Taser demonstration jolts lawman's friend

By Andy Paras
STAFF WRITER
aparas@greenvillenews.com

A Greenville County Sheriff's deputy was suspended for three days after he accidentally shot a detention officer in the face and chest with a Taser, Sheriff Sam Simmons told The Greenville News Thursday.

Fifty thousand volts of electricity over a period of five seconds knocked the detention officer to the ground. He hit his head against the Detention Center parking lot, Simmons said, and required 12 staples to close a gash in his head.

The Advanced Taser is considered a "less lethal" weapon used by law enforcement officers to subdue a suspect. The weapon discharges two prongs that cling to the target and then transmit the voltage into the person's nervous system.

The on-duty deputy was issued the weapon about a week ago. He was sitting in his patrol car Wednesday showing it to his friend the detention officer, who was leaning in the passenger-side window, Simmons said. That's when it "negligently discharged," Simmons said.

"It was just a stupid mistake, negligence on his part," Simmons said of the deputy. "None of the weapons that they carry are supposed to be displayed or shown off or taken out of their holsters unless the need arises."

Director of Public Safety Jim Dorriety, who oversees the jail, said the detention officer has been released from the hospital and is doing well. He's expected to return to work next week, Dorriety said.

Once the deputy completes his three-day suspension he must undergo a remedial Taser training course, Simmons said. The sheriff declined to release the deputy's name.

According to an incident report, the deputy had at one point removed the cartridge from the weapon but "apparently automatically replaced it without being aware of it."

The deputy will not face criminal charges, Simmons said.

The Taser incident was the Sheriff's Office's second mishap involving "less-lethal" weapons in less than two months. On June 27, a sergeant blew off a man's hand when he mistakenly used a 12-gauge shell instead of a "bean bag" round to subdue a man deputies believed was a suicide threat.

That deputy was suspended for three days after an investigation showed he failed to follow proper procedure.

Steve Tuttle, spokesman for the Taser manufacturer, said the detention officer's injury is one of the worst "secondary injuries" -- caused by the ground -- he's heard of since that model was introduced in 1999.

He said it might have to do with the fact the detention officer wasn't expecting it and didn't have time to cushion his fall.

Being hit in the head by one of the prongs will not cause any more pain than being hit anywhere else in the body, as long as it's not in the eye, which has never happened, Tuttle said.

"That's the good thing about this weapon," he said. "Even in a negative situation like this, the technology won't kill."

Andy Paras covers crime and courts. He can be reached at 298-4220.

http://greenvilleonline.com/news/2002/08/08/2002080826821.htm

A stun gun is a weapon - - no doubt.

Thanks for finding the article!