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Update: This weekend, members of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deployed a Taser against a suicidal man now identified as Guy Guthrie, 55. He was armed, but only with a BB gun — and died about an hour later. A JCSO spokesman defends the safety of Tasers even as he acknowledges that the outcome was tragic. But while there’s no evidence yet that the device contributed to the Guthrie’s death, the incident is still likely to fuel criticism from those who believe Tasers are a lot more dangerous than advertised.
The best-known recent incident in which a man died after being Tased involved Alonzo Ashley — and the accounts of the July 2011 incident at the Denver Zoo from his girlfriend and the Denver Police Department could hardly be more different.
As we’ve reported, the girlfriend said Ashley (nicknamed Tiger) got so overheated while visiting the zoo that he vomited. She added that he was trying to cool down by splashing water on his head from a fountain near the elephant enclosure when a zoo staffer asked if he needed help. He allegedly responded by saying he wanted to be left alone, prompting calls to zoo security and Denver Police. She insisted that no “domestic disturbance” of the sort cited by the DPD took place, and maintained that he didn’t fight back against officers.
In contrast, police said Ashley attacked a zoo employee alerted by an argument with his girlfriend, and subsequently bit two people trying to subdue him, in addition to inflicting a head injury. Moreover, they described him as so wild that contact-Tasing — pressing the device directly against him, as opposed to shooting him with Taser barbs, which would have immobilized him entirely — did nothing to slow him down. Only after he was belatedly brought under control did he begin convulsing, then stopped breathing. He died at a nearby hospital.
Ashley’s death was controversial, but in January 2012, the Manager of Safety’s Office determined that no charges should be filed against the eight officers involved in the matter. This determination didn’t satisfy Ashley’s friends, family and loved ones: Last July, they sued the zoo and the police department. The lawsuit has not been resolved at this writing.
This weekend’s situation happened at a far less public place — a home at 30438 Sunset Trail in Conifer so far off the radar that Google Maps has yet to capture its image. At 6:49 a.m., according to a JCSO press release, deputies and medical personnel arrived at the address after receiving a report about a 55-year-old man — Guthrie, a resident of the Pine area — who’d been making suicidal statements.
JCSO public-information officer Mark Techmeyer adds that the man’s brother, who phoned authorities, believed he was under the influence of drugs at the time. Techmeyer says he didn’t specify which drugs, though, and a coroner’s report has yet to be finalized.
Guthrie was carrying a BB gun, and when he refused to drop it, deputies deployed a Taser, after which he’s said to have been placed into custody without further incident.
That’s not the end of the story, however.
Continue for more about Tasers and the weekend death of a Conifer man.
As Guthrie was being transported to a patrol car, he started having trouble breathing. Emergency crews immediately began working on him, but to no avail. He was pronounced dead while still on the scene at 7:57 a.m., a little over an hour after deputies arrived.
Could the drugs potentially in the man’s system have interacted with a shock from the Taser in a fatal manner? Techmeyer doubts it.
“They should have no effect,” he says. “You can Tase someone with a pacemaker and when they’re on medication. You can even Tase them when they’re in the water. It should have no effect whatsoever.”
Techmeyer emphasizes that “the force we used is yet to be determined as having any part in his dying or not.” But at first glance, he sees nothing inappropriate about the Taser deployment, even though the weapon in his possession is generally thought to inflict only minor damage.
“The bottom line is, it wouldn’t matter if he was holding a BB gun, a rock or a hammer or anything else that had the ability to cause harm to himself or the deputies. We’re going to try to get him to cooperate force — and when he would not, we used the safest measures for everyone involved.”
This view is disputed by the folks at the Electronic Village blogspot, which seeks to document Taser-related deaths. The post cites Amnesty International figures showing that 351 people in the United States died between 2001 and 2008 after being shocked by police Tasers. Since then, the blog has collated another 187 from January 2009 to April 2013, for a total of 538.
This weekend’s incident may well wind up on this sad roster — but Techmeyer cautions against jumping to conclusions about the cause of death. “We have to wait for the coroner to find out what happened to this gentleman,” he says.
Whatever the case, he clearly wishes things had turned out differently. In his words, “when deputies go on a call, the last thing you expect is for that call to end with a fatality. It’s tough.”
Look below to see the Electronic Village 2009-2013 list. Note that Alonzo Ashley is number 139, while another Denverite — Marvin Booker, who died in police custody in July 2010, is number 89.
