Tasered Grandpa Sues Hospital

Ohio Man, 67, Claims Guards Got Outraged Over What He Meant As Joke

(CBS)  A grandfather and pastor is suing a Toledo, Ohio hospital after being tasered and beaten by security guards at the facility.

Much of the incident was caught by surveillance cameras.

Al Poisson, 67, says he was visiting a friend in St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center a year ago and was in a very good mood when he came upon a glum-looking guard and joked with him.

"I said (to the guard), 'Are you happy today?' Poisson told Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith Friday. "He said, 'Yeah.' I said, 'Well, you oughta tell your face!' "

Poisson added that, "It went downhill from there" and turned into an "atrocious, unbelievable situation, to say the least."

The guards wound up taking Poisson outside the building, where they used a taser and/or stun gun on him, dropping him to his knees and, he says, beat, kicked and "manhandled" him when he was down.

It all happened in front of Poisson's son and Poisson's six-year-old grandson.

The Web site of CBS affiliate WTOL-TV in Toledo cites Poisson's lawsuit as claiming Poisson's son pleaded with the guards to stop because Poisson has a bad heart

The Web site also says a police report quotes the security guards as asserting that Poisson provoked them and that, once outside, Poisson elbowed one guard and tried to pull his hair while on the ground.


The guards called Toledo police and had Poisson arrested for alleged assault, but those charges have since been dropped.

Poisson says he used to go to St. Vincent's regularly to pray with patients, but no longer can cope with doing that. He also says he's had to give up his duties at a local soup kitchen that's since closed.

Poisson is seeking punitive damages of an unspecified amount, along with damages for pain, suffering, medical expenses and lost income. The lawsuit also says the hospital doesn't train its security personnel properly.

St. Vincent's issued a statement saying, "According to our policy regarding physical aggression, the use of a taser is warranted if someone attempts to physically attack a staff member, patient or visitor. We conducted an internal review of this incident that determined the response to the aggression was appropriate."

"That's not true at all," Poisson responded to Smith when the statement was read.

[pwvr]

In regards to "hospital security guards" Tazering a visitor.
I am of the opinion that law enforcement SHOULD NOT be allowed to carry or use "tazers." This weapon is being used in excess, and as an "I can hurt you, and you can not do anything about it! Police are not the "good guys" we want to see them as. A good number of the "new generation" of law enforcement personal are young bullies.
The tazer is a fine defensive weapon for a private citizen but should NOT be allowed in the hand of security guards or police.
BTW, I am a 58 year old man, that was a deputy sheriff when I returned from Viet Nam. I quit that job because I would NOT lie!

Pat Weaver

[pwvr]

In regards to "hospital security guards" Tazering a visitor.
I am of the opinion that law enforcement SHOULD NOT be allowed to carry or use "tazers." This weapon is being used in excess, and as an "I can hurt you, and you can not do anything about it! Police are not the "good guys" we want to see them as. A good number of the "new generation" of law enforcement personal are young bullies.
The tazer is a fine defensive weapon for a private citizen but should NOT be allowed in the hand of security guards or police.
BTW, I am a 58 year old man, that was a deputy sheriff when I returned from Viet Nam. I quit that job because I would NOT lie!

Pat Weaver

[skepticsteve]

The very first line of this article identifies this Poisson individual as a grandfather and a preacher. Why not just give his name and age ? It seems the author was attempting to imply that this was some person of special status. Having grandkid[s] and being employed in some way does not mean he''s not a d*ck.

[eddom949]

Good saying, he should win

[loneeagle57]

There is part of this story missing.
Pastor gave the smart *** comment, then reports it went downhill from there.
What was said there? The guards came running to escort him out. WHY? What else did the "good reverend" do?

[Meg003]

he came upon a glum-looking guard

What part of leave me alone don''''t people understand??!

Posted by loneeagle57

Yeah, it would tick me off to have some jerk tell me what my facial expression should be. But shouldn''t at least one of the pack of guards have said, hey now, we can''t just beat the tar out of this guy for having bad manners?

[loneeagle57]

he came upon a glum-looking guard

What part of leave me alone don''t people understand??!

