A Chicago man died early Wednesday morning after being subdued by police with a taser during a traffic stop. Jaesun Ingles, a 31-year old, was pronounced dead at MetroSouth Hospital in Blue Island at 12:31 am, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office. The autopsy has been inconclusive.
Midlothian Police Lt. Harold Kaufman stated that the police used the taser to subdue Ingles. He then had trouble breathing and was taken to the hospital. He was pulled over at 11 pm Tuesday night for several traffic violations, according to police.
The officer who pulled Ingles over smelled marijuana and found a small amount of it during a search. Officers claim that when they tried to arrest Ingles, he ran behind some local businesses and tried to swallow a plastic bag believed to have contained the drugs.
The police further state that after they caught up to Ingles on foot, he continued to resist arrest and was hit with a taser. That is when he had trouble breathing and emergency personnel were called. Kaufman did not know how many times Ingles was tasered and would not reveal department protocol for tasering situations. The public integrity unit is looking into the incident.
Police claim that several officers were injured in trying to subdue Ingles. One received treatment for a sprained wrist and injured shoulder, one for a knee injury and another for an injury to his right hand. Ingles was on parole for two Ohio convictions and was being supervised by Illinois corrections officials.
Ingles had been convicted in Ohio on charges of attempted felony assault and obstructing justice. He was serving his parole in Illinois through an interstate compact, according to Januari Smith, a spokesman for the Illinois Department of Corrections.
The Jaesun Ingles case brings many thoughts to mind. Most evident is that the case does not appear to be conclusive. If the officers were treated for injuries, this serves as evidence that Ingles was resisting arrest. The problem, however, is that officers are well-aware that if you want to "cover your butt" after an incident in which a defendant is injured, you should go to the hospital and document any injuries you might have sustained. This does not imply that the officers are lying about their injuries, but a deeper investigation is certainly called for.
Additionally, even if Ingles was resisting arrest and running, he didn't deserve to die. This says that the Chicago police have a great deal of explaining to do. But as they explain, it should be remembered and considered that this might have just been a sad situation gone terribly bad. The officers may have just been doing their jobs, following protocol and faced with a defendant whose body responded to the taser in an unexpected way. Either way, we all deserve to hear the truth, so I am very interested in seeing how this case is resolved.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition.
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