23 May 2015
Saying he did nothing wrong, a Virginia police officer resigned from the Fredricksburg Police Department after body-cam video showed him using his Taser, and then pepper-spray, on an unresponsive black man sitting in his car.
According to the WHOP, 34-year-old David Washington was having a stroke at the time of the incident.
The officer, Shaun Jurgens, resigned from the city police department on May 14, and was one of three officers who responded when the disoriented Washington drove the wrong way on a street before stopping in an intersection.
In the video, Jurgens is seen walking up to Washington’s car and using his Taser on him, without warning, as he sits at the wheel of his car staring forward.
After another officer opens the door of the car, Jurgens sprays a massive amount of pepper spray into the face of Washington, who barely flinches..
Jurgens can then be heard yelling, ” Get out the car. Get out the car, or I’m going to f*cking smoke you. Get out the car, right now. We ain’t playing.”
As Washington slowly attempts to unbuckle his seat-belt, officers pull the subdued man to the ground, bending his arm behind his back.
While on the ground, Washington tell the officers “I can’t breathe,” adding that he has been sick for days. It was later determined that he was having a stroke.
According to Jurgens, he said that he thought at the time Washington may have been under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and that he was concerned because there was a school nearby.
An investigation by the Fredericksburg Police Department showed that Jurgens’ use of force was not in line with department policies.
The two other officers at the scene, Cpl. Matt Deschenes and Sgt. Crystal Hill, are still being investigated by the department.
Following his arrest, Washington was taken to a nearby hospital and later released. He has been charged with reckless driving and driving on a revoked license, but has not been arrested.