[loneeagle57]

I usually do too. However in this case I can relate to the security guard.
I don''t really like being told how to act whether my job requires me to or not. For a pastor to give a comment like that was uncalled for.
I would not have used a weapon on him. However my attitude towards this man would have told him to leave me alone. As I stated I agree with the guard snapping back. That does not mean that what was done was right

[Meg003]

This hospital visitor seems annoying as all get out, but he was apparently beaten for no good reason. Why aren''t the guards arrested for assault? Are they protected by law because they are security guards?

[patriot12436]

loneeagle
I always like to hear both sides of a story before deciding who i think is right.

[loneeagle57]

Ridiculous. Get a shrink then.Posted by l8c6

Its people like you that make me sick. That is your answer for everything, See a shrink, take some pills.
That won''t help. The strong survive. If it don''t kill you it will make you stronger. The strongest don''t see shrinks we take what we can until someone pis ses us off then we snap when we can''t take anymore. Especially when someone won''t mind their own god damned business.

[l8c6]

I''''m afraid I would have to side with the guard here. (Although I am not saying he did right)
This guard was obviously having a bad day (might have been written up over a previous problem) His wife might have left him, a family member might have passed on or ill. He might have been concerned about putting food on the table or keeping a roof over his family''''s head. These employees are like furniture, They are to be ignored by the patrons.
Granted this pastor was "tending his flock" And I know the words cheer up just don''''t cut it when you are down in the dumps. It only makes things worse. Been there.

Posted by loneeagle57


Ridiculous. Get a shrink then. There is never an excuse for a lack of professional behavior. These guards are on the payroll of this hospital to do their job. If they cannot differentiate the difference between their job and their lack of emotional impulse control then they are not qualified for work that may involve confrontation.

[l8c6]

A stupid remark yes, but I''m sure glad I no longer live in the midwest. It''s turning into a hotbed of economic collapse and a miserable mix of faux christians and screwed up meth heads. Security guards at hospitals are often impulsive wanna be cops who are screened out because of such impulsiveness. They went over the top and should be handed a pink slip and black listed for incompetence. They failed to do their duty.

[loneeagle57]

I''m afraid I would have to side with the guard here. (Although I am not saying he did right)
This guard was obviously having a bad day (might have been written up over a previous problem) His wife might have left him, a family member might have passed on or ill. He might have been concerned about putting food on the table or keeping a roof over his family''s head. These employees are like furniture, They are to be ignored by the patrons.
Granted this pastor was "tending his flock" And I know the words cheer up just don''t cut it when you are down in the dumps. It only makes things worse. Been there.

[loneeagle57]

Another lesson for mr poison- it''''s a good idea to MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS and not engage total strangers with your BULLCHIT and invade their privacy.

Posted by newster1 at 09:39 PM : Jul 25, 2008

AMEN!

[kenhamlett]

While the comments of Closethippy may have been intended as a joke there are many people who will happily harm you for fun if they can get away with it. We live in a sick society.
The tazer is a deadly weapon. The reason that it is not treated such is that foolish politicians believe the lies of the tazer manufacturer instead of looking at the results. When someone dies coroners do their best to blame it one some other factor but it is the shock that creates the death scenario. When you talk to any politician at any level let them know that this is deadly force.
I know it is and act accordingly.

[patriot12436]

closethippy
I would hope you were joking but intodays day and age there are a lot of sick puppies out there. I apologize if it was meant as humor.

[patriot12436]

If the guard is black then i expect jackson and sharpton to jump all over his, if they can see a way to turn a buck, and keep the racial fires burning.

[closethippy1]

closethippy
You are one sick demented individual and have no business working security. Your employer will eventually pay for your actions. I have worked security and law enforcement. The last thing i want to do is harm someone, much less thinking about scenarios to do so.
Posted by patriot12436 at 09:43 PM : Jul 25, 2008

I''m sure you know I was just jesting, don''t you?

[patriot12436]

bobnjersey
I agree with your assessment but i also think they are better determent than deadly force for security and law enforcement. Proper trainig is the key. Law enforcement go thru training where they are tazed so they know what it is like. There may be more to this story and hopefully the truth will come out about what really happened. May justice prevail.