Wow - Kerry Supporter Tasered

[XtremeJibber2001]

Unbelievable ... can anyone identify why he was removed from the mic? For what I can tell, he was a Kerry support, not a heckler.

The kid references the book "Armed Madhouse", but the book is largely anti-GWB.

Anyone else know why they tried to pull him from the mic?

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/18/studen ... topstories

[BigKahuna13]

It seems that his time at the mic was up - or maybe the event was over -
and he refused to leave. He then looked to be trying to get away from the police (were they real cops or campus rent-a-cops?) and to be struggling with them.

Given that there were 4 or 5 cops and this one skinny college kid tasering him seemed to me to be excessive. Especially since the taser isn't nearly as
benign as most people think it is - a fair number of people have died from being tasered.

[Nevada West]

Unbelievable ... can anyone identify why he was removed from the mic? For what I can tell, he was a Kerry support, not a heckler.

The kid references the book "Armed Madhouse", but the book is largely anti-GWB.

Anyone else know why they tried to pull him from the mic?

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/18/studen ... topstories

I believe he made a reference to "Skull & Bones"......

[XtremeJibber2001]

Here are some more details .. appears CNN cut the clip to make it look like the UDP took the guy out for "shits and giggles".

Police Taser student at Kerry speech
By JACK STRIPLING
Sun staff writer
12:00 am, September 18, 2007

Toward the conclusion of Kerry's UF forum, 21-year-old Andrew Meyer approached an open microphone at University Auditorium and demanded Kerry answer his questions. Meyer, a UF student in the College of Journalism and Communications, claimed that University Police Department officers had already threatened to arrest him, and then proceeded to question Kerry about why he didn't contest the 2004 presidential election and why there had been no moves to impeach President Bush.

A minute or so into what became a combative diatribe, Meyer's microphone was turned off and officers began trying to physically remove him from the auditorium. Meyer flailed his arms, yelling as police tried to restrain him.

He was then pushed to the ground by six officers, at which point Meyer yelled, "What have I done? What I have I done? Get away from me. Get off of me! What did I do? Help me! Help."

Police threatened to use a Taser on Meyer if he did not "comply," but he continued to resist being handcuffed. He was then Tased, which prompted him to scream and writhe in pain on the floor of the auditorium.

After the incident, Capt. Jeff Holcomb of the UPD said Meyer had been charged with disrupting a public event and placed in the Alachua County jail.

Holcomb said there would be an investigation into whether the officers used force appropriately, adding that employing a Taser gun would only be justified in a case where there was a threat of physical harm to officers.

In a news release sent out after the event, UPD officials said Meyer had been "partially" handcuffed before the Tasing. Holcomb said "partial" handcuffing implies only one hand was cuffed, adding that it would be "atypical" to use a Taser on someone who was fully cuffed.

As Meyer was escorted away, he was followed by several students, including Matthew Howland, 20. Howland, a UF senior who said he didn't know Meyer, said he was "appalled" by the way UPD officers handled the situation. Howland acknowledged that Meyer had acted inappropriately by "rushing" the microphone and forcing a question on Kerry.

"It's a perfect example of when officers take something to a level that is not necessary," he said. "The officers escalated that situation."

Throughout the incident, Kerry urged the audience to "cool down" and proceeded to answer Meyer's question about contesting the election. As officers escorted Meyer from the auditorium into the lobby, Kerry went on to explain that he did not think there was sufficient evidence of voter suppression to justify contesting the 2004 election.

"We just couldn't do it in good conscience because we didn't have that evidence," he said.