TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Report: Mix of Factors Led To Death of Tasered Man

ADVERTISEMENT

By JOSH POLTILOVE | The Tampa Tribune
and RAY REYES | The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 4, 2009

A combination of factors led to September's death of a 46-year-old man who had been stunned three times with a Taser, the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner's Office ruled Wednesday.

Roney Wilson was in a state of agitated delirium, stressed from being bound in handcuffs and from resisting deputies, when he was shocked with the Taser, the medical examiner's report stated. All those factors contributed to his Sept. 11 death, according to the report, which classified his death as a "homicide.''

Associate Medical Examiner Leszek Chrostowski said today that Wilson had a history of psychological problems and was on medication when he struggled with deputies. Chrostowski said the medication may have contributed to Wilson's delirium, "but there's no way to know."

Wilson was already in a state of delirium before being shot by the Taser, he said.

"It is known that people in delirium can die suddenly," Chrostowski said. "It is not clear how — cardiac arrest or stress, more often delirium induced by drugs and other medication."

Chrostowski has ruled Wilson's death as a homicide, but only in the clinical, forensic sense, he said. It doesn't mean that Wilson was murdered, he said.

"Homicide means death from the hands of another, regardless of intent," he said.

Chrostowski said if he was working on a case in which a person died of a heart attack because a gun was pulled on him, he would rule the incident a homicide even if no shots were fired.

Other medical examiners might dispute the homicide classification, he said. "There's no uniformity among medical examiners, how they would classify this."

This is what happened about 9:30 p.m. on Sept. 11, according to the sheriff's office:

A relative called the sheriff's office and said Wilson was not taking his medication and refused to leave a house in the 600 block of Hunter Road. The caller said Wilson had smashed the windshield of his mother's Nissan pickup with his fist.

During the 911 call, a person identified as a relative said Wilson had not taken his medication and needed to be hospitalized under the Florida Mental Health Act, known as the Baker Act. Relatives said he had been hospitalized under that act in the past.

Deputy Jessica Guthrie, 27, arrived to find Wilson sitting in the pickup and began talking with him. She decided Wilson needed a medical evaluation and requested backup.

Deputies Mary Angelo, 43, and Dustin Hartline, 24, arrived and asked Wilson to get out of the truck. He refused.

One deputy began talking to Wilson about a bicycle in the truck bed while Hartline reached into the cab to remove Wilson from the truck. Wilson grabbed the steering wheel and struggled with Hartline, kicking Hartline in the stomach.

At that point, Angelo used a Taser, striking Wilson in the upper torso. Wilson continued to fight, and Angelo used the Taser again.

A Taser is designed to fire jolts of electricity, disabling a person for seconds.

As the deputies struggled with Wilson on the ground, they asked for paramedics because of the Taser deployment.

Wilson tried to crawl under the truck to prevent the deputies from handcuffing him. Angelo then delivered a "drive stun" with the Taser - a close-range zap - to subdue him.

Afterward, the deputies secured Wilson's hands in handcuffs behind his back. Because Wilson continued to struggle, the deputies also placed Wilson in leg irons. The deputies used a second pair of handcuffs to attach the leg irons to his bound hands.

Wilson became unresponsive and had a faint pulse. They removed the handcuffs and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Hillsborough County Fire Rescue arrived and took Wilson to the hospital, where he died.
Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Debbie Carter said a preliminary investigation showed deputies had acted appropriately but said the sheriff's office will review the medical examiner's report.

Reporter Josh Poltilove can be reached at (813) 259-7691.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT