use of taser defended

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SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/281395_taser16.html

Taser use on deaf man defended

But his friends criticize action by Seattle police

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

By HECTOR CASTRO

P-I REPORTER

To Seattle police, it was a near-perfect use of a Taser -- subduing a

man whose behavior might have forced a more violent confrontation,

even a shooting, without the less lethal option.

To Bob Ross' friends, his being electrically stunned last month was

an excessive use of force brought on, they believe, because he is

deaf and did not hear the officer's commands.

" It was one of those things that obviously got out of hand, " said Jim

Lunz, owner of Seattle Pottery Supply and Ross' boss for the past 29

years.

It was a situation that might have been avoided, Ross' friends say,

if police were able to recognize the disabled, learning even a basic

sign such as the one asking a person's name.

Ross' guardians at Guardianship Services of Seattle are contacting an

advocacy group for the disabled, hoping they will work to prevent

another situation like the one experienced by the 56-year-old Ross.

" We just want to make sure that this doesn't happen to anybody else

again, " said Sacha with Guardianship Services. " This isn't the

first time that somebody with a disability was mistaken for somebody

who was committing a crime. "

The department will examine whether training needs to be enhanced,

but the officer's Taser use in this case was entirely appropriate,

said assistant Seattle police Chief Kimerer. He oversees the

department's " less lethal " program, which includes Tasers, beanbag

shotguns and training officers in defusing volatile situations.

" It strikes me that most officers, when confronted with that

situation, would probably take similar action, " Kimerer said. " The

officer was in uniform, the facts about the subject's hearing

disability were not known to her. She was reacting to behavior which

was very troubling and threatening and needed to be dealt with. "

According to police reports, the confrontation began just before 8

a.m. on July 29 at the business on South Hanford Street.

Officer r saw a man pushing the front door, apparently

trying to get in. She noted in her report that the man " attempted to

hide behind a large planter. "

Lunz said Ross sometimes sits on the ledge of the planters on either

side of the entrance when he arrives early and it could appear he was

hiding.

The officer drew her gun and ordered Ross away from the door. He ignored her.

When he did come out from behind the plants, Ross was carrying wooden

dowels for use in making pots.

r ordered Ross to drop the sticks, but he did not respond.

She radioed for backup just as Ross " began to raise the sticks and

come toward me in a quick pace, " according to her report.

r holstered her gun and drew her Taser, firing when Ross

continued to approach her.

The two Taser darts, attached to wires that deliver a 50,000-volt

shock, struck Ross in the chest and abdomen, but he yanked them out

and ran.

r gave chase, loaded a fresh cartridge in her Taser, and fired

again, this time hitting him in the chest and thigh. Again, Ross

pulled out the darts and continued to run.

The officer loaded another cartridge, fired again and hit Ross in the front.

Just then, Officer arrived. He also shot his Taser, and

this time Ross went down.

But he continued to fight, grabbing handfuls of gravel and throwing

them at the officers.

Two more officers arrived and all four were able to restrain Ross,

using gestures to calm the agitated man.

Takahashi arrived at work that morning and found her friend

strapped to a gurney.

" I thought he must have been hit by a car, " she said.

After speaking with police she learned they hadn't realized he is deaf.

Ross, she said, " was very gray and nervous. "

He was wrapped in a blanket, there was a bandage on his back and his

shirt was bloody and stained with dirt.

The police, especially r, seemed upset, she said.

" She said she just felt sick, " Takahashi said. " She felt horrible. "

Police initially considered arresting Ross for investigation of

assault and obstruction, until they realized he was disabled.

Supervisors agreed that the use of force was correct.

" The officers had no way of knowing the suspect was deaf and mute and

the suspect apparently was unable to communicate that to the

officers, " one supervisor wrote in a review. " The suspect could have

avoided this confrontation by remaining calm and still. "

But and others believe police also could have handled the matter better.

" There was just too much, too much force, " she said.

P-I reporter Castro can be reached at or

hectorcastro@....

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