Witnesses: Branford Police Didn't Use Excessive Force in Taser Incident

What we know concerning a Branford man’s death and the use of a Taser by the Branford Police Department

On Sunday night, Branford police used a Taser on David Werblow, 41, of 134 Burban Drive, and later that same night he would die at Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Connecticut State Police are investigating the Branford Police Department’s actions in this case, which is normal in these types of situations.

State Police spokesman Lt. J. Paul Vance released details about the incident on Monday, which are referenced below, and were reported on Monday.

Neighbors tell the New Haven Register’s Esteban L. Hernandez what they witnessed that night.

Around 8 p.m. a neighbor heard screaming and police yelling at a man, who was later identified as Werblow, to “get on the ground.”

Police could be seen chasing after Werblow, who was trying to access and enter moving cars. A woman was running behind Werblow, imploring him to cooperate with police, Hernandez reports.

Werblow entered a neighbor’s car and despite being hit with a Taser he remained there, and he also managed to knock the Taser from the officer’s hand, the witness said.

Police removed Werblow from the car, and he continued to “fight” back with officers, and was hit with a Taser again. The neighbor, according to the Register, said she didn’t believe the officers used excessive force, and that it was Werblow, and not the officers who was fighting back. Neighbors said officers used their Taser three times on Werblow.

Read the full New Haven Register story here.

Connecticut State Police’s account of what happened

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.

The ACLU of Connecticut offers an opinion on the use of Tasers

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.