Simi Valley man subdued by police Taser dies days later

A Simi Valley man who was shocked with a Taser during a confrontation with police died this week, and authorities said Friday that an investigation into his death is continuing.

A cause of death for Raymundo Guerrero Garcia, 31, who died at a local hospital Wednesday night, will not be released until toxicology tests are completed, which could take up to four months, said Craig Stevens, a Ventura County senior deputy medical examiner.

But Simi Valley police said they do not believe the stun gun was the cause.

“At this point, we don’t believe there was any direct connection to its use,” said Lt. Roy Jones. “We’re investigating this incident. The coroner’s office is investigating too. It is a very regrettable occurrence.”

Garcia was shocked with the Taser on May 15 after a brief low-speed chase that ended with Garcia driving his Ford pickup through a fence and a backyard in the 800 block of Chelsea Court, Jones said.

Officers were responding to calls that Garcia was driving erratically through the neighborhood and appeared to be trying to run over pedestrians, he said.

When officers arrived, Garcia refused to exit his truck and attempted to ram the patrol vehicle, Jones said. He then drove through the fence and yard, he said.

Jones said one of the officers shot Garcia with the Taser, which uses compressed nitrogen to propel two darts that attach to the body. The darts are connected to the gun by a wire and deliver a 50,000-volt shock in five-second intervals to incapacitate the suspect.

While officers were handcuffing Garcia he went into medical distress, Jones said, and they administered CPR until an ambulance arrived.

Garcia was arrested on charges of felony evading, vandalism and possession of cocaine. Police records show that he pleaded guilty to a July 2006 possession of cocaine and was arrested again last January for alleged cocaine possession and sexual assault against a woman acquaintance, Jones said.

Jones said that a Taser, which is classified as a nonlethal weapon, has been used in 16 of the department’s 2,828 arrests since they were acquired last August and that no permanent damage or injury has resulted.

Steve Tuttle, corporate spokesman for Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Taser International, defended the company’s safety record. He cited several recent peer-reviewed medical studies involving human volunteers that refute a link between Taser use and deaths during arrests.

“When used properly, medical and law enforcement experts have concluded that Taser technology is among the most effective use-of-force interventions available to law enforcement officers to halt violent situations that pose a safety risk to an officer, suspect or innocent citizens,” Tuttle said.

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greg.griggs@latimes.com