Family of Pacifica Taser victim hires top lawyer, who blasts stun gun use

PACIFICA
Family of Taser victim hires top lawyer, who blasts stun gun use
Ryan Kim, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 5, 2005

The family of a Pacifica man who died after being shocked with a Taser has retained Oakland civil rights attorney John Burris, who said Tuesday the use of a stun gun on Gregory Saulsbury Jr. was outrageous and appeared to have led to his death.

Burris said officers had been out of line in firing a Taser gun Sunday night while trying to subdue Saulsbury, 30, at his family's home.

"It sounds to me like this is an outrageous use of force here," Burris said. "If it happens the way the family said it happened, it's excessive use of force and a wrongful death."

Pacifica police released few details about the events leading up to Sunday's incident. Officials said further information would come after the conclusion of a joint investigation between the department and the San Mateo County district attorney.

"Our position is we need to gather all the facts," said Pacific police Capt. Jim Tasa. "We'd rather not make any blank statements."

Saulsbury's family said police had burst into their home after they called 911 for medical assistance at 11:34 p.m. Sunday. They initially told a dispatcher that Saulsbury, a recently unemployed legal paper server who was under investigation for possession of a stolen car, was acting paranoid and was kicking and swinging at relatives.

In an attempt to secure the scene for paramedics, police entered the family's Inverness Drive home and were confronted by Saulsbury, who was combative and uncooperative, Tasa said. Police used a Taser stun gun to shock Saulsbury, who suffered a cardiac arrest and was later pronounced dead at Seton Medical Center in Daly City.

Family members said officers had bulled their way into the home, shoving aside Saulsbury's 68-year-old grandmother and shocking a peaceful Saulsbury even after they handcuffed him. They said police had also "Tased'' Saulsbury's father.

Tasa said that the department would continue to use the Tasers, which have been employed for more than five years with no major problems. He said the department might reconsider using Tasers depending on the outcome of the joint investigation.

The seven officers involved in Sunday's incident remain on active duty, Tasa said.

An autopsy is scheduled to be performed on Saulsbury this morning. Toxicology tests will be completed in the coming weeks.

The district attorney's office will rely on the autopsy and toxicology results in deciding whether the death warrants the filing of any charges against the officers involved in the incident, said Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe. He said this was the first fatal case in San Mateo County involving a Taser.

"We don't know what happened," Wagstaffe said. "Were there drugs involved in this? What level of alcohol involved in this, and what kind of health was the man in? These are crucial questions for us."

This was not Saulsbury's first encounter with police. Belmont police submitted a case to the district attorney last month alleging that Saulsbury had fled from police in November after being pulled over for a traffic stop. The car he was driving was found to be stolen, Belmont police said.

E-mail Ryan Kim at rkim [at] sfchronicle.com.