Vermont police use Taser on 58-year-old woman
12:18 p.m.
Toolbox
By Thatcher Moats
STAFF WRITER - Published: March 11, 2010
A Barre City police officer used a Taser to subdue a 58-year-old homeless woman in the parking lot of the Cumberland Farms on North Main Street on Wednesday morning after the woman allegedly refused to leave the property.
Police arrested the woman, Ann Osborn, on charges of unlawful trespass, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and attempted assault as a result of the confrontation, police said. Osborn was most recently living at the Good Samaritan Haven, a homeless shelter in Barre, according to Timothy Bombardier, Barre’s police chief.
Cpl. Henry Duhaime responded to a complaint at Cumberland Farms at 10:30 a.m. and was told by a store employee that Osborn had been “hanging around since early morning and they wanted her to leave the property,” according to a news release.
Police said that when they confronted Osborn she became argumentative and refused to leave the property. Bombardier said if a property owner asks someone to leave their property and the person does not comply, that person is “arrestable” for unlawful trespassing.
This is what happened in Osborn’s case, Bombardier said, and Duhaime informed her that she was under arrest.
But Osborne ignored Duhaime’s orders to put her hands behind her back, Bombardier said, and crossed her arms in front of her chest so he couldn’t handcuff her. At this point, Duhaime told Osborn that if she didn’t comply with his orders, he would shock her with the Taser, Bombardier said.
Osborn’s response to that, said police, was “give me a thrill.”
Duhaime attempted to use the Taser on her, but the probes were blocked by Osborn’s winter coat, so the Taser didn’t work, said police.
Osborn responded to this by laughing and saying “you got me,” bending forward and continuing to laugh, police said in a news release.
Duhaime then used the “drive stun capabilities” of the Taser, which required him to place the Taser directly on Osborn’s body as opposed to shooting the probes, Bombardier said.
This method worked after several attempts, Bombardier said, but the officer and Osborn ended up on the ground, and Osborn took a swing at Duhaime and missed, leading to the citation for attempted assault.
After being taken into custody, Osborn was examined by Barre City EMS staff, and at her own request she was taken to the Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin, police said.
Osborn had no apparent injuries, the police news release said. Osborn was still at the hospital at 5:45 p.m. on Wednesday in stable condition, according to a nursing supervisor at the hospital.
Bombardier said based on his review of the incident, the use of the Taser was justified.
“On first review, I would say the Taser was appropriate in this case,” he said.
Bombardier said Duhaime did not try to grab Osborn with his hands and handcuff her before resorting to the Taser. But when a person is verbally and physically demonstrating that they are not going to comply with orders, it’s up to the officer to decide how they are going to get the person to comply, Bombardier said.
“You have to make a decision whether you want to go in hands-on and get in a scuffle — which is where the officers sustain the most injuries — or is the Taser appropriate in this case,” Bombardier said.
Once an officer decides to go “hands-on,” Bombardier said, the distance is eliminated between the officer and the person that the officer is trying to subdue. And that space is a “safety factor,” he said.
“We’re trying to avoid having our officers involved in physical alterations with individuals,” Bombardier said.
Bombardier said officers aren’t required to go “hands-on” before using the Taser.
“It really is a flip of the coin,” he said. “It’s the officer’s call as to what they’re going to use.”
This is the second time the Barre City Police Department has used a Taser since the officers started carrying them last year.
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