Taser Lawsuit: Jose Martinez (Waukegan, IL)

I was pleased to see that the wife of Jose Alfred Martinez filed a wrongful death lawsuit in federal court earlier this week claiming that her husband died as a result of being electrocuted-to-death by a Waukegan Police officer. [SOURCE]

Villager may recall that an unarmed Martinez was killed on May 29 by Waukegan police officer Ken Piton who used his taser gun twice in the taser-related killing.


The lawsuit claims that the amount of force used by Piton was unnecessary and excessive. Martinez was down from the first jolt of 50,000 volts from the officer's taser gun. The second jolt of 50,000 volts from Officer Piton was delivered directly to the victim's chest area.

Martinez died as a result of Piton’s use of excessive force, according to the lawsuit.

The four-count suit, which also names the city of Waukegan, seeks compensatory and punitive damages, attorneys’ fees, and court costs.