Pomona : Taser Gun Cited in Death

The electronic Taser gun that Pomona police used to subdue a 35-year-old Upland man during a scuffle two months ago contributed to the man’s death, according to a report issued by the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.

Anthony M. Williams III, who died May 9 after he was struck with the gun’s 50,000-volt darts, died as a result of “cardiac arrest following Taser stimulation while under the influence of cocaine,” said coroner’s spokesman Bill Gold.

The Taser, which is considered non-lethal by police, has been linked to six other deaths in the last three years, although most of those fatalities also involved drugs, Gold said.

Police said that Williams was shot with the electronic gun in a Pomona hotel room after he had torn out plumbing fixtures and refused to submit to arrest.