Friday, December 05, 2008

Tasers R Expensive

I wonder if the quotes that Taser International sent out to Muskingum County, Ohio included this price as a line item:
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Last winter 10 Investigates exposed a pattern of questionable Taser deployment in Muskingum County, and now the county is paying out hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle one such claim, 10 Investigates' Paul Aker reported on Thursday.

Tonya Morrison filed a lawsuit in federal court based on a claim that a jail guard used a Taser to torture her. ...

The county denied the accusations. ...

The county seemed prepared to go to court with that defense in Morrison's case, but Morrison's attorney said he found a last-minute witness who heard guards abusing his client, Aker reported.

The witness said she heard guards pull out a chair and put Morrison into it. The witness also said she heard Morrison being shocked multiple times while deputies laughed at her screams and pleas to stop, Aker reported.

Muskingum County did not admit fault in the case, but last week it settled with Morrison by agreeing to pay $375,000. An attorney representing the county said there was a settlement because it did not want to tie up numerous deputies with a trial.