By Matthew B. Stannard
San Francisco Chronicle
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Police homicide investigators are reviewing the death of a man who died after being shocked with a Taser during a struggle with officers.
San Jose police Officer Jermaine Thomas said police were summoned to the 1400 block of North First Street by a report of a woman who may have been thrown through a window. When police arrived, Thomas said, they saw a broken window and heard people talking inside the room.
“The officers used their batons to knock on the door but still got no answer,” Thomas said. “The officers gained entry, and the victim was immediately pulled to safety.”
Officers saw the male suspect “standing across the room grunting and not wearing any clothing,” Thomas said. He said police gave commands to the man, but a struggle ensued between the man and several officers. At some point, the officers Tasered the man, who was ultimately subdued.
Thomas said paramedics, who were already there for the same call about the woman, gave medical aid to the man, who was pronounced dead at the scene. The woman was not hospitalized, Thomas said.
The death is being investigated by the San Jose Police Department’s homicide unit and the Santa Clara County coroner’s office, with monitoring from the San Jose Police Department’s internal affairs unit and the Santa Clara County district attorney’s office.
Copyright 2007 San Francisco Chronicle