Cops use 50,000-volt stun gun on autistic child

March 3, 2009

Daily News Wire Services

Posted: 03/02/2009 09:13:09 AM PST

Updated: 03/02/2009 09:14:23 AM PST

HAWTHORNE - Hawthorne police have launched a misconduct investigation

of an officer who used a 50,000-volt stun gun on a violent autistic

12-year-old boy at one of the city's middle schools.

Such use of electroshock weapons by police on young students is rare,

but high-profile incidents have sparked fierce debate around the

country over when, if ever, Tasers should be used on children.

A Hawthorne police spokesman said that the department launched its

investigation in response to a complaint by the boy's parents days

after the Sept. 23 incident. He said department officials are

reviewing the incident to determine whether the officer followed the

agency's rules on using Tasers.

Lt. Ishii said that police were called to Hawthorne Middle

School after a student grabbed a counselor in a threatening manner

and punched and kicked a security guard who intervened.

The boy, described as about 5 feet 7 and 130 to 150 pounds,

threatened to kill staff members and continued assaulting the guard,

who tried to protect other staffers, Ishii said.

Officer Arias arrived at the school about 11:30 a.m. The boy,

whose name was not released, continued behaving violently and kicked

Arias in the groin as about 200 students looked on from the school

grounds, Ishii said.

School officials called the boy's adult sister to the site but she

was unable to calm him, Ishii said. Arias, he said, fired a hand-held

X26 Taser when the boy dashed toward the school's exit and the area

where other students were in a physical education class.

The boy was not hurt, but his family complained, prompting the

department to launch its investigation. The probe is examining

whether the officer should have used an alternative method to detain

the boy, Ishii said.

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