Latino Man Dies after being shocked. Cops Order More Tasers
The death of a man in Fort Worth after being shot with an electrified
dart this week has recharged debate about the safety of the
increasingly popular stun guns. Touted as a life-saving alternative to
deadly force, Tasers are used by every major law-enforcement department
in Harris County and 300 across Texas. The sudden death of 21-year-old
Robert Guerrero on Tuesday is the state's third that occurred in police
custody after the use of a stun gun, based on reports from the
manufacturer and the media. The incident did not shake Houston Police
Chief Harold Hurtt's conviction that his pending order for $4.7 million
in Tasers will help save lives, not end them. "Tasers give officers
another option besides their handguns when they are confronted by
someone with a weapon other than a gun or by someone who is mentally
ill," he said. Houston's City Council approved buying 3,600 Tasers this
week. Guerrero's death occurred after Fort Worth police officers
responded to a tip that someone was illegally running electrical lines
into an apartment. They followed the lines, discovered Guerrero hiding
in a closet and threatened to stun him if he didn't come out. Shortly
after being zapped with 50,000 volts, Guerrero stopped breathing and
died, said Fort Worth Police Department spokesman Lt. Abdul Pridgen. It
was the third recent death in Texas of someone who had been stunned by
a Taser. [more]
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