1. Jan 9, 2009: Derrick Jones, 17, Black, Martinsville, Virginia
2. Jan 11, 2009: Rodolfo Lepe, 31, Hispanic, Bakersfield, California
3. Jan 22, 2009: Roger Redden, 52, Caucasian, Soddy Daisy, Tennessee-
4. Feb 2, 2009: Garrett Jones, 45, Caucasian, Stockton, California
5. Feb 11, 2009: Richard Lua, 28, Hispanic, San Jose, California
6. Feb 13, 2009: Rudolph Byrd, 37, Black, Thomasville, Georgia
7. Feb 13, 2009: Michael Jones, 43, Black, Iberia, Louisiana
8. Feb 14, 2009: Chenard Kierre Winfield, 32, Black, Los Angeles, California
9. Feb 28, 2009: Robert Lee Welch, 40, Caucasian, Conroe, Texas
10. Mar 22, 2009: Brett Elder, 15, Caucasian, Bay City, Michigan
11. Mar 26, 2009: Marcus D. Moore, 40, Black, Freeport, Illinois
12. Apr 1, 2009: John J. Meier Jr., 48, Caucasian, Tamarac, Florida
13. Apr 6, 2009: Ricardo Varela, 41, Hispanic, Fresno, California
14. Apr 10, 2009: Robert Mitchell, 16, Black, Detroit, Michigan
15. Apr 13, 2009: Craig Prescott, 38, Black, Modesto, California
16. Apr 16, 2009: Gary A. Decker, 50, Black, Tuscon, Arizona
17. Apr 18, 2009: Michael Jacobs Jr., 24, Black, Fort Worth, Texas
18. Apr 30, 2009: Kevin LaDay, 35, Black, Lumberton, Texas
19. May 4, 2009: Gilbert Tafoya, 53, Caucasian, Holbrook, Arizona
20. May 17, 2009: Jamaal Valentine, 27, Black, La Marque, Texas
21. May 23, 2009: Gregory Rold, 37, Black, Salem, Oregon
22. Jun 9, 2009: Brian Cardall, 32, Caucasian, Hurricane, Utah
23. Jun 13, 2009: Dwight Madison, 48, Black, Bel Air, Maryland
24. Jun 20, 2009 Derrek Kairney, 36, Race: Unknown, South Windsor, Connecticut
25. Jun 30, 2009, Shawn Iinuma, 37, Asian, Fontana, California
26. Jul 2, 2009, Rory McKenzie, 25, Black, Bakersfield, California
27. Jul 20, 2009, Charles Anthony Torrence, 35, Caucasian, Simi Valley, California
28. Jul 30, 2009, Johnathan Michael Nelson, 27, Caucasian, Riverside County, California
29. Aug 9, 2009, Terrace Clifton Smith, 52, Black, Moreno Valley, California
30. Aug 12, 2009, Ernest Ridlehuber, 53, Race: Unknown, Greenville, South Carolina
31. Aug 14, 2009, Hakim Jackson, 31, Black, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
32. Aug 18, 2009, Ronald Eugene Cobbs, 38, Black, Greensboro, North Carolina
33. Aug 20, 2009, Francisco Sesate, 36, Hispanic, Mesa, Arizona
34. Aug 22, 2009, T.J. Nance, 37, Race: Unknown, Arizona City, Arizona
35. Aug 26, 2009, Miguel Molina, 27, Hispanic, Los Angeles, California
36. Aug 27, 2009, Manuel Dante Dent, 27, Hispanic, Modesto, California
37. Sep 3, 2009, Shane Ledbetter, 38, Caucasian, Aurora, Colorado
38. Sep 16, 2009, Alton Warren Ham, 45, Caucasian, Modesto, California
39. Sep 19, 2009, Yuceff W. Young II, 21, Black, Brooklyn, Ohio
40. Sep 21, 2009, Richard Battistata, 44, Hispanic, Laredo, Texas
41. Sep 28, 2009, Derrick Humbert, 38, Black, Bradenton, Florida
42. Oct 2, 2009, Rickey Massey, 38, Black, Panama City, Florida
43. Oct 12, 2009, Christopher John Belknap, 36, Race: Unknown, Ukiah, California
44. Oct 16, 2009, Frank Cleo Sutphin, 19, Caucasian, San Bernadino, California
45. Oct 27, 2009, Jeffrey Woodward, 33, Caucasian, Gallatin, Tennessee
46. Nov 13, 2009, Herman George Knabe, 58, Caucasian, Corpus Christi, Texas
47. Nov 14, 2009, Darryl Bain, 43, Black, Coram, New York
48. Nov 16, 2009, Matthew Bolick, 30, Caucasian, East Grand Rapids, Michigan
49. Nov 19, 2009, Jesus Gillard, 61, Black, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
50. Nov 21, 2009, Ronald Petruney, 49, Race: Unknown, Washington, Pennsylvania
51. Nov 27, 2009, Eddie Buckner, 53, Caucasian, Chattanooga, Tennessee
52. Dec 11, 2009, Andrew Grande, 33, Caucasian, Oak County, Florida
53. Dec 11, 2009, Hatchel Pate Adams III, 36, Black, Hampton, Virginia
54. Dec 11, 2009, Paul Martin Martinez, 36, Hispanic, Roseville, California
55. Dec 13, 2009, Douglas Boucher, 39, Caucasian, Mason, Ohio
56. Dec 14, 2009, Linda Hicks, 62, Black, Toledo, Ohio
57. Dec 19, 2009, Preston Bussey III, 41, Black, Rockledge, Florida
58. Dec 20, 2009, Michael Hawkins, 39, Caucasian, Springfield, Missouri
59. Dec 30, 2009, Stephen Palmer, 47, Race: Unknown, Stamford, Connecticut
60. Jan 6, 2010, Delano Smith, 21, Black, Elkhart, Indiana
61. Jan 17, 2010, William Bumbrey III, 36, Black, Arlington, Virginia
62. Jan 20, 2010, Kelly Brinson, 45, Race: Unknown, Cincinnati, Ohio
63. Jan 27, 2010, Joe Spruill, Jr., Black, Goldsboro, North Carolina
64. Jan 28, 2010, Patrick Burns, 50, Caucasian, Sangamon County, Illinois
65. Jan 28, 2010, Daniel Mingo, 25, Black, Mobile, Alabama
66. Feb 4, 2010, Mark Morse, 36, Caucasian, Phoenix, Arizona
67. Mar 4, 2010, Roberto Olivo, 33, Hispanic, Tulare, California
68. Mar 5, 2010, Christopher Wright, 48, Race: Unknown, Seattle, Washington
69. Mar 10, 2010, Jaesun Ingles, 31, Black, Midlothian, Illinois
70. Mar 10, 2010, James Healy Jr., 44, Race: Unknown, Rhinebeck, New York
71. Mar 20, 2010, Albert Valencia, 31, Hispanic, Downey, California
72. Apr 10, 2010, Daniel Joseph Barga, 24, Caucasian, Cornelius, Oregon
73. Apr 30, 2010, Adil Jouamai, 32, Moroccan, Arlington, Virginia
74. May 9, 2010, Audreacus Davis, 29, Black, Atlanta, Georgia
75. May 14, 2010, Sukeba Olawunmi, 39, Race: Unknown, Atlanta, Georgia
76. May 24, 2010, Efrain Carrion, 35, Hispanic, Middletown, Connecticut
77. May 27, 2010, Carl Johnson, 48, Caucasian, Baltimore, Maryland
78. May 29, 2010, Jose Martinez, 53, Hispanic, Waukegan, Illinois
79. May 31, 2010, Anastasio Hernández Rojas, 42, Hispanic, San Ysidro, California
80. Jun 8, 2010, Terrelle Houston, 22, Black, Hempstead, Texas
81. Jun 12, 2010, Curtis Robinson, 34, Black, Albuquerque, New Mexico
82. Jun 13, 2010, William Owens, 17, Race: Unknown, Homewood, Alabama
83. Jun 14, 2010, Jose Alfredo Jimenez, 42, Hispanic, Harris County, Texas
84. Jun 15, 2010, Michael White, 47, Black, Vallejo, California
85. Jun 22, 2010, Daniel Sylvester, 35, Caucasian, Crescent City, California
86. July 5, 2010, Damon Falls, 31, Black, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
87. July 5, 2010, Edmund Gutierrez, 22, Hispanic, Imperial, California
88. July 8, 2010, Phyllis Owens, 87, Race: Unknown, Clackamas County, Oregon
89. July 9, 2010, Marvin Booker, 56, Race: Black, Denver, Colorado
90. July 12, 2010, Anibal Rosario-Rodriguez, 61, Hispanic, New Britain, Connecticut
91. July 15, 2010, Jerome Gill, Race: Unknown, Chicago, Illinois
92. July 18, 2010, Edward Stephenson, 46, Race: Unknown, Leavenworth, Kansas
93. July 23, 2010, Jermaine Williams, 30, Black, Cleveland, Mississippi
94. Aug 1, 2010, Dennis Sandras, 49, Race: Unknown, Houma, Louisiana
95. Aug 9, 2010, Andrew Torres, 39, Hispanic, Greenville, South Carolina
96. Aug 18, 2010, Martin Harrison, 50, Caucasian, Dublin, California
97. Aug 19, 2010, Adam Disalvo, 30, Caucasian, Daytona Beach, Florida
98. Aug 20, 2010, Stanley Jackson, 31, Black, Washtenaw County, Michigan
