(CN) – An officer who Tasered an upset man who was stopped for not wearing his seatbelt won his bid for immunity on appeal because the constitutional violation of the victim’s rights “was not clearly established at the time,” the 9th Circuit ruled.
Carl Bryan, 21, was Tasered by Officer Brian McPherson of the Coronado Police Department in San Diego County after being stopped for not wearing his seatbelt. Bryan, who said he had a long day of driving and had already been pulled over once for speeding, began hitting his steering wheel and himself, and yelling at himself. McPherson ordered Bryan to get out of his car.
The parties agreed that Bryan was “agitated, standing outside his car, yelling gibberish and hitting his thighs, clad only in his boxer shorts and tennis shoes,” the ruling says.
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