Taser Settlement: Brian Cardell (Utah)

The tragedy that began with the unwarranted taser-killing of Brian Cardell in June 2009 has come to an end from a legal perspective. The family of Brian Cardall has settled its wrongful death lawsuit against the officer, police chief and the city.

Documents filed in U.S. District Court state only that the parties entered into a “mutual general settlement agreement and release of all claims,” without disclosing terms of the settlement.

Read the full story.

Taser Cop Ken Thompson is Cleared in the Killing Brian Cardall

Hurricane police officer Ken Thompson has been cleared by the Washington County Attorney's Office for his part in the June 9 taser-related death of Brian Cardall. The county attorney's office "concluded that criminal prosecution is not appropriate in this case." [SOURCE]

Cardall died of "ventricular fibrillation" produced by an undetermined cause, according to Dr. Erik D. Christensen of the Utah State Medical Examiner's Office, according to the county attorney's findings.

"Two factors are at play in this case, each of which could represent a possible primary or contributory cause of death," Christensen's autopsy report states.

While the autopsy found it possible that a taser gun could have led to the abnormal heart rhythm, it is also "clear that Mr. Cardall was in a state of both mental confusion and physiologic excitement," and the resulting rapid heart beat and internal agitation would also put him at risk of sudden cardiac death from a disturbance of the heart's rhythm, Christensen's report states.

County Attorney Brock Belnap, concludes, "In my view, Officer Thompson responded to a tense, uncertain and rapidly unfolding situation in a manner consistent with his training and that he did not intend, believe or foresee would seriously injure or cause the death of Brian Cardall."

Villagers may recall that Officer Thompson arrived on the scene at 1:17 pm and began to yell,

"Get down on the ground! Get down on the ground!" Brian Cardall responds twice in what sounds as a panicked voice, "Is this a standoff! Don't shoot."

About 42 seconds after arriving on scene the officer deployed his Taser yelling, "Taser deployed! Stay on the ground! Stay on the ground!"

Thompson is heard on the tape to say, "He went down, he tried to get up and I told him to stay down. I tased him again and then after the second time..." Thompson knew that he did wrong. Listen to the tape ... and you be the judge!

You can hear Brian Cardall moaning and screaming for about five seconds after Thompson first deploys a Taser on him. Following a two-second pause, Thompson deploys the Taser on Cardall again. He says in the recordings Cardall had tried to get up.

Officer Thompson killed a man in June ... and now the powers-that-be are letting him off scott-free. Something is wrong and I hope that Cardall's family files a massive lawsuit in this case.

What are your thoughts on this case of taser (in)justice?

Taser Cops That Killed Brian Cardall Get Updated Taser-Training

I wonder why it took so long for Hurricane police officer Ken Thompson and his mates to get updated training on the use of Tasers. It would seem that killing an innocent citizen on the streets of Utah would cause a quicker response from the Hurrican Police Department.

The sessions covered a recommendation by Taser International that suggests its products be fired, whenever possible, at an area below a person’s chest, said Hurricane Assistant Police Chief Shayne Copeland. [SOURCE]

The company’s new guidelines — announced Oct. 12 — remind officers that firing the weapon’s twin barbs at the chest area still remains an option and says the change "has less to do with safety and more to do with effective risk management for law enforcement agencies."

The training sessions come nearly five months after the death of Brian Cardall, who was stunned twice with a Taser by a Hurricane police officer in an incident that is still under investigation.

Taser Update: Brian Cardall's Family Still Waiting on Investigation Results

More than two months after Brian Cardall died from a double taser shooting by the Hurricane Police Department, his family continues to wait for an answer about what killed him and what the investigation into law enforcement's response will find.

Read more.

911 Tape: Police Officer Ken Thompson Taser-Kills Brian Cardall Within 42 Seconds of Arrival on Scene

Hurricane police officer Ken Thompson must be having nightmares. Thompson is the officer that made the decision to electrocute Brian Cardall last week out on the side of a southern Utah highway earlier this month. The nightmare for Officer Thompson is that his actions are documented on audio tape.

Thompson was one of the multiple officers called to the scene by a 911 call placed by Brian Cardall's wife. Anna Cardall tells a dispatcher that her husband didn't have weapons on him. She states he hadn't been drinking and wasn't under the influence of drugs, outside of his Seroquel (prescribed to deal with his bipolar disorder).

Thompson took all of 42 seconds to fatally shoot an unarmed Cardall with his taser gun. 42 seconds. Listen the the police audio tape and judge for yourself.

Thompson arrives on the scene at 1:17 pm and begins to yell, "Get down on the ground! Get down on the ground!" Brian Cardall responds twice in what sounds as a panicked voice, "Is this a standoff! Don't shoot."

About 42 seconds after arriving on scene the officer deployed his Taser yelling, "Taser deployed! Stay on the ground! Stay on the ground!"

Thompson is heard on the tape to say, "He went down, he tried to get up and I told him to stay down. I tased him again and then after the second time..." You can hear Brian Cardall moaning and screaming for about five seconds after Thompson first deploys a Taser on him. Following a two-second pause, Thompson deploys the Taser on Cardall again. He says in the recordings Cardall had tried to get up.

Officers struggle to get Brian Cardall into handcuffs. You can also hear Brian Cardall's wife yelling at him to comply. Almost immediately, they notice something wrong.

