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Stories differ on Taser use on 75-year-old
Deputies went to his home after a friend concerned about suicide called 911. The stories then diverge.
By CHRIS TISCH
Published February 3, 2006
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[Times photo: Dirk Shadd]
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Charles Faybik, 75, stands in his Pinellas County condo where on Dec. 28, he was Tasered by Pinellas sheriff's deputies.
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MADEIRA BEACH - Charles Faybik, a 75-year-old who is blind in one eye, says Pinellas deputies barged into his home and Tasered him three times without reason, hitting him with six electrified prongs.
Faybik, who was unarmed, said he felt each prong hit his chest and belly.
"I wondered when they were going to stop," he said. "I thought I was being shot by bullets."
Pinellas sheriff's officials say deputies believed there was reason to Taser Faybik, despite his age. Deputies came to his home Dec. 28 after a friend called 911 to say Faybik was threatening to shoot himself.
When deputies arrived, Faybik first wouldn't show his hands, then flailed his arms and refused deputies' commands to calm down.
Now, Faybik and his attorney, John Trevena of Largo, are asking the Sheriff's Office to ban the use of Tasers on senior citizens. They also want an internal investigation into the deputies' actions and are considering a lawsuit.
Sheriff's officials say Tasers were the safest way to get Faybik under control. Other methods of force - pepper spray, a baton or grabbing him - could have injured him more.
"We will review the incident, but at this point we believe the deputies' actions were appropriate," said Mac McMullen, a sheriff's spokesman.
The incident comes at a time when Tasers are increasingly used by police to get people to comply with orders. Though civil rights advocates suspect police are abusing the device, police officials say the Taser protects officers and the people they encounter.
On the night of the incident, Faybik said he drank rum and Cokes at his Madeira Beach condo, then called a friend to complain about loneliness during the holidays. He recalls wondering aloud what he might do with a gun, though he doesn't have one in his home.
That friend's wife called 911 and told dispatchers Faybik had threatened to shoot himself.
Deputies tried to call Faybik but couldn't get through. They evacuated nearby neighbors and assembled a team of deputies at his door.
Faybik, who has partial hearing loss and is blind in one eye, gave this account of what happened next:
He heard the doorbell and opened the door. Deputies pulled it out of his hand and one pushed him backward into his home. "I thought someone was robbing me," he said.
Faybik, who stands 5-foot-8 and weighs 152 pounds, then felt the Tasers hit him. Deputies summoned rescue units, which took him to Suncoast Hospital for mental health treatment. He was released three days later.
Faybik, who has never been arrested, suffered no permanent injuries.
Deputies described the episode differently.
Because they feared Faybik was armed, they approached his condo with guns drawn, knocked on an outside door and yelled, "Sheriff's office!"
When Faybik came to the door, he refused to show his right hand. One deputy used a "ballistic shield" to push him backward.
Faybik flailed his arms while inside, where deputies said it was dark. A sergeant then yelled "Taser," and Faybik was zapped.
Like many police agencies, the Sheriff's Office discourages deputies from using Tasers on unarmed seniors and children, but does not expressly forbid it. The policy states that "guidelines cannot be written to encompass every possible application" and allows for deputy discretion based on individual situations.
Steve Tuttle, a spokesman for Taser International Inc., which makes the devices, said there is no evidence Tasers harm older more than younger people.
Aside from Faybik's age, Trevena criticized deputies for using a Taser on someone not fighting them.
But Tuttle said Tasers were created to defuse situations that could evolve into violence, not solely as an alternative to lethal force.
Studies have shown police are increasingly using the device on people who disobey commands.
The Sheriff's Office, like many agencies, tells deputies to consider using Tasers even before using their hands to take down people resisting their efforts. The policy even allows for using Tasers on handcuffed people or those in the back of squad cars.
"Law enforcement is using it as an alternative for courage so they don't have to dirty their hands," Trevena said.
Civil rights advocates say officers' increasing use of Tasers for compliance is dangerous, citing studies that show more than 120 people have died in the United States and Canada after being hit with a Taser.
Most deaths were attributed to other medical problems. Taser advocates say the devices are safe.
Only one person has died in the Tampa Bay area after a Taser shot, a man zapped by Hillsborough deputies in 2004. An autopsy attributed death to "accidental cocaine-induced agitated delirium."
Statistics paint an intriguing picture of how Tasers have affected Pinellas deputies' use of force since the agency began phasing in the devices in January 2004.
That year, the agency's deputies used force 1,404 times, which includes use of pepper spray, batons, hand-to-hand takedowns and Tasers. Of those incidents, deputies used or unholstered their Taser 22 percent of the time.
In 2005, they reported 1,151 uses of force, an 18 percent decrease. The frequency of Taser use increased to 47 percent.
Meanwhile, the number of deputy injuries in 2004 decreased by 37 percent to its lowest level in five years. Numbers for 2005 are not yet available.
Though the number of people injured in confrontations with deputies jumped by 36 percent in 2004, the number declined by 42 percent in 2005.
Sheriff's officials credit Tasers for the changes.
Trevena also criticized deputies for firing three Tasers at Faybik simultaneously.
Taser International recommends using more than one Taser in "high-risk situations," Tuttle said.
The Taser produces 26 watts of power transmitted through two electrified prongs.
A person hit by three Tasers does not feel triple that strength, though it would tie up more muscle mass, said Cpl. Nathan Samoranski, who trains deputies at the Sheriff's Office. "It's a better way of making sure that person is able to stop their violent behavior," he said.
But Trevena believes deputies could have simply tried harder to talk with Faybik instead of shocking him. He said law enforcement's use of the Taser as a compliance tool has gone too far.
"They're just blasting people," he said.
Times researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report. Chris Tisch can be reached at tisch@sptimes.com
No to Tasers on small kids
MIAMI - Police should not use Taser stun guns to subdue small children, a Miami-Dade grand jury said Thursday. But it did not propose banning the use of stun guns on all minors, noting that some larger children could threaten police regardless of age.
The panel recommended that Tasers be employed by at least a pair of officers whenever possible, one to use the device and one to restrain the suspect.
- ASSOCIATED PRESS
[Last modified February 3, 2006, 01:24:20]
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