Police: Use of Taser justified

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - After NewsChannel 15's cameras caught a man police said was driving drunk get tased by an officer, many started asking if the force was justified.

Police said Michael Ard of Fort Wayne was driving drunk and hit two utility poles and a light pole on Lima Road near Fernhill Avenue.

Ard was on a stretcher, but was spitting at officers and not listening to commands to stop and hold still when a police officer warned him to stop and then used his Taser.

"We feel it's certainly well within our policy for conducted energy devices, or Tasers," Rusty York, the chief of the Fort Wayne Police Department, said.

York sat down with NewsChannel 15 and watched the video of the events leading up to the officer using the Taser.

"Basically anyone who is actively resisting, which this gentleman was, and who poses a threat to others or themselves, it's appropriate use," York said. "They needed to get this gentleman to the hospital, so he was a threat to himself and others and was actively resisting."

York said before the officers arrived Ard had exposed two of the paramedics to saliva with blood in it in their "mouth and face area." Ard was hurt in the crash and York said he had pulled an IV out of his arm causing a lot of bleeding.

"What the officers had in mind was the exposure and the fact that he wasn't able to get treatment, so those combined it was appropriate and effective," York said. "People could say why didn't we put a sheet over him so he couldn't spit on you. Well, as I said, he had pulled an IV out of his arm and that was a safety issue as well. He was physically resisting and prohibiting medics from providing treatment."

The NewsChannel 15 photographer on the scene said he heard the officer repeatedly tell Ard to stop spitting. The officer also warned Ard that if he didn't stop he would get tased.

"You can see it was used in the 'drive stun' mode, meaning the darts were not deployed," York said. "The metal prongs were used in one cycle, which is five seconds. Under these circumstances, we feel that was appropriate."

Personnel from the police department training unit also watched NewsChannel 15's video on wane.com and agreed with York that the Taser use was justified.

"In our policy for someone who is restrained by handcuffs if these circumstances exist, the use of the Taser is appropriate," York said.

One of the public information officers for the department, Liza Thomas, added that spitting on police officers and other emergency personnel is considered battery.

Ard went to the hospital in serious condition. Police said he faces at least a preliminary charge of operating while intoxicated. Another man in the car was not hurt.

NewsChannel 15's exclusive video of the scene also showed a Three Rivers Ambulance Authority (TRAA) paramedic hit Ard in the leg when Ard was resisting getting out of the car. A TRAA spokesman said TRAA is investigating the incident and couldn't comment further.