Cop uses Taser on elderly man suffering diabetic episode: ‘Our police officers are not paramedics’

A New Hampshire police officer used a Taser on a 78-year-old man who suffered a medical emergency while driving.
The officer was called about 11:30 a.m. Sunday to a retail wholesale store in Portsmouth, where they found the man had crashed into some parked cars and then attempted to drive away, reported the Portsmouth Herald.
The driver had his window down but ignored the officer when he ordered the man to stop, investigators said.


The man struck another parked car and continued driving in an erratic manner, eventually striking the officer’s patrol car and breaking its headlight.
The officer told the driver he was under arrest and called for backup.
He tried to pull the 215-pound driver from the vehicle, which was in neutral, and the officer then used his Taser when the man leaned over toward the passenger seat.
The officer was able to subdue the man after a second shock from the Taser, police said.
Emergency crews called to the scene said the man appeared to be weak and quickly determined he was diabetic and suffering from low blood sugar.
Fire Chief Steve Achilles said diabetics in that condition can be combative or angry, and their condition often resembles drug or alcohol intoxication.
The deputy police chief said the incident was “regrettable,” but the officer was not aware the driver was suffering a medical emergency.
“Our police officers are not paramedics,” said Deputy Police Chief Corey MacDonald. “They are charged with bringing dangerous situations under control. This driver could just as easily have been under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or engaging in willful criminal conduct.”
The man’s handcuffs were removed so he could receive medical attention, and he was taken by ambulance to a hospital.
The driver was not charged in the incident, and police said damage to the other vehicles was minor.
The incident will be investigated by a use of force review committee.


http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/02/cop-uses-taser-on-elderly-man-suffering-diabetic-episode-our-police-officers-are-not-paramedics/

“Our police officers are not paramedics,” said Deputy Police Chief Corey MacDonald.  

What next?  Night sticks for pregnant women having premature contractions?  Cattle branding for identification ('...some of our officers can't read,' says Chief MacDonald).

New Hampshire, state of my first residence, is turning into a real disappointment.

OTT Quill - I'm sorry this guy was ill but he could have ended io killing someone, hurting someone and/or causing a lot more than minor damage if the police hadn't stopped him.

being medically unfit and getting behind the wheel is just as bad as being DUI.

How is the officer to know though Cass?
This is a terrible story only because we know after the event the man had such a condition.
Is age here playing a part on how people are looking at this story?
All the officer sees is a car driving erratically, then believing the man was intoxicated, because of the symptoms.
I mean imagine how this officer must now feel or even have felt when he realised he had made a mistake. I am one for coming down hard on the police when they use excessive force, but in this case, you have to try and picture what the officer saw and believed to be the case.
They are not trained medics after all.

Brasidas wrote:How is the officer to know though Cass?
This is a terrible story only because we know after the event the man had such a condition.
Is age here playing a part on how people are looking at this story?
All the officer sees is a car driving erratically, then believing the man was intoxicated, because of the symptoms.
I mean imagine how this officer must now feel or even have felt when he realised he had made a mistake. I am one for coming down hard on the police when they use excessive force, but in this case, you have to try and picture what the officer saw and believed to be the case.
They are not trained medics after all.

they dont and that's not their fault and its not their fault as I said. their job is to protect and in this case they did.

Cass wrote:they dont and that's not their fault and its not their fault as I said. their job is to protect and in this case they did.

So now we come full circle. We see the consequences of American cops who are trained to do the damage first, and ask questions later. Only this one isn't covered over by the race issue, wherein some people are of the opinion that it's alright to beat up black men without question.

No, this story is simply about a weak old man, and over-zealous cops anxious to take out their marital problems, or difficulty paying the rent--whatever is troubling them at the time--by beating up a defense-less sick man. This is not a story about (sub-set) racism, or (sub-set) immigration. It's about whether this is civilized behavior in our time and do we want to put up with it?

no its not. its about police being called to an incident where damage had occurred and there was potential for harm to come to other people.

so what would you say if the police didn't stop him and he killed someone?

Cass wrote:no its not. its about police being called to an incident where damage had occurred and there was potential for harm to come to other people.

so what would you say if the police didn't stop him and he killed someone?

I think you are discounting other ways of handling the situation. That's exactly my point: the cops love their violence altogether too much.

Original Quill wrote:

Cass wrote:they dont and that's not their fault and its not their fault as I said. their job is to protect and in this case they did.

So now we come full circle.  We see the consequences of American cops who are trained to do the damage first, and ask questions later.  Only this one isn't covered over by the race issue, wherein some people are of the opinion that it's alright to beat up black men without question.

No, this story is simply about a weak old man, and over-zealous cops anxious to take out their marital problems, or difficulty paying the rent--whatever is troubling them at the time--by beating up a defense-less sick man.  This is not a story about (sub-set) racism, or (sub-set) immigration.  It's about whether this is civilized behavior in our time and do we want to put up with it?

In most cases I would agree with you but not in this situation where again you are going off hindsight to the fact he had a condition and his age. The fact is such a condition is a danger to the public, no matter how you can say otherwise and the Police reacted to what they thought was someone drunk. In this case the Police are blameless and very much so,

Brasidas wrote:

Original Quill wrote:

So now we come full circle.  We see the consequences of American cops who are trained to do the damage first, and ask questions later.  Only this one isn't covered over by the race issue, wherein some people are of the opinion that it's alright to beat up black men without question.

