Taser Guns

The ACLU has asked the Orange County Sheriff's Department to restrict the use of Tasers in most cases, saying hundreds of people have died nationally after being shocked by the stun guns during encounters with police. The American Civil Liberties Union delivered a sharply worded 10-page letter to Sheriff Sandra Hutchens on Tuesday, urging her to limit the department's use of Tasers to incidents in which there is a threat of "death or serious bodily injury."

The Police Commission agreed this week to issue Tasers equipped with small cameras to 55 officers for a test program after supervisors concluded that the recorded scene may be helpful in case of litigation. A report by the Firearms and Tactics Section also identified training concerns. Among those were the need for officers to learn not to cover the camera when holding the Taser with two hands, and the loss of picture when officers lower the Taser after use.

A Simi Valley man who was shocked with a Taser during a confrontation with police died this week, and authorities said Friday that an investigation into his death is continuing. A cause of death for Raymundo Guerrero Garcia, 31, who died at a local hospital Wednesday night, will not be released until toxicology tests are completed, which could take up to four months, said Craig Stevens, a Ventura County senior deputy medical examiner.

Orange County sheriff's deputies on Tuesday defended their decision to use a stun gun on a 15-year-old autistic boy who ran away from his parents and later dashed into traffic. Using the Taser in this case "was the right thing to do," said Jim Amormino, a sheriff's spokesman. "If that were your son, would you want him Tased or hit by a car? The deputy made the right decision. . . . It could have saved [the boy's] life."

A 28-year-old transient incarcerated at Orange County Jail for drinking in public has died after being subdued with a stun gun, authorities said Saturday. "He was scheduled to be released today," said Damon Micalizzi, a spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Department. The man's name was withheld pending notification of relatives. The death was the county's second associated with a Taser gun in a little more than a month. Micalizzi said the incident occurred about 12:45 p.m.

An Orange County Jail inmate who died after being subdued with a stun gun was identified Monday as Michael Patrick Lass. Lass, 28, died Friday after guards shocked him with a Taser when he allegedly became combative. He had been arrested for drinking in public Wednesday and was due to be released Saturday. Though Lass had no known address, authorities said, his father lives in Trabuco Canyon. The incident is being investigated by the district attorney's office.

A University of Florida student stunned by a police Taser and arrested after his fervent videotaped outburst at an event with Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) won't be formally charged if he stays out of trouble for 18 months, prosecutors said in Gainesville. Andrew Meyer's shout of "Don't Tase me, bro!" was ignored by campus police but helped make video clips of the 21-year-old being dragged from a microphone an Internet sensation.

Canada ordered a review of Taser use after graphic video showed police officers using the stun guns against an unarmed Polish immigrant, who died soon afterward. The video, taken Oct. 14 by a bystander, showed Robert Dziekanski shrieking in agony when he was hit at Vancouver International Airport. Officers could then be seen kneeling on him.

Authorities are investigating the death of a 32-year-old man who lost consciousness sometime after being shocked with a Taser gun during a confrontation with Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies. Cesar Silva, who authorities suspect was under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time, passed out in the back seat of a patrol car after struggling with officers shortly before midnight Friday, said Steve Whitmore, a department spokesman.

Canada's national police force, criticized for excessive use of Tasers, said that, from now on, officers would only fire the electric stun guns at suspects who are combative or resisting arrest. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police policy change was prompted by outrage over the death of a Polish immigrant who was Tasered and then restrained at the Vancouver airport in October. RCMP Commissioner William Elliott said he could not define combative behavior. Taser International Inc.