Akron - Tasers don't kill, say the makers of the stun guns, so they went to court Monday to protect the company's reputation.

Taser International Inc. wants a judge to order Summit County Medical Examiner Dr. Lisa Kohler to change her rulings that "electrical pulse incapacitation" contributed to three men's deaths.

A hearing began Monday in Summit County Common Pleas Court before visiting Judge Ted Schneiderman and is expected to last several days. Experts for Taser and Kohler will testify whether any medical, scientific or engineering evidence can demonstrate a Taser can cause or contribute to a death.

In Ohio, the ruling of a medical examiner is assumed to be presumptively valid, John Manley, chief counsel of the civil division of the Summit County prosecutor's office, said last week. Manley is representing the medical examiner in the trial.