Turn About Is Fair Play - Cop Tasered With Own Taser Gun After Botched Attempt

Police arrest woman they say used Taser on officer
Apr 27 2009 07:22PM CST

There has been a flood of taser stories in the news recently. Police appear to be using the electric shock weapon, which has resulted in the deaths of several people, at every opportunity. In one instance a police chief used his taser to subdue his own wife. It is only to be expected that citizens will fight back and defend themselves from the overuse of tasers. Up to now, a citizen's only means of defense was the "bird," which recently was held to be constitutionally permissible speech by the U.S. Supreme Court.

An unconfirmed report from an unidentified source with no connection to the court, claimed that during debate of the case by the justices, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, 75, demonstrated the proper use of the "bird," New York style, when addressing police officers and other law enforcement officials. She was said to have won grudging admiration from Justices Scalia and Thomas for her use of the classic American symbol of disrespect.


In a closely related case, police arrested a woman they said used a Utah Highway Patrol trooper's Taser on him. Lana Perkins, 83, (see photo above) was booked into the Salt Lake County jail for investigation of aggravated assault, interference with an arresting officer and unauthorized control of a motor vehicle. Authorities said a Utah Highway Patrol trooper pulled over a truck he thought was stolen on Saturday.

Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Jeff Nigbur said the officer attempted to arrest a female passenger in the truck but she hit him with her shoe and bit him.

Nigbur said the trooper tried to use his Taser on the elderly woman but it didn't fire, so he threw it aside. But authorities say Perkins picked it up and fired a shock called a "dry stun" into the officer. He was stunned but not dry as the shock caused him to urinate in his pants, which were khaki colored and showed a large yellow stain.

A K-9 unit and back-up officer arrived, and Perkins eventually was Tasered, subdued, and taken to the county jail for booking. While awaiting booking, Ms. Perkins exercized her constitutional right of free speech by shooting the bird at the desk sergeant and other law enforcement personnel.

It was not clear whether Perkins had an attorney yet and the jail had no additional information. The driver of the truck, another female, apparently was overlooked during the melee with Ms. Perkins and walked away from the scene. Ms. Perkins, when asked for the identity of the driver, would only reply with the "bird," thus frustrating the investigation, constitutionally.

J. Conklin contributed to this story from Nepal and Sri Lanka.