Woman on Life Support After Taser Incident at Fairfax County Jail

A woman being held on an Alexandria assault charge is on life support at a local hospital after she was tasered Tuesday and experienced “a medical emergency,” at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, according to a news release from the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office.

NBC-4 reported Thursday night that, according to sources, the woman had a history of mental illness.

The 37-year-old woman was awaiting transport to the Alexandria jail. The woman was brought to the county jail last Monday, Jan. 26, on an Alexandria charge of ”Assault on Law Enforcement, Judge, Fire/Medical Services.”

After her arrest on Jan. 26, the woman was held without bond in the Fairfax County jail, awaiting transport to Alexandria.

On Tuesday, Feb. 3, the woman was scheduled to be transported to the Alexandria Adult Detention Center. The Sheriff’s Office said “in order to prepare her for transport, she was asked to comply with deputies’ commands.” The Sheriff’s Office did not say what those commands were.

The Sheriff’s Office said that when the woman “physically resisted, the deputies an Electronic Control Device (Taser) was utilized to properly restrain and safely transport her.”

Once properly restrained and checked by on-scene medical personnel, she was moved to another area of the ADC for transport. She then experienced a medical emergency, the Sheriff’s Office said. EMS was immediately notified, they noted.

Medical staff and deputies administered life-saving procedures prior to the arrival of EMS, according to the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office. When EMS arrived, they took over the scene and transported the patient to a local hospital where she is currently on life-support.

An internal investigation is currently underway regarding this matter.