Taser cops deny assault during arrest

Police officers charged (Photo courtesy Cayman27)

(CNS): Two police officers who have been charged with assault in connection with the arrest of a man in East End last year have denied the charges. Cardiff Robinson (30) and Austin Etienne (44) pleaded not guilty to assault in Summary Court Wednesday relating to the use of an RCIPS Taser during the apprehension of Lawson Scott following a high-speed island long car chase. The cops, who have not been suspended from their jobs but allegedly placed on desk duties, are scheduled to face trial early next year.

The officers, who are Jamaican nationals, are accused of using excessive force when they shot Scott with the police-issued weapon.

The use of the Taser by the officers, which will have been filmed as the stun guns are fitted with video cameras, is believed to have occurred just after midnight on 3 May last year after the chase from George Town to East End.

Police reported that the driver of a Toyota vehicle had refused to stop following a disturbance off Shedden Road. The RCIPS chopper and patrol cars were involved in chasing down the suspects at speeds reaching 90 miles per hour, the police reported at the time.

When Scott was finally cornered in a dead-end off John McLean Drive in East End, he was taken into custody by officers from the Uniformed and Operational Support Groups, which is now understood to have included Robinson and Etienne. But the reason for the man’s pursuit and subsequent arrest was not disclosed.

At the time, Air Operations Unit Commander Steve Fitzgerald bragged about the team effort and a successful police operation.