Posted: 9/10/2009 4:55:04 AM EDT
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Video Shows Deputy Using Taser For Fun
Police Records Show Lawman Has Previous Complaint Against Him POSTED: 4:08 pm EDT September 8, 2009 UPDATED: 12:08 am EDT September 10, 2009 DELAND, Fla. –– Volusia County police said Wednesday that a sheriff's deputy charged with misusing his Taser gun has been in trouble before. According to police records, Volusia County Sheriff's Deputy Matt Tremblay had a complaint filed against him in 2005 for mooning his neighbor. Tremblay was reportedly drunk when he dropped his pants outside his home, police said, and he has since received counseling for the incident. Tremblay is the subject of an internal investigation after a video surfaced showing a deputy using his Taser gun on a friend for fun. Tremblay has been with the department since 2004, and Sheriff Ben Johnson said he feels certain the Taser gun Tremblay used in the video is department-issued. In the video, a man identified as Tommy kneels willingly, and then a man behind him fires the Taser gun. Tommy is stunned for seconds, shouting loudly, clearly in pain. The camera shows the man using the Taser gun at the end of the ordeal, and the sheriff said it's Deltona motor Officer Mathew Tremblay, 36. "It's obvious that they were doing it together, but that doesn't matter. It's our deputy with our equipment. He's the one that's responsible, and he should know better than to do that," Johnson said. The leads were apparently hooked to Tommy before the Taser gun was fired. After Tommy is knocked down, others in the room are laughing, but Tommy says he is hurt. "It's not for personal use. It's not for entertainment. It's for police work, and in this instance it appears as though it was misused," Johnson said. In the video, Tremblay points the Taser gun at Tommy after he's down and shouting just to make the noise, as though to scare him that he might be shot with the Taser gun again. He isn't shot with the Taser gun again, and eventually Tommy gets up and joins in the laughter, but the sheriff sees nothing funny about a violation of policies and procedures. Punishment, if any, will be decided at the conclusion of an internal investigation. The sheriff said punishment could be anything from being ordered to get counseling to dismissal, although he said he doubts the punishment would be as significant as dismissal. He said Tremblay is a good officer who made an error in judgment. Many of Tremblay's neighbors are shocked at the allegations against him. "He's just a good guy, very well-mannered," Lisa Husted said. "I don't know why people are making such a big (deal) out of this." Other neighbors said they're more concerned about Tremblay's latest incident. "To use his Taser as a toy, it's poor judgment," neighbor Robert Boyer said. "It has killed people in the past." http://www.wesh.com/news/20796800/detail.html Video at the link. My Space and doing stupid things don't mix when you are in LE. |