Taser Attack

In a May 1, 2009 Department of Justice (”DOJ”) Press Release, the Justice Department announced that two former Tippah County, Mississippi Deputy Sheriffs have been sentenced in federal court for violating the civil rights of an arrestee by shooting him with a taser unnecessarily during a June 2007 incident.  See, http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2009/May/09-crt-420.html .  As stated in the DOJ Press Release, the defendants previously pleaded guilty to the civil rights offense and admitted that in June 2007 they used their tasers to attack the victim without justification.  According to the Press Release, the victim suffered mulitple burns and contusions from the taser attack, and, after the attack, the defendants stripped the arrestee of his clothing and chained him overnight in an isolation cell.  The Press Release states further that the Mississippi federal court judge ordered both defendants to surrender their law enforcement certifications and never to seek law enforcement positions in the future.  The case was investigated by the FBI and was prosecuted by two trial attorneys from the Justice Department Civil Rights Division.

Whether unjustified or unlawful taser attacks by law enforcement occur in Mississippi, Texas or elsewhere, victims of police misconduct or brutality may report the incident to law enforcement, including the FBI, and consult an attorney to determine if a civil rights charge and taser attack lawsuit may ultimately be appropriate under the particular circumstances and facts of the incident.