Inmate death prompts removal of stun guns

The Lafayette Police Department will retrieve Taser stun guns from all officers except supervisors while the department teaches them about the policies governing the devices' use. The decision was announced Wednesday two days after inmate Dwayne Anthony Dunn's death. Dunn died at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital after he was booked into the Lafayette Parish jail Monday morning. Lafayette Police used a Taser gun, one of at least 20 owned by the department, on Dunn, saying he resisted arrest outside of a grocery store. ''We still don't believe that the Tasing had anything to do with the guy's death,'' said Cpl. Mark Francis, public information officer for the Lafayette Police Department. ''But we're going to take an abundance of precaution.'' However, Francis said Tasers will still be used to subdue suspects. The National Action Network, a group headed by New York activist Al Sharpton, called for a moratorium on the use of Taser guns by Lafayette police. [more ]