[font class="headline"]I'm sorry he died, but frankly whenever I meet a jesus freak I wish I had a stun-gun handy too.
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Police Stun Gun Kills Teen With Bible
[/font][font class="date"]Oct 31 8:42 AM US/Eastern[/font]
[font class="story"]A teenager carrying a [a style="text-decoration: underline; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://search.breitbart.com/q?s=bible&sid=breitbart.com" title="You can also highlight word(s) and then shift-click to search."]Bible[/a] and shouting "I want Jesus" was shot twice with a police stun gun and later died at a [a style="text-decoration: underline; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://search.breitbart.com/q?s=%22St.+Louis%22&sid=breitbart.com" title="You can also highlight word(s) and then shift-click to search."]St. Louis[/a] hospital, authorities said. [/font][font class="story"] In a statement obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, police in Jerseyville, about 40 miles north of St. Louis, said 17-year-old Roger Holyfield would not acknowledge officers who approached him and he continued yelling, "I want Jesus." [/font][/p][font class="story"] Police tried to calm the teen, but Holyfield became combative, according to the statement. Officers fired the stun gun at him after he ignored their warnings, then fired again when he continued struggling, police said. [/font][/p][font class="story"] Holyfield was flown to St. Louis' Cardinal Glennon Hospital after the confrontation Saturday; he died there Sunday, police said. [/font][/p][font class="story"] An autopsy was planned for Tuesday. [/font][/p][font class="story"] The statement expressed sympathy to Holyfield's family but said city and police officials would not discuss the matter further. [/font][/p][font class="story"] Calls Tuesday to Jerseyville Police Chief Brad Blackorby were not immediately returned. The department has been using stun guns for about five months, according to the statement. [/font][/p][font class="story"] In a report released in March, international human rights group [a style="text-decoration: underline; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://search.breitbart.com/q?s=%22Amnesty+International%22&sid=breitbart.com" title="You can also highlight word(s) and then shift-click to search."]Amnesty International[/a] said it had logged at least 156 deaths across the country in the previous five years related to police stun guns. [/font][/p][font class="story"] The [a style="text-decoration: underline; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://search.breitbart.com/q?s=%22rise+in+deaths%22&sid=breitbart.com" title="You can also highlight word(s) and then shift-click to search."]rise in deaths[/a] accompanies a marked increase in the number of U.S. law enforcement agencies employing devices made by Taser International Inc. of [a style="text-decoration: underline; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://search.breitbart.com/q?s=scottsdale&sid=breitbart.com" title="You can also highlight word(s) and then shift-click to search."]Scottsdale[/a], Ariz. About 1,000 of the nation's 18,000 police agencies used Tasers in 2001; more than 7,000 departments had them last year, according to a government study. [/font][/p][font class="story"] Police had used Tasers more than 70,000 times as of last year, Congress' Government Accountability Office said. [/font][/p][font class="story"] Amnesty International has urged police departments to suspend the use of Tasers pending more study. Taser International said the group's count was flawed and falsely linked deaths to Taser use when there has been no such official conclusion. [/font][/p][font class="story"] The [a style="text-decoration: underline; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://search.breitbart.com/q?s=%22city+of+St.+Louis%22&sid=breitbart.com" title="You can also highlight word(s) and then shift-click to search."]city of St. Louis[/a] also drew unwanted attention for crime this week when it was named the most dangerous U.S. city by [a style="text-decoration: underline; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" href="http://search.breitbart.com/q?s=%22Morgan+Quitno+Press%22&sid=breitbart.com" title="You can also highlight word(s) and then shift-click to search."]Morgan Quitno Press[/a]. The ranking looked only at crime within St. Louis city limits, not its metro area. [/font][/p]
