Crime & Safety
UPDATE: State Police Reveal ID of Branford Man Who Died After Police Used a Taser on Him
State Police also revealed the details as to why police used the Taser and how the man was trying to enter oncoming cars in Branford.
Update 1 p.m. Connecticut State Police shed significantly more light on what led Branford police to Taser David Werblow., 41, of 134 Burban Drive Sunday night. Werblow would later die at Yale-New Haven Hospital.
State Police Spokesman Lt. J. Paul Vance said at 7:45 p.m. Sunday the Branford Police Department received a 911 call reporting a disturbance at 134 Burban Dr..
Upon officers arrival they encountered Werblow. Werblow. exited the residence and began walking down the street, Vance said.
Werblow ignored officers requests to stop, continued walking down the street, and made several attempts to enter vehicles that were driving down the road, State Police said.
Officers were able to direct motorists to not stop and keep driving. Werblow then entered a vehicle that was parked on Burban Drive, Vance said. Officers attempted to get Werblow to exit the vehicle; however he continued to ignore their requests, Vance said.
"A Branford Police Officer successfully deployed his department issued TASER to gain control of Werblow," Vance said. "Officers were able to remove Werblow from the vehicle and place him in handcuffs. Officers immediately noticed that Werblow was in medical distress. EMS responded to the scene and Werblow was transported to Yale-New Haven Hospital where he was pronounced deceased."
At the request of the New Haven State's Attorney's Office and Chief Kevin Halloran, the State Police Central District Major Crime Squad (CDMCS) detectives responded to conduct a use of force investigation into this incident, which is standard protocol.
State Police detectives processed the scene and gathered physical and forensic evidence and conducted interviews of witnesses.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will conduct a post mortem examination of Werblow and will determine manner and cause of death.
Branford Police Chief Kevin Halloran added "we take every use of force by our officers very seriously; especially those that result in injury or, in those unusual cases, a loss of life. We realize that Conducted Electronic Weapons (Taser) are classified as a less than lethal weapon; however also realize their use can result in death and do not deploy them indiscriminately," Halloran said in a prepared statement.The state police investigation is continuing.
Update: 11:30 a.m. Statement from David McGuire, Staff Attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut, on the Branford Taser incident.
"While we do not have any details on the incident in Branford, the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut believes this episode reinforces the need for oversight mechanisms associated with Tasers. Stun guns have been linked to the deaths of people throughout Connecticut and we simply don't have the tools to ensure their use was called for under the circumstances. Taser-cams should be required to verify as conclusively as possible that the use of a stun gun was absolutely necessary. The ACLU of Connecticut will be seeking any available video and documentary evidence on the incident as well as other accounts of what happened," McGuire said.
Last year, the ACLU of Connecticut successfully advocated for the passage of a law that require police departments that use Tasers or other electronic weapons to adopt policies on their use and to track and report all incidents in which they are deployed.
A review by The Hartford Courant revealed that more than 77 percent of victims in 15 fatal Taser incidents over the past ten years were black or Hispanic. In addition, the majority of incidents occurred in a select few jurisdictions.
The story added that no police officer in the state has ever been convicted of a crime for these incidents.
Original post: On Sunday night, Branford police responded to Burban Drive and Jefferson Road for a report of someone allegedly breaking into cars in the area.
Branford police used a Taser on the suspect, and he went into cardiac arrest and died at Yale-New Haven Hospital, the New Haven Register reports.
Branford Police asked Connecticut State Police to take over the investigation, which is normal in cases such as this.
Connecticut State Police were on the scene until 4 a.m. reports, NBC Connecticut.
No information has been given concerning the identity of the deceased.
Both State Police and the state's attorneys office are investigating.
