Tasers and Wrongful Death, Charlotte, NC

 Earlier in the week, a North Carolina jury delivered a $10 million wrongful death verdict against Taser International for an incident that occurred in March 2008 where the victim was tasered after allegedly committing a variety of crimes. The jury determined that the manufacturer of the Taser device failed to warn that discharging the device into the chest and near the heart posed a substantial risk of death. During an unrelated incident on July 20, 2011, a Charlotte man died after being shot with a Taser during an arrest attempt. The arrest and cause of death are currently under investigation. Contract law. The recent verdict and death has reignited the discussion regarding the use of the Taser device including the reexamination by the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department. The department has suspended the use of the device for 45 days to test the weapons to determine whether they are operating properly.

I discussed some of the issues that surface when injury or death arises out of the use of a product with FOX News reporter, Israel Balderas: $10 Million Verdict Against Taser Int'l Impacts Police Use.

Every day, we as consumers use products without incident. Unfortunately, sometimes even when a product is used as directed, injuries occur. As in the case of the 2008 Taser victim, the family is left to ask "why?" The answer is not an easy one and is often times left unanswered in large part because the consumer is uneducated on the steps necessary to preserve the evidence to find the answer. In any case involving wrongful death and serious injuries, including those arising out of the use of a consumer product, early involvement by counsel is important to preserve necessary information to help obtain the answers. This often times includes use of experts to collect data, photograph the scene, and preserve the product and any documentation investigating the injury or death.