Legal News for North Carolina Personal Injury Attorneys. A Kannapolis man was critically injured after being electrocuted by a police Taser and falling from a tree stand.
North Carolina personal injury lawyer alert- A police officer, attempting to serve an arrest warrant, used a Taser on a Kannapolis, North Carolina man, leaving him in critical condition.
Kannapolis, NC—Police authorities tased a man in a tree stand, consequently leaving him paralyzed from the waist down and in critical condition. The incident occurred after deputies responded to a Kannapolis, North Carolina home with an arrest warrant for the victim on Monday, April 19, 2010. The warrant was being served in connection with a prior domestic call they had received, according to information provided by WSOCTV.com.
Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office deputies were reportedly dispatched to a residence located on Simmons Street to serve Dale Cook of Kannapolis with a warrant. Upon doing so, however, Cook allegedly climbed into a tree stand and sat down. Witness reports indicated that while Cook was not exactly cooperating, he did not seem to be posing a threat to responding deputies. Nonetheless, an unidentified deputy apparently took out his Taser, and shocked Cook from the ground below. Witnesses alleged Cook appeared as if he were in pain, went on to stand up, and subsequently went on to fall from the tree stand.
Cabarrus County deputies and witnesses, which included several neighbors, seem to disagree on the specifics of the incident. In the police report, deputies contended Cook “implied he had a knife” and although officers confirmed the use of a Taser, they depicted his fall as a suicide attempt of sorts. They also reported the case was closed.
According to neighbor and witness, Debbie Bare, “If you’re posing no threat to an officer and you’re that far up in the air, why would you think that’s your only choice of getting him down?”
The Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office could not be reached for comment.
Legal News Reporter: Sandra Quinlan- Legal News for North Carolina Personal Injury Lawyers.
