Expert doubts inmate autopsy report

A cardiologist who has studied sudden deaths after the use of police stun guns said autopsies usually are inconclusive in these cases.

"There is no clear-cut evidence you can get from the autopsy," said Dr. Byron Lee, a cardiologist and electrophysiologist at the University of California at San Francisco who was involved in a survey of police agencies that deployed Tasers.

He suggested that the autopsy on Craig Prescott, 38, of Modesto was unclear about the cause of death. He said he didn't think Prescott's heart condition, as described in the autopsy, was severe enough to put him at a high risk of sudden cardiac-related death.

Jailers used Tasers to subdue Prescott, a former Stanislaus County sheriff's deputy, during an April 11 altercation at the jail. He died April 13 after he was taken off life support.

An autopsy released by the Stanislaus County coroner's office Thursday said the cause of death was a heart condition related to chronic hypertension. Officials concluded that the struggle with deputies caused strain to Prescott's cardiovascular system, resulting in his death.

Lee countered that stun guns can cause lethal cardiac arrhythmia or trigger a syndrome called excited delirium, in which a person struggling with officers suddenly dies. A fatal heart rhythm leaves behind little evidence for a pathologist performing an autopsy.

A record of his heart rate and medical condition before his death would be more useful in determining if Prescott's death was caused by arrhythmia triggered by a stun gun, Lee said. Death from excited delirium is not well understood and isn't usually detected in a standard autopsy.

Stun guns, which deliver an electric shock to subdue a combative subject, are touted as a safe deployment of nonlethal force that reduces injuries for officers. But Lee said he believes they are more dangerous than law enforcement and manufacturers claim. The current traveling through the body can capture the electrical impulses in the heart and cause a very rapid heart rate. The resulting cardiac arrhythmia can be lethal, he said.

The risk goes up with multiple shocks or shocks of a longer duration. If stun guns contributed to Prescott's death, Lee said, it was more likely excited delirium. According to the autopsy report, there were no Taser injuries on his chest. Shocks to the chest usually are required to cause arrhythmia, he said.

The autopsy report does not state clearly how many times Prescott was shocked.

Coroner officials said they couldn't comment on details of the autopsy performed by Dr. Eugene Carpenter, a pathologist under contract with the coroner's office. Carpenter was not scheduled back in the office until Monday, officials said.

Sheriff Adam Christianson said scientific studies have established that Tasers are a safe, nonlethal option for officers who need to bring a subject under control.

"Plenty of autopsy reports and medical experts have determined that the use of Tasers were not a contributing factor," he said. "More often in these cases, drug intoxication or a pre-existing health condition contributed to the cause of death."

The autopsy said Prescott's body had evidence of hypertrophic heart disease, including a thickening of the heart muscle, which sometimes is suspected in sudden-death cases. He had minor to moderate atherosclerosis to the coronary arteries and interstitial fibrosis of the heart.

Conditions not uncommon

After reading the report, Lee said Prescott's heart was abnormal but "these kind of heart conditions are relatively common in the overall population. They may put you at a slightly higher risk of sudden death from a cardiac arrhythmia."