99. Aug 24, 2010, Michael Ford, 50, Black, Livonia, Michigan
100. Aug 25, 2010, Eduardo Hernandez-Lopez, 21, Hispanic, Las Vegas, Nevada
101. Aug 31, 2010, King Hoover, 27, Black, Spanaway, Washington
102. Sep 4, 2010, Adam Colliers, 25, Caucasian, Gold Bar, Washington
103. Sep 10, 2010, Larry Rubio, 20, Race: Unknown, Leemore, California
104. Sep 12, 2010, Freddie Lockett, 30, Black, Dallas, Texas
105. Sep 16, 2010, Gary L. Grossenbacher, 48, Race: Unknown, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
106. Sep 18, 2010, David Cornelius Smith, 28, Black, Minneapolis, Minnesota
107. Sep 18, 2010, Joseph Frank Kennedy, 48, Caucasian, La Mirada, California
108. Oct 4, 2010, Javon Rakestrau, 28, Black, Lafayette Parish, Louisiana
109. Oct 7, 2010, Patrick Johnson, 18, Caucasian, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
110. Oct 12, 2010, Ryan Bain, 31, Caucasian, Billings, Montana
111. Oct 14, 2010, Karreem Ali, 65, Black, Silver Spring, Maryland
112. Oct 19, 2010, Troy Hooftallen, 36, Caucasian, Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania
113. Nov 4, 2010, Eugene Lamott Allen, 40, Race: Unknown, Wilmington, Delaware
114. Nov 6, 2010, Robert Neill, Jr., 61, Caucasian, Mount Joy, Pennsylvania
.115. Nov 7, 2010, Mark Shaver, 32, Caucasian, Brimfield, Ohio
116. Nov 23, 2010, Denevious Thomas, 36, Black, Albany, Georgia
117. Nov 26, 2010, Rodney Green, 36, Black, Waco, Texas
118. Nov 27, 2010, Blaine McElroy, 37, Race: Unknown, Jackson County, Mississippi
119. Dec 2, 2010, Clayton Early James, Age: Unknown, Race: Unknown, Elizabeth City, North Carolina
120. Dec 11, 2010, Anthony Jones, 44, Race: Unknown, Las Vegas, Nevada
121. Dec 12, 2010, Linel Lormeus, 26, Black, Naples, Florida
122. Dec 20, 2010, Christopher Knight, 35, Black, Brunswick, Georgia
123. Dec 31, 2010, Rodney Brown, 40, Black, Cleveland, Ohio
124. Jan 5, 2011, Kelly Sinclair, 41, Race: Unknown, Amarillo, Texas
125. Feb 5, 2011, Robert Ricks, 23, Black, Alexandria, Louisiana
126. March 15, 2011, Brandon Bethea, 24, Black, Harnett County, North Carolina
127. Apr 3, 2011, Jairious McGhee, 23, Black, Tampa, Florida
128. Apr 22, 2011, Adam Spencer Johnson, 33, Caucasian, Orlando, Florida
129. Apr 23, 2011, Ronald Armstrong, 43, Race: Unknown, Pinehurst, North Carolina
130. Apr 25, 2011, Kevin Darius Campbell, 39, Race: Unknown, Tallahassee, Florida
131. May 1, 2011, Marcus Brown, 26, Black, Waterbury, Connecticut
132. May 6, 2011, Matthew Mittelstadt, 56, Caucasian, Boundary County, Idaho
133. May 11, 2011, Allen Kephart, 43, Caucasian, San Bernadino County, California
134. June 13, 2011, Howard Hammon, 41, Caucasian, Middleburg, Ohio
135. June 22, 2011, Otto Kolberg, 55, Caucasian, Waycross, Georgia
136. June 28, 2011, Dalric East, 40, Black, Montgomery County, Maryland
137. July 5, 2011, Kelly Thomas, 37, Caucasian, Fullerton, California
138. July 10, 2011, Joshua Nossoughi, 32, Caucasian, Springfield, Missouri
139. July 19, 2011, Alonzo Ashley, 29, Black, Denver, Colorado
140. July 21, 2011, La’Reko Williams, 21, Black, Charlotte, North Carolina
141. July 30, 2011, Donald Murray, 39, Caucasian, Westland, Michigan
142. August 4, 2011, Pierre Abernathy, 30, Black, San Antonio, Texas
143. August 6, 2011, Everette Howard, 18, Black, Cincinnati, Ohio
144. August 6, 2011, Debro Wilkerson, 29, Black, Prince William County, Maryland
145. August 6, 2011, Gregory Kralovetz, 50, Caucasian, Kaukauna, Wisconsin
