A Taser was used to restrain an elderly man suffering from Alzheimer's and the video has been leaked. The video has gone viral after and now the Kansas deputy sheriff who used the Taser is under fire.
Tech Times reported that Ottawa County deputy sheriff Russ Thornton was with his colleague when they were called to the Good Samaritan Nursing Center in Minneapolis. The incident took place in March. They were called to assist in approaching one of the patients, who was accused of assaulting a fellow resident.
The two officers were said to be convincing the old man to go to the doctor. At one point, the man seemingly ignored the requests of the officer and said that he was hungry. The officers then told him that he would eat after going to the doctor. The 91-year-old man, who was identified only as Lee, reportedly became violent while Thornton and the other officer were trying to convince him to go with them for his doctor's appointment.
Lee reportedly slapped one of the officer's hand away when they tried to escort him outside of the retirement home. He also lunged at one of the officers. They then used force to restrain the patient with Alzheimer's.
In the video, Lee was handcuffed by the officers. He was also shouting through the pain. The video was leaked on LiveLeak.com, as per Opposing Views.
The Ottawa County Sheriff's Office conducted an investigation to see if there was any wrongdoing on the part of the officers. The family of Lee said that the incident left the 91-year-old man with a broken wrist and his heart has weakened. The man died two months after the incident.
A personal protection expert, Joe Schillaci, said that the use of the Taser might have been a better way because if the officials would have tried to physically restrain him, more damage might have been done. Schillaci added that physical injury would have been worse and using a Taser was able to incapacitate the patient immediately.
No charges have been filed yet. The Ottawa County Sheriff's office is yet to issue a statement about the video.
