HERMANTOWN, Minn. -- Authorities are investigating the death of a man who “experienced a medical event” after a Hermantown police officer deployed a Taser to subdue him last month.
Hermantown police reported Monday that the man was hospitalized after the incident on Sept. 19, and he died on Sept. 26. His name has not yet been released.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is assisting in the investigation.
ADVERTISEMENT
According a Hermantown police news release:
Officers responded to a residence on Sept. 19 on the report of a man in emotional crisis. The man was not at home when officers arrived; they were interviewing a family member a short time later when the man pulled up in his truck.
The man “exited his truck while screaming at officers to shoot him,” the report said.
Concerned because the man reportedly had access to firearms, an officer drew his gun as the man ran toward the officer. The man continued to shout and demand that officers shoot him, while ignoring officers’ commands to get on the ground.
After the man put his hands in the air, the officer “made the decision deescalate the use of force by holstering his handgun and instead drawing his department-issued Taser,” the report said. The man continued to ignore commands to get on the ground, before finally lunging at the officer, who used his Taser on the man.
The man eventually went to his knees and was handcuffed by another officer. The man then “experienced a medical event,” according to the report. Officers performed CPR until paramedics arrived and transported the man to a local hospital, where he died Sept. 26.
The St. Louis County Medical Examiner’s Office has conducted an investigation into the cause of death, the results of which are pending, officials said Monday.
