" in stories like this. I'm very glad the, uh, "suspect" decided to throw the gun away. Anyone who watched the gun fight video from the Detroit police station now understands how desperate such events are for the officers facing gun fire. Not many officers actually have that experience but all know it's a possibilty every time they go to work. I try to keep that in mind whenever I interact with any law enforcement officer.
pawky
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 5:49 a.m.
Time for the cop-haters to come out and complain about the use of the Taser. The suspect is lucky to be alive.
RJA
Wed, Feb 2, 2011 : 4:29 a.m.
As I read this story, I thought (Great Job Washtenaw County Sheriff 's Deputies!) Job well done!