Woman Awarded Nearly $80K in Orlando Police Taser Suit
A woman who was slammed to the ground and then stunned by Orlando police outside the Florida Citrus Bowl in 2003 has been awarded about $80,000 by an Orange County jury.
The woman, who was a 23-year old student at the University of Central Florida at the time, claimed that Orlando police officers used excessive force when they used a Taser to subdue her. The Orlando officers involved in the Florida taser incident had justified stunning the woman because they claimed she had been acting in a threatening manner. However, a video that later surfaced contradicted the officer’s claims.
The jury awarded the woman damages for emotional distress, pain and suffering, and medical expenses.
The woman’s attorney was pleased with the results and told the Orlando Sentinel, “The jury found that the city’s policy on the use of Tasers at the time was unconstitutional.”
The attorney also stated that the jury hadn’t ruled against the officers involved, who they judged were following agency policy, but against the police department’s policy itself. At the time of the incident, a person could be stunned merely for not following an officer’s commands or passively resisting. The policy was changed a few months later and restricted Taser use to suspects who were actively resisting officers’ orders by fighting with them or fleeing from them.
The Orlando personal injury attorneys at Farah & Farah have always believed, and a jury in Orlando just concurred, that vague or overly broad policies concerning use of stun devices are inappropriate and wrong-headed. If you believe you have been injured due to another’s negligence or recklessness, we are ready to take your call at (800) 533-3555 to help you defend your legal rights.