No, this story is simply about a weak old man, and over-zealous cops anxious to take out their marital problems, or difficulty paying the rent--whatever is troubling them at the time--by beating up a defense-less sick man.  This is not a story about (sub-set) racism, or (sub-set) immigration.  It's about whether this is civilized behavior in our time and do we want to put up with it?

In most cases I would agree with you but not in this situation where again you are going off hindsight to the fact he had a condition and his age. The fact is such a condition is a danger to the public, no matter how you can say otherwise and the Police reacted to what they thought was someone drunk. In this case the Police are blameless and very much so,

Well no, I'm actually looking at his first actions, and thinking couldn't this have been handled better?

But you are right, neither of us are working with benefit of the police report or perhaps a premises video. I'm anxious to see if anything else comes to light.

but in the past the Officer wouldn't have tasered him maybe dragged him out of the car but wouldn't have tasered or shot them for leaning to the passenger side.

The real issue is the over reaction by police in almost every circumstance in the media and the reliance on weapon to resolve situations (I'm sure plenty of police every day handle things properly without using weapons)

This particular case I don't think the officer are in the wrong, could have done better but their actions are within community exceptions.

If community standards make it acceptable to taser anyone, anytime, I'll pick another community.

It's the reason I am reluctant to enter a southern state.

Original Quill wrote:If community standards make it acceptable to taser anyone, anytime, I'll pick another community.

It's the reason I am reluctant to enter a southern state.

if he was black the 'community' would have expected him to be Shot proper..

I think it is, in that they reasonably thought he was having a violent drug episode. And he had hit their car. there is another story on Think progress about a teen girl shot dead for hitting a police car.

Original Quill wrote:If community standards make it acceptable to taser anyone, anytime, I'll pick another community.

It's the reason I am reluctant to enter a southern state.

don't be aburd....

what about millions including Ben and myself and yourself who have lived and currently live in southern States who haven't been tasered.

you're just as prejudiced as you claim law enforcement are.

Cass wrote:

Original Quill wrote:If community standards make it acceptable to taser anyone, anytime, I'll pick another community.

It's the reason I am reluctant to enter a southern state.

don't be aburd....

what about millions including Ben and myself and yourself who have lived and currently live in southern States who haven't been tasered.

you're just as prejudiced as you claim law enforcement are.

Personally?  I couldn't wait to get out of Arizona at the end.  Tucson is a liberal, lovely university town, surrounded by gorgeous mountains and beautiful, Arizona Highways scenes.  But the rest of the state...all Mormon pod people.

The other thing I differ on is: people seem to take tasers pretty lightly. Don't, they can kill. The only reason cops use them is because of the public perception that they are safe. Cops know they are not, but cops don't worry about doing bad, they just worry about getting caught.

they are no f***kin better here.....

FROM http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/oct/17/police-taser-blind-man-stick

An innocent blind man was shot in the back with a 50,000-volt Taser by police after they mistook his white stick for a samurai sword.

Colin Farmer, 61, was hit after reports of a man walking through Chorley, Lancashire, early on Friday evening, with a sword. He said he initially thought he was being attacked by hooligans when he was struck by the Taser.

The matter is being investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) after Farmer made a complaint to the force.

Farmer, who used to run an architects' practice, was on his way to meet friends at 5.45pm and was walking in Peter Street near a restaurant. "I was just walking along and I heard some men shouting really angrily and thought I'm going to get mugged. I didn't know any police were here.

"The Taser hit me in the back and it started sending all these thousands of volts through me and I was terrified. I mean I had two strokes already caused by stress. I dropped the stick involuntarily and I collapsed on the floor face down."
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He added: "I was shaking and I thought 'I'm going to have another stroke any second and this one is going to kill me. I'm being killed. I'm being killed'."

Farmer, who has suffered two strokes, the most recent requiring two months in hospital in March, was fearful he would suffer another stroke.

"I walk at a snail's pace. They could have walked past me, driven past me in a van or said 'drop your weapon'."

Lancashire Police apologised to Farmer for the "traumatic experience" but confirmed last night that the officer who fired the Taser has not been suspended and remains on duty.

Chief superintendent Stuart Williams, from Lancashire Police, said: "We received a number of reports that a man was walking through Chorley with a Samurai sword and patrols were sent to look for him.

"One of the officers believed he had located the offender. Despite asking the man to stop, he failed to do so and the officer discharged his Taser.

"It then became apparent this man was not the person we were looking for and officers attended to him straight away.

"He was taken to Chorley Hospital by officers who stayed while he was checked over by medics. They then took him to meet his friends in Chorley at his request.

"Lancashire Constabulary deeply regrets what has happened. We have clearly put this man through a traumatic experience and we are extremely sorry.

"We have launched an urgent investigation to understand what lessons can be learned and the matter has been referred to the IPCC."

Farmer says he is taking legal action against the force and wants the officer involved charged with assault.

A 27-year-old man carrying a samurai sword was later arrested on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly.




the REAL truth is that an increasing number of our "finest" are turning out to be overpaid thugs, unfit for purpose, lacking in training in ALL aspects of policing including the law they are supposed to be upholding.