Pubdate: Thu, 24 Nov 2005
Source: Monterey County Herald (CA)
Copyright: 2005 Monterey County Herald
Contact:  http://www.montereyherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/273
Author: Andre Briscoe,  Herald Staff Writer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

AUTOPSIES RELEASED IN TASER CASE

Third Pathologist Called To Review Earlier Findings

It took nearly a year and three pathologists to better pinpoint what 
killed a 40-year-old Salinas man who had been stunned several times 
with Tasers.

With the release Wednesday of the three autopsy reports, the cause of 
Robert Clark Heston's death earlier this year came more into focus.

Monterey County Sheriff Mike Kanalakis said the first two autopsies 
conflicted, making it "reasonable and necessary" to ask for a third report.

"We are not experts. We needed someone to look into this who was," he said.

Heston died Feb. 20, a day after Salinas police officers stunned him 
at least five times while trying to arrest him outside his parents' 
home. The District Attorney's Office found no evidence to support 
filing criminal charges against the officers, according to its report 
released Tuesday.

The sole purpose of the district attorney's investigation was to 
determine whether any officer was criminally responsible for Heston's death.

"The evidence in this case does not prove that any officer used 
unreasonable force at any time during the events on... February 19, 
2005...," the report states.

During the investigation, two other post-mortem reviews were requested.

All three autopsy reports indicate Heston died from a combination of 
methamphetamine intoxication, Taser jolts and a heart attack. Two of 
the three reports cite multiple organ failure because of 
methamphetamine intoxication as the primary cause of death, with 
Taser use a contributing cause.

The first autopsy was performed by Dr. Terri Haddix, the county 
coroner's forensic pathologist, two days after Heston died.

Her findings indicate Heston died from organ failure because of a 
heart attack caused by Heston's drug use and the Taser jolts. 
Haddix's findings were never formally made public.

Salinas Police Chief Daniel Ortega submitted Haddix's findings for 
review to Dr. John Hain, a pathologist who performs the majority of 
the county's autopsies. Hain determined Heston's cause of death as 
primarily cardiac arrest caused by methamphetamine intoxication. He 
said Heston was "severely agitated" and that he was under the 
influence of a toxic level of methamphetamine known to cause 
"life-ending cardiac arrhythmias."

Hain stated in his report that a person who is under the influence of 
a drug such as cocaine or methamphetamine sometimes dies after a 
struggle with police because of added stress.

Sheriff's officials were expected to disclose Hain's report in early 
August, but Kanalakis decided to send Hain's report and Haddix's 
report to Dr. Steven Karch, a retired San Francisco medical examiner 
considered an expert on drug-induced and Taser-related deaths.

Karch found that Heston died primarily from chronic methamphetamine 
abuse and heart enlargement, and that he suffered from a condition 
known as "excited delirium," which is associated with chronic 
stimulant abuse and schizophrenia. Excited delirium is a condition 
that occurs when someone ingests large amounts of stimulant drugs. It 
has been reported as giving a person unusual strength and has been 
said to cause spontaneous cardiac or pulmonary arrest.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman