Modesto Bee: Stanislaus County inmate hit by Taser dies (third Taser death at jail in 5 months)

[Heidi]

Stanislaus County inmate hit by Taser dies
Third time in five months for this kind of death at jail

Saturday, Sep. 19, 2009

An inmate at the Stanislaus County Jail in downtown Modesto died after jailers used a Taser to subdue him as he was being moved to another cell Wednesday afternoon, sheriff's officials reported Friday.

This is the third time in five months an inmate has died while in custody after law enforcement officials used Tasers to subdue the men. All three were being held at the sheriff's downtown Modesto jail when they died.

Authorities are still investigating the previous two deaths.

In the latest incident, deputies used a Taser on Alton Warren Ham, 45, of Oklahoma after he started "fighting" with them, according to a sheriff's news release issued Friday morning.

Read more

Sidebar: Stanislaus County inmate taser deaths

[TexasObserver]

1. Recommend

[Jacobair]

2. The cops might as well just start shooting people. I mean,

it sounds like people are going to die any way.
Isn't it clear by now that these tasers are deadly?

[Heidi]

3. Apparently, that's not clear at all. PDs keep buying them, and Taser Int'l is makin' a ton of money.

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/09/09/business-general-industrials-us-taser-international-order_6865538.html

[Jacobair]

5. Oh, they're the Blackwater of that industry, and couldn't care

less about how many people they indirectly kill, so long as they rake in the cash .. which they're obviously doing. Sad.

[asdjrocky]

4. I'm sure one or more of the officers was hurt in the struggle, right?

I mean, if the guy was "fighting" them, then I'm sure there's a broken bone, or at least a fat lip or a black eye, right?

Such bullshit. And this never ends. It just never ends.

[BlooInBloo]

6. Fucking terrorists.

[Heidi]

7. Check this out. In Greensboro, N.C., deputies employed by the schools carry Tasers.

NC deputy uses Taser on student, prompts review

September 18, 2009 11:37 EDT

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) -- A North Carolina school board wants to set up a committee to review an incident at a high school in Greensboro where a student was shocked by a deputy with a Taser.

The News & Record of Greensboro reported that a sheriff's deputy used a Taser on a 15-year-old female student Wednesday after she threatened two faculty members and assaulted the deputy when he tried to handcuff her.

<snip>

The sixteen deputies employed by the school system began carrying Tasers this year, a policy the board wants to review.

Read more

[BlooInBloo]

9. Aaargh,

[busybl]

8. cops are using those things like toys.

they have no idea if a person has an underlying medical problem. They killed an old guy that wasn't drunk, he was having diabetes issue.
I've seen video where they tase people over and over laughing the whole time.
They need to be banned from use. They seemed to manage ok before their new little toy.
And with the type of personality some cops have, they cannot wait to use it.

[Sirveri]

10. They need to increase taser level on the force contiuum.

Currently taser are treated as occupying the same level in the force continuum as OC pepper spray (lvl 3), they should probably be escalated to the same level as the baton (lvl 5), I'm pretty sure they should NOT occupy the 'deadly force' level 6 which involves them actually using a firearm. I'd rather be pepper sprayed rather than tasered, and I think I'd rather be tasered than hit by a baton. I KNOW I'd rather be tased than shot.