"He's not breathing," an officer said on the tape. They also notice he is pale. More than three minutes after the Taser was deployed, someone can be heard saying, "no pulse."

The officers and paramedics on the scene know immediately Thompson messed up as they realize he shot Cardall twice with a Taser, once when Cardall -- in the midst of a psychotic episode -- was already on the ground.

"Did he come after you?" an officer whispered at taser-happy officer Ken Thompson.

"Huh?" Thompson replies on police and 911 dispatch recordings.

"He went right at you?" another officer asks Thompson again, later.

"Yeah," Thompson flatly replies.

Brian Cardall died at the scene. Hurricane police have declined to comment as to why the Thompson chose to use a Taser instead of attempting to subdue Cardall with other methods. Multiple officers were on the scene. Yet, they could only afford 42 seconds to assess the situation before getting busy with their so-called 'non-lethal' taser on a confused man.

What is your take on this taser-related death?

911 Tape Recording of Brian Cardall's Taser Death

Less than a week ago a family lost their husband, father and son ... Brian Cardall ... because a Hurricane police officer was too trigger-happy with his taser gun. Brian Cardall was working toward his PhD at Northern Arizona University in molecular ecology. He was driving with his wife and daughter back to Arizona last Tuesday when he became disoriented.

Brian Cardall was bi-polar. In the middle of a desert road his mind began playing tricks on him. He was unarmed. He needed help. Instead of help ... he was killed because a police officer was too lazy to use commonsense and too quick to use his shiny new taser gun.

Instead of patiently getting Cardall under control to help him ... this Hurricane police officer (does any villager know his name yet?) electrocuted Cardall with 50,000 volts of electricity. Cardall dropped. Cardall died. Now a 2-year old baby and his unborn sibling will grow up without a Daddy.

Was it justified? You can judge for yourself. The Cardall family released the following 911 recordings on the death that occurred last Tuesday.






The recordings reveal Cardall’s wife’s pleas for help from authorities ... and the preoccupation with the authorities for painting Cardall as a druggie posing a danger to the 2-year old child.

Duane Cardall, Brian's father, said the family has listened to the tapes released by the Washington County Critical Task Force to the family. But even after that, they don't feel there is any way a taser should have been used.

In a press release late Friday afternoon, Hurricane City attorney Peter Stirba stated that, "Ms. Cardall reports to dispatch that Mr. Cardall has taken all his clothes off and is naked, she is afraid he is going to jump in front of a car, and that he is chasing after cars that have pulled over to help, and she is afraid he will 'freak out' on one of them."

The Cardall family today says they stand by their earlier statement and that,

"While Mr. Stirba may have provided his interpretation of the recordings in his Friday afternoon news release, we feel he has omitted numerous highly significant facts, which we feel the public should know."

I remain convinced that we need to push for congressional hearings on the 22 taser deaths in America so far this year.

You've heard the 911 tape from Cardall's wife. What say u?

Brian Cardall's Dad Says, 'Taser Should Have Never Been Used'

Brian Cardall, recently diagnosed with bipolar disease, was driving home from a family wedding in Salt Lake City with his wife when he became disoriented. He stopped the car and got out. His wife called 911 to request medical assistance.

According to a witness, Cardall removed his clothing and stood on the side of the road, as if directing traffic.

The woman says Cardall was calm; he'd taken off his clothes and was waving his hands as if he were directing traffic next to the officers on the side of the road.

"As I looked back, he was still standing there. The kids looked back. He was still standing there. He was not running at all the whole time I was driving," the woman said.

She was able to view the scene for about a minute and didn't see Cardall behaving aggressively toward police.

The police arrived on the scene and killed Cardall with 50,000 volts of electricity from their taser gun.

As the Cardall family continues to grieve for the promising scientist with a second child on the way, they are left with more questions than answers as to why police chose to use a Taser to subdue Brian as he walked near a highway in a confused state.

One thing that they know for sure is that their son didn't deserve to die on that road. Duane Cardall, Brian's father, is certain a Taser should not have been used on his son.

"Absolutely, unequivocally a Taser should have never been used in this instance," Cardall said. He said, to his knowledge, his son died within moments of being hit with the Taser.

Brian Cardall is the 21st person in America to die from taser-related shooting this year. Torture isn't limited to Dick Cheney. Taser-torture is occuring all over our nation. Isn't it time for you to join us in our call for congressional hearings on taser torture?

Another Taser Death in America -- This Time in Mormon Country

The police force killed another person with 50,000 volts of taser power this week. Brian Cardall, a 32-year old Utah man returning to Arizona to complete his PhD in ecological genetics, was tased to death by a Hurricane (Utah) police officer.

Video Courtesy of KSL.com

Cardall leaves behind a wife, a daughter, Ava, and a baby due in September. The Hurricane Police Department is already in full C.Y.A. mode as evidenced by this notice on their website which says:

Police and medical personnel responded to a call for assistance with an agitated subject on State Route 59 this afternoon in Washington County. During the incident, Kenneth Thompson, a Hurricane City police officer deployed a taser and the subject lost consciousness. The subject was treated within moments by EMS personnel, but was pronounced dead after being transported to the hospital.

The folks who created this lethal electrocution device were quick off the mark as well. They issued a press release within hours of Cardall's death.

What are your thoughts as you learn about the 21st death in America this year at the hands of a taser-happy police force?