Teen dies after Taser blast by police

The teen fought with officers before they used a Taser and chemical spray, police say.

NAPLES - A teenager died after he was shot with a Taser gun and doused with a substance similar to pepper spray during a fight with Collier County sheriff's deputies, officials said.

Christopher Hernandez, 19, of Fort Myers, is the third suspect to die in Florida this month after being subdued with a Taser gun. Hernandez died Tuesday, several hours after officials say he attacked deputies, kicking and ripping their uniforms. He ignored orders to stop, they say.

Hernandez, who had no local criminal record, was taken for treatment at Naples Community Hospital for a cut above his eye, but Collier County sheriff's spokesman Dennis Huff said there had been no indication that Hernandez' wounds were life-threatening. An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death.

Hernandez's relatives say he was badly beaten. They said when they saw him at the emergency room his head was swollen, his eyes were "blood red" and his arms and face had road rash. Blood from somewhere on his head stained the hospital pillow.

"He was beaten unnecessarily," said his uncle, Xavier Hernandez.

Hernandez's father, Jose Hernandez, said he rushed to the hospital and talked to his son about what happened, but he wouldn't say what his son said. His son was then taken to the intensive care unit and died about an hour later.

The incident began about 1 a.m. in a parking lot near a nightclub, when the driver of a car in which Hernandez was a passenger was driving recklessly, police said. When deputies ordered the driver to stop, he continued instead. Police eventually stopped the car in the parking lot of a nearby convenience store, officials say.

Hernandez got out of the back seat and attacked deputies, officials say. They used CapStun, similar to pepper spray, and a Taser stun gun, which inflicts a shock, in an attempt to subdue him, but several minutes passed before he was handcuffed, they said. A deputy suffered knee injuries.

The driver of the car, a 16-year-old from Fort Myers, was arrested on an outstanding warrant. Front seat passenger Jasper Johnson, 17, of Fort Myers, was arrested on charges of suspicion of possession of a concealed firearm and possession of an altered firearm after police say they found a .25-caliber handgun under his seat.

Taser stun guns zap suspects with 50,000 volts of electricity, incapacitating them. Taser International of Arizona says its weapons are safe to use to subdue violent individuals, and are a nonlethal alternative to shooting a suspect.

But two other Floridians have died after incidents involving Taser use in the last two weeks. Neither cause of death has been determined.

A 36-year-old man died Dec. 16 after he was shot with a Taser by Hollywood police, who said they thought alcohol or drugs played a role in his death. The man's family disputed that, and toxicology results are still pending. A 31-year-old man died Dec. 23 after being shot twice with a Taser by Delray Beach police during a struggle. Police said the man, Timothy Bolander, had a history of mental problems and drug abuse. They said they were confident Bolander's death was drug related and not a result of the charge from the Taser, according to the Palm Beach Post.

Also, Miami-Dade County police were criticized last month after it was revealed that its officers used Taser guns to subdue a 6-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl. The boy had cut himself twice with a shard of glass and was threatening to harm himself further, while the girl was drunk and fleeing officers.

Information from the Sun-Sentinel and Palm Beach Post was used in this report.

[Last modified December 30, 2004, 00:47:46]