72 year old woman tasered in Austin. Justified?? (Nacogdoches, Brenham: school, restaurant)

[b. frank]

Originally Posted by mimimomx3

That cop would be VERY sorry had he done that to MY mom or grandmother!!!

Whoa! What would you have done to the cop?

[love roses]

Are the cops trained in how to restrain with basket holds? I'd imagine, but I'm on the cops side a bit here. He could physically take her down and hurt her, maybe break some bones or taser her. I know some Austin cops and they tell me that of any department in the State, they are one of the few that are so PC that there is almost nothing they can do to anyone without getting sued. I wouldn't be surprised if one day they just gave up and let people get away with everything. I do not feel sorry for that old woman at all. Even if it was my own grandma acting like a fool. Age shouldn't be a free ride for acting like an idiot. I just cannot stand people who whine and cry because they got caught. Just let her go 60 through a construction zone? What if she killed one of the construction workers? Do you really think the family of the victim would feel sorry for that woman?

I've had clients who were ER nurses who told me that you would be very surprised at how strong old people, even small frail looking ones, can be when they get extremely billegerent, or scared, or whatever. One nurse in particular had had her nose broken, along with an arm once.

[CptnRn]

Here is the video of the cop tasing her.

Public Reacts to Grandmother Tasing (http://www.myfoxaustin.com/dpp/news/local/060909_Public_Reacts_to_Grandmother_Tasing - broken link)

The first video is mostly commentary, watch the second one down the page of the exchange with the officer.

I have a hard time seeing how he was threatened or even seeing what she was doing as presenting any danger to him. At no point did she seem to threaten him by action or words. I have watched this a dozen or so times and this is a transcript of what I see happen in the video:

We don't know what transpired previously, but at the beginning the video starts with them both standing at the back of the truck and the officer says "Step back or your going to be tazed M'am". She responds "I dare you" and steps back, folding her arms, leaning against the tailgate. She doesn't appear to be threatening him in anyway and I did not hear any foul language. It appears he is talking on his radio and she takes one step closer to him, standing with her arms folded by the corner of her truck. He yells at her to "get back over there". She back up a little, not much, still standing with arms folded.

He stands talking on his radio for about 12 seconds or more while she remains standing peacefully by the back of the truck, not saying anything that I could tell. Suddenly he throws something to the ground and pulls his handcuffs out, ordering her to put her hands behind her back. He grabs one hand and tries to handcuff her, she turns and pulls away from him saying "turn me aloose", and tries to move around him toward her car, saying "I'm getting back in my car". He grabs her and shoves her back away from the roadway, he is obviously physically strong enough to restrain her and she makes no effort to hit him in anyway.

He pulls his tazer out pointing it at her and tells her "your going to be tazed, stop", she is about 6' away. She says "I'm getting back in my car" but makes no other moves, he yells "No M'aam" and shoots her even though she made no other move. She falls to the ground and then he starts shouting "Get on the ground, get on the ground" after she is already falling. She is tazed and screaming on the ground and he keeps yelling at her to "put her hands behind her back, your going to be tazed again". She is moaning or screaming terribly, she probably is paralyzed from the tazer and he keeps yelling "put your hands behind your back". You can hear her saying "I can't" and "I'm trying, I'm trying".

I don't know when the second taze shot happened. If it was when she was laying helpless at his feet then someone should take a bull whip to this officer.

[love roses]

From what I heard, he warned her he would taze her and she said "go ahead, I dare ya". He radioed in, and she tried to get in her car, he warned her a 2nd time, she ignored him, so he tazed her. When she said that she couldn't get her arms behind her back a few times, he went over and handcuffed her. He didn't kick her while she was down or anything. She didn't really appear frail to me either. Shortish, yeah, frail, no.

I say she had it coming. A 72 yr. old should have enough life experience to know that you don't talk back to cops like that and get away with it.

How was he to know she didn't have a gun or something in the truck? Old people are just as likely to be carrying one as anybody. My dad is nearly 65 and he carries a concealed handgun in his car. What would have happened had she made it to her truck and driven away; therefore causing a car chase to her home where who knows what would happen once she was there?

[rickibobbi72]

Everyone no matter how old or young you are needs to be held accountable for their actions and respectful of the law. The women was acting inappropriately and should be treated just like everyone else. To me at her age she should have known better and have set a better example for her grandchildren.

[readymade]

A few months before she died, my 4'9 TINY TINY 96 year old grandmother lifted up two big orderlies... one on each arm. She was having dementia (they wouldn't get her her brush) and was in a rage. The nurse said she saw both orderlies' feet leave the ground.

She's pretty famous now in that hospital.

[artsyguy]

It's Austin......so yeah this is your typical weird Austin circumstance......and the lack of understanding and sympathy for the 72 year old woman is typical for Austin........people there typically lack sensitivity, so this doesn't come as a shock or a surprise. lol.....seriously it makes me laugh at how callous and judgmental people are.

The lady's attitude was rude but so what. Get over it. Force her to sign the ticket and move on to bigger things like the major pot and drug problem that is there in Austin.

[artsyguy]

lol I know how pathetic.

Originally Posted by CptnRn

There is something seriously wrong if we are hiring constables that can't control an unarmed 4'-11", 72 year old grandmother without using a taser twice. What, was he afraid he might get scratched?

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by 1979

Absolutely this woman should have been tased! I saw the footage on the Today Show, and she used her age and her gender to justify not cooperating. I am more outraged that she was stopped for going 60 mph in a 45 mph zone. I think cops should have better things to do, than nit-picking speed limits.

I agree. That woman dared the officer to taser her after he warned her. She looked quite sturdy to me in the video. She resisted arrest.

[artsyguy]

lol so if you dare somebody <in the sarcastic manner that she did> it is suddenly a perfectly good reason to use a taser on somebody? The old lady was being sarcastic and then she said that she was a 72 year old woman to the cop.....

The lady could be disabled or other things going on for all we know

Originally Posted by hoffdano

I agree. That woman dared the officer to taser her after he warned her. She looked quite sturdy to me in the video. She resisted arrest.