Taser

Stories 21 - 40 | << Prev   Next >>

She Left the US to Raise a Black Son. Then, the 'Inevitable'

Family demands answers in tasing death of Chinedu Okobi

(Newser) - When 72-year-old Amaka Okobi heard a black man had had a deadly encounter with police in Millbrae, Calif., she thought, "Oh God, I feel so bad for his mother." Only later did she learn the man was her own 36-year-old son, said to have been tased by at...

School Resource Officer Used Taser to Wake Student

Officer Maryssa Boskoski has been suspended without pay

(Newser) - A school resource officer in northeast Ohio who decided using her Taser was the best way to wake up a sleeping student has been suspended and could face criminal charges. Officer Maryssa Boskoski didn't actually jolt the student with thousands of volts of electricity, News5 reports, but she activated...

Cop to 11-Year-Old Girl: It 'Hurt My Heart' to Tase You

Internal review shows Kevin Brown violated department policy

(Newser) - "You know, sweetheart, this is why there aren't any grocery stores in the black community." That's what Cincinnati police officer Kevin Brown told an 11-year-old African-American girl moments after tasing her for allegedly shoplifting $53 worth of food and clothing from a Kroger on Aug. 6....

Cops Tase 87-Year-Old Who Was Looking for Dandelions

Martha Al-Bishara is 87, doesn't speak English

(Newser) - After an elderly woman wouldn't leave the grounds of a Boys and Girls Club in rural Georgia last Friday, police were called—and the situation culminated with Martha Al-Bishara, 87, being tased. CNN reports the 911 caller described Al-Bishara as walking on the bike trails while holding a knife,...

Cincinnati Cop Tases Girl Accused of Stealing Food

Officer is on restricted duty amid investigation

(Newser) - A Cincinnati police officer is on restricted duty after using a Taser on an 11-year-old girl suspected of stealing food from a Kroger. "It's hard to understand why an 11-year-old would be tased. I expect answers in 24 hours," Vice Mayor Christopher Smitherman tells the Cincinnati Enquirer...

Video Shows 'Disturbing' Arrest of NBA Player

Cops disciplined for Sterling Brown incident

(Newser) - Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett has apologized to NBA player Sterling Brown for the "disturbing" way police treated him in a video released Wednesday. Police body-camera footage of the Jan. 26 arrest shows an officer becoming confrontational after finding the Milwaukee Bucks rookie's vehicle parked across two spots reserved...

Mom Accused of Unusual Way of Getting Son Up for Church

Cops say Arizona's Sharron Dobbins used a Taser on Easter Sunday to get her teen out of bed

(Newser) - It's not acceptable to use a Taser to get your child up for church, police say—even on Easter Sunday. Arizona mother Sharron Dobbins was arrested on suspicion of child abuse after allegedly using a stun gun on her 17-year-old son early Sunday morning, the Sacramento Bee reports. She...

Cops: Texas Woman Used Stun Gun on 5-Year-Old Son

'From zero to 10, it hurt 10,' he told police

(Newser) - Her lawyer says it was "discipline that went a little too far." Police say it was a felony. Houston woman Whitney White, 27, has been charged with felony injury to a child for abuse that included abusing her son with a stun gun when he was 5 years...

Police Raffle Has Shocking Grand Prize, Literally

An officer will be hit by a stun gun in Louisiana

(Newser) - A police union in Louisiana is raffling off a grand prize that is raising eyebrows: the use of a stun gun on one of its officers, per the AP . DeRidder Police Chief John Gott says officers themselves suggested one of their own be stunned April 15 to raise funds for...

A Name Change for Taser, Free Body Cams for Cops

Newly branded Axon offering police departments trial run for cameras, software

(Newser) - Does this mean we now have to say a suspect was "Axoned"? In a rebranding move meant to put some distance between the Taser International company and its famous stun gun, the firm is changing its name, Reuters reports. Although CEO Rick Smith says his team is "...

Cops Fulfill Teen's Odd Bucket List Wish

After leukemia returned, Alyssa Elkins decided she wanted to fire a Taser

(Newser) - When Alyssa Elkins sat down with her eight siblings to write a bucket list, she thought about a video she'd seen of her uncle being struck by a Taser during his training with the Ohio State Highway Patrol. She added firing a Taser to the list, partly as a...

Study Finds Another Reason to Be Wary of Tasers

They could lead to false confessions, researchers say

(Newser) - People have died after being Tased , and now a new study finds another reason to be wary of Tasers: The weapons may lead to false confessions. Criminology researchers actually found 142 people willing to be Tased—most of them were college students, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports—and then used...

Every Chicago Cop Will Soon Carry a Taser

Mayor Rahm Emanuel changing policy after high-profile shootings

(Newser) - Today, about 20% of Chicago police officers have a Taser on hand when responding to calls. By June 1, that figure will be up to 100% with each officer trained in how to use the devices, Mayor Rahm Emanuel's office says, per CNN . The changes in policy also will...

FBI: We're Going to Start Counting Deaths by Cop Better

New system will list deadly encounters by gun, Taser, physical force

(Newser) - The FBI is finally on the case: The agency is revamping its data-collection system to more accurately portray how many deaths come at the hands of police officers each year, the Guardian reports, giving itself a pat on the back as part of the impetus behind the initiative. Officials say...

Odd Airline Dispute Involves Taser, Man Purse

Irate passenger arrested this morning in London: police

(Newser) - Instead of in Belfast, a passenger aboard an EasyJet flight on the tarmac at London's Gatwick Airport landed in jail today after an argument over his "man purse" left him stunned—literally, police say. NBC News reports the budget carrier allows just one carry-on bag per flight and...

City Scraps Weird Raffle Involving a Taser

Sorry, entrants, no human target

(Newser) - Plenty of people in Van Meter, Iowa, apparently wanted to deliver a jolt to a city official, but they'll no longer get the chance. The city has scrapped a strange raffle that offered people the opportunity to fire a Taser at the city administrator or at a councilman, reports...

Iowa Town Dreams Up Really Odd $5 Raffle

The winner gets to wield a stun gun

(Newser) - If you've ever felt like tasing a city official, well, Van Meter, Iowa, is the place for you. The town is giving one member of the public the chance to do just that by way of a $5 raffle. The winner will get to use a Taser on City...

Irate Hockey Fan Tases Mayor—for a Cause

Raises $10K for charity with stun gun after Arizona mayor ran her team off

(Newser) - An Arizona Coyotes fan got to take out her frustration on the mayor behind the decision to send the hockey team packing. reports that disgruntled fan Ronda Pearson used a stun gun on Glendale Mayor Jerry Weiers yesterday as part of a charity pledge. Weiers volunteered to be stunned with...

Dad Tased After Flying Drone at Park

Travis Sanders says he didn't know flying tiny 'aircraft' was illegal

(Newser) - Travis Sanders expected a fun night when he took his family to Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park on Saturday. But things took an unexpected turn when the 35-year-old Pahoa resident was Tased by a park ranger and arrested after sending up a 3-inch quadcopter drone to take video of the...

Guy Tries to Stop Robbery, Gets Charged With Felony

Jeff Steele reportedly threatened robber with Taser he had no permit for

(Newser) - A man who tried to stop a robbery in a Wisconsin bar has been charged with a felony because he wasn't supposed to be carrying the Taser he allegedly threatened the suspect with. According to WKBT-TV , Jeff Steele was at the King's Korner bar in La Crosse just...

Stories 21 - 40 | << Prev   Next >>
Most Read on Newser