146. August 12, 2011, Joseph Lopez, 49, Hispanic, Santa Barbara, California
147. August 17, 2011, Roger Chandler, 41, Caucasian, Helena, Montana
148. August 21, 2011, Montalito McKissick, 37, Black, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
149. August 24, 2011, Michael Evans, 56, Race: Unknown, Fayetteville, North Carolina
150. August 30, 2011, Nicholas Koscielniak, 27, Caucasian, Lancaster, New York
151. September 11, 2011, Tyree Sinclair, 31, Black, Corpus Christi, Texas
152. September 13, 2011, Damon Barnett, 44, Caucasian, Fresno, California
153. September 17, 2011, Richard Kokenos, 27, Caucasian, Warren, Michigan
154. September 24, 2011, Bradford Gibson, 35, Black, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
155. September 24, 2011, Donacio Rendon, 43, Race: Unknown, Lubbock, Texas
156. September 29, 2011, Howard Cook, 35, Black, York, Pennsylvania
157. October 4, 2011, Glenn Norman, 46, Caucasian, Camden County, Missouri
158. October 9, 2011, Darnell Hutchinson, 32, Black, San Leandro, California
159. October 31, 2011, Chad Brothers, 32, Caucasian, Colonie, New York
160. November 6, 2011, Darrin Hanna, 43, Black, North Chicago, Illinois
161. November 13, 2011, Ronald Cristiano, 51, Caucasian, Bridgeport, Connecticut
162. November 15, 2011, Jonathan White, 29, Black, San Bernardino, California
163. November 22, 2011, Roger Anthony, 61, Black, Scotland Neck, North Carolina
164. December 16, 2011, Marty Atencio, 44, Hispanic, Phoenix, Arizona
165. December 22, 2011, Wayne Williams, 27, Black, Houma, Louisiana
166. January 15, 2012, Daniel Guerra, 24, Hispanic, Ft. Worth, Texas
167. February 29, 2012, Raymond Allen, 34, Black, Galveston, Texas
168. March 5, 2012, Nehemiah Dillard, 29, Black, Gainesville, Florida
169. March 12, 2012, Jersey Green, 37, Black, Aurora, Illinois
170. March 19, 2012, James Barnes, 38, Caucasian, Pinellas County, Florida
171. April 10, 2012, Bobby Merrill, 38, Black, Saginaw, Michigan
172. April 21, 2012, Angel Heraldo, 41, Hispanic, Meriden, Connecticut
173. April 22, 2012, Bruce Chrestensen, 52, Caucasian, Grass Valley, California
174. May 10, 2012, Damon Abraham, 34, Black, Baldwin, Louisiana
175. June 9, 2012, Randolph Bonvillian, 41, Caucasian, Houma, Louisiana
176. June 20, 2012, Macadam Mason, 39, Caucasian, Thetford, Vermont
177. June 30, 2012, Victor Duffy, 25, Black, Tukwila, Washington
178. July 1, 2012, Corey McGinnis, 35, Black, Cincinnati, Ohio
179. July 5, 2012, Sampson Castellane, 29, Native American, Fife, Washington
180. September 1, 2012, Denis Chabot, 38, Caucasian, Houston, Texas
181. September 14, 2012, Bill Williams, 60, Caucasian, Everett, Washington
182. November 29, 2012, Robert Maurina, 46, Caucasian, West Allis, Wisconsin
183. December 13, 2012, Philip Coleman, 38, Black, Chicago, Illinois
184. December 25, 2012, Kevin Culp, 29, Black, Richmond, Washington
185. January 1, 2013, Andrew Layton, 26, Caucasian, Mankato, Minnesota
186. February 23, 2013, Christopher Parker, 33, Caucasian, Spokane, Washington
187. April 19, 2013, Anthony Howard, 51, Black, Gaithersburg, Maryland
Update: The original version of this post didn’t include Guy Guthrie’s moniker; it was released about fifty minutes after original publication. We’ve inserted his name into the previous text.
More from our Follow That Story archive circa February 2011: “Marvin Booker lawsuit to establish pattern of police brutality in Denver, attorney says.”
