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<DIV><FONT size=4>I cannot imagine there could not have been a more humane,
effective way to handle this situation. If nothing else, more cool-down
and assess <STRONG><FONT color=#ff0000>time</FONT></STRONG> could have been
taken. Aren't there nets and other immobilizing methods
available?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Someone shouting "I want Jesus" is generally not a dire threat
to anyone. At most it may be a minor annoyance for
some.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>What is our society coming to if a non-threatening situation
is turned into one where the life of an unfortunate is taken?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>W.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4><A href="http://www.foxnews.com/index.html"><IMG
src="http://www.foxnews.com/images/headers/fnc_logo05.gif" border=0></A><FONT
size=3> </FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="CLEAR: both">
<P class=headlineblack><STRONG><FONT size=6>Illinois Teen Shouting for Jesus
Dies When Police Taser Him</FONT></STRONG></P>
<P><B>Tuesday , October 31, 2006</B></P>
<P><IMG src="http://www.foxnews.com/images/service_ap_36.gif"> </P>
<P>JERSEYVILLE, Ill. — Authorities are investigating the death of a
<FONT color=#ff0000>17-year-old boy who died after officers in this St.
Louis-area community shot him twice with a stun gun while he carried a </FONT><A
href="javascript:siteSearch('Bible');"><B>Bible</B></A><FONT color=#ff0000> and
cordless telephone, shouting "I want Jesus."</FONT></P>
<P>Roger Holyfield died Sunday night at a St. Louis hospital, a day after the
former Jersey Community High School's confrontation with police.</P>
<P>In a statement obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, police in this
community about 40 miles north of St. Louis said Holyfield would not acknowledge
officers who approached him, continuing to yell "I want Jesus."</P>
<P><A href="http://www.foxnews.com/national/crime/index.html"
target=_blank>Click here for FOXNews.com's Crime center.</A></P>
<P>Holyfield became combative when officers tried to calm him, then was shot
with a stun gun after ignoring their warnings to comply with their commands,
police said. He was shot a second time when he continued struggling, police
said.</P>
<P>Holyfield vomited at the scene and was taken by ambulance to a local
hospital, then was flown to <A
href="javascript:siteSearch('St. Louis' Cardinal Glennon Hospital');"><B>St.
Louis' Cardinal Glennon Hospital</B></A>, where he died shortly after 8 p.m. the
next day, police said.</P>
<P>An autopsy was planned for Tuesday.</P>
<P>While expressing sympathy by Jerseyville's mayor, city commissioners and
police to Holyfield's family, the police statement said the city and officers
would not discuss the matter further.</P>
<P>Messages were left Tuesday with Jerseyville Police Chief <A
href="javascript:siteSearch('Brad Blackorby');"><B>Brad Blackorby</B></A>, whose
department, according to its statement, has been using stun guns for the past
five months.</P>
<P>Holyfield was a former Jersey Community High School student but did not
attend that school this year, said James Whiteside, superintendent of
Jerseyville schools.</P>
<P>In a report released in March, international human rights group Amnesty
International said it had logged at least 156 deaths across the country in the
previous five years related to police stun guns.</P>
<P>The rise in deaths accompanies a marked increase in the number of U.S. law
enforcement agencies employing devices made by Taser International Inc. of
Scottsdale, Ariz. About 1,000 of the nation's 18,000 police agencies used Tasers
in 2001; more than 7,000 departments had them last year, according to a
government study.</P>
<P>Police had used Tasers more than 70,000 times as of last year, Congress'
Government Accountability Office said.</P>
<P>Amnesty has urged police departments to suspend the use of Tasers pending
more study.</P>
<P>Taser called the study flawed by falsely linking deaths to Taser use when
there has been no such official conclusion.</P>
<P>The company has said Tasers have saved more than 9,000 lives because police
officers have been able to use stun guns instead of bullets.</P>
<P>Holyfield's death is at least the second in the Metro East calling stun guns
into question in recent months.</P>
<P>Nick Mamino Jr. — the 41-year-old son of a former Collinsville police chief —
died in April after Collinsville police shot him with a stun gun. Though
Mamino's family speculated that the gun might have caused his death, an autopsy
report said the weapon was only a contributing factor.</P>
<P>A coroner's jury later ruled Mamino died accidentally when he was hog-tied by
police trying to arrest him while he was high on
cocaine.</P></DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>