Man Shot With Taser Gun Dies
A man who allegedly broke into a private school in Van Nuys died today after police shot him twice with a Taser gun and struck him with batons, Los Angeles police said.
Lt. Charles Higbie said two officers who confronted the man shortly after 1 a.m. in a dark classroom at the French American School, a private school in the 14700 block of Victory Boulevard, found him “kicking and cursing an invisible opponent” and tried unsuccessfully to subdue him with two jolts from the Taser gun before using their batons.
The man, whose identity was withheld, was pronounced dead at Valley Hospital Medical Center. An autopsy and toxicological tests are being conducted to determine the cause of death.
The man was the fourth person in Los Angeles since 1983 to die after being shot by a Taser gun, a weapon that delivers a 50,000-volt electric shock but is considered non-lethal by police.
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