Police Stun Gun Kills Teen With Bible

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/10/31/D8L3L5G83.html

Oct 31 8:42 AM US/Eastern

A teenager carrying a Bible and shouting "I want Jesus" was shot twice
with a police stun gun and later died at a St. Louis hospital,
authorities said.

In a statement obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, police in
Jerseyville, about 40 miles north of St. Louis, said 17-year-old Roger
Holyfield would not acknowledge officers who approached him and he
continued yelling, "I want Jesus."

Police tried to calm the teen, but Holyfield became combative,
according to the statement. Officers fired the stun gun at him after he
ignored their warnings, then fired again when he continued struggling,
police said.

Holyfield was flown to St. Louis' Cardinal Glennon Hospital after the
confrontation Saturday; he died there Sunday, police said.

An autopsy was planned for Tuesday.

The statement expressed sympathy to Holyfield's family but said city
and police officials would not discuss the matter further.

Calls Tuesday to Jerseyville Police Chief Brad Blackorby were not
immediately returned. The department has been using stun guns for about
five months, according to the statement.

In a report released in March, international human rights group Amnesty
International said it had logged at least 156 deaths across the country
in the previous five years related to police stun guns.

The rise in deaths accompanies a marked increase in the number of U.S.
law enforcement agencies employing devices made by Taser International
Inc. of Scottsdale, Ariz. About 1,000 of the nation's 18,000 police
agencies used Tasers in 2001; more than 7,000 departments had them last
year, according to a government study.

Police had used Tasers more than 70,000 times as of last year,
Congress' Government Accountability Office said.

Amnesty International has urged police departments to suspend the use
of Tasers pending more study. Taser International said the group's
count was flawed and falsely linked deaths to Taser use when there has
been no such official conclusion.

The city of St. Louis also drew unwanted attention for crime this week
when it was named the most dangerous U.S. city by Morgan Quitno Press.
The ranking looked only at crime within St. Louis city limits, not its
metro area.

___

On the Net:

Taser International, http://www.taser.com

http://www.taser.com/press/saveofweek.htm

Save of the Week
Officer uses Taser on person threatening suicide

Saturday October 28, 2006

A Hagerstown Police Department officer used a Taser on Wednesday to
subdue a person threatening suicide and force the person to drop the
knife the person was holding, according to a police department press
release.

On Wednesday about 11:15 p.m., officers went to the area of East Avenue
and North Locust Street in response to a call that a person was outside
and threatening suicide, Lt. Richard Reynolds said.

Reynolds would not disclose the person's gender, citing privacy
concerns.

While officers were at the scene, the person held the knife and pressed
the knife to their throat and chest, according to the release.

Officer Tom Kelley talked with the person, who became distracted when
other officers showed up to help Kelley out, according to the release.
During the distraction, Kelley used his Taser on the person, who
subsequently dropped the knife and was taken into custody, according to
the release.

The person was taken to Washington County Hospital for an emergency
mental health evaluation, according to the release. No one was injured.

According to the release, the department's officers have used their
Tasers 24 times in 2005.

Only officers trained to use the Taser and who have been tased
themselves may use it, according to the release. The Taser's probes
temporarily incapacitate the person the officer is targeting.

CopyrightThe Herald-Mail ONLINE.


Source: THE HERALD MAIL - PENNSYLVANIA
......

And yet more saves:

http://www.taser.com/press/saveofweek.10.16.06.htm

...go to the bottom of the page for each article to click on "More..."
for...well, you guessed it, more saves using Taser.

We don't see a lot of these for use of gun, or even use of baton, or
Mace.

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