UCLA Taser Update

By The New York Times

Following up on the case involving a UCLA student who was shot with a Taser by campus police last week — an incident that was captured on a camera phone and uploaded to YouTube — the Los Angeles Times reported yesterday that the officer who shot the Taser had a bit of a troubled history.

The event led to widespread protests at the school, (including the one shown in this video from last weekend), and an independent investigation).

According to the L.A. Times:

The UCLA police officer videotaped last week using a Taser gun on a student also shot a homeless man at a campus study hall room three years ago and was earlier recommended for dismissal in connection with an alleged assault on fraternity row, authorities said.

UCLA police confirmed late Monday that the officer who fired the Taser gun was Terrence Duren, who has served in the university’s Police Department for 18 years.

Duren, who was named officer of the year in 2001, also has been involved in several controversial incidents on campus.

Officer Duren defended his actions to the newspaper: “I patrol this area the same way I would want someone to patrol the neighborhoods where I live,” he said. “People make allegations against cops all the time. Saying one thing and proving it are two different things.”

The earlier incidents included the choking of a student in 1990 with nightstick, which led to a lawsuit and, ultimately a 90-day suspension. In 2003, Officer Duren was involved in the shooting of a homeless man — an incident that was covered in the school’s student newspaper, The Daily Bruin. (The homeless man was later convicted of assaulting an officer.)

An independent investigation into the Taser incident last week continues, and Officer Duren told the L.A. Times yesterday: “I have nothing to hide.”

The LAist blog has been tracking the Taser incident and its aftermath closely, and it’s worth checking out for insights, images and video close to the scene.

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Flora Dering November 22, 2006 · 1:14 pm

There’s a place for drunk-with-power “officers” like Mr. Duren in Afghanistan or Iraq, but not on a college campus.

Darin See November 22, 2006 · 2:31 pm

I disagree – officers like this belong in jail. We’ve had plenty of problems in Iraq with abuses of power, and we don’t need more of them.

In addition, I think it’s important to note that Officer Duren is not the only person here who should be held responsible for the taser incident, and it’s aftermath.

Consider the fact that university and police officials contend that it is acceptible to use “painful force” to make passive resisters comply. If we accept this contention, then Officer Duren actually ACTED APPROPRIATELY by tasing Tabatabainejad. You don’t have to see the YouTube video to understand why this is unjust, even criminal policy. If we don’t accept this contention, then Duren shouldn’t be the only person to be brought to justice for abuse of power and public trust.

Duren, in yesterday’s L.A.Times article, is quoted as saying “If someone is resisting, sometimes it’s not going to look pretty taking someone into custody. If you have to use some force, it’s not going to look pretty. That’s the nature of this job.” Tabatabainejad PASSIVELY resisted, by going limp; it doesn’t take much effort to realize that going limp, and actively fighting (pushing, swinging fists etc.) are not the same kind of resistance. Tabatabainejad was, in effect, “kicked while he was down.” The reality is worse: he was tased 5 times when he was down. Three officers couldn’t carry/drag a single, handcuffed kid away?

Passive resistance is the least of what police officers are EXPECTED to deal with. “Pain compliance” should not be considered an appropriate response to passive resistance because it grants officers immunity in using it; the range of situations that officers are expected to deal with, begins, at the lowest level, with passive resistance.

Consider what the UCLA officials are asking us to accept: That not showing ID justifies being tased – that passive resistance justifies being tased – that it is acceptible to tase someone in handcuffs – that asking to see an officer’s badge justifies being threatened with being tased.

The question is not why Tabatabainejad didn’t show his ID, as the university officials and papers constantly mention. We know he didn’t, and he deserved to be removed from the library, and dealt with accordingly by the university.

The question is, should we expect this behavior from the people we entrust to carry guns and pain devices and restraints? We already expect citizenry to rebel against the laws, that’s why we have police. But what are we saying that we expect of the police, when our officials question this kid’s motives, instead of the police’s actions?

Nema November 22, 2006 · 3:45 pm

More updates concerning the taser incident and the reaction by the Iranian-American community can be found here: //www.iraniantruth.com/

Matt J. November 22, 2006 · 4:32 pm

I am a recent UCLA graduate. I studied in Powell Library many nights and was asked to show my ID countless times. Sometimes everybody was asked to show ID, sometimes ever fifth person, sometimes the check was done at random. For Mr. Tabatabainejad to cry racial profiling is likely ridiculous.

Three times I forgot my ID and was told to leave the library. The student security officer knew I was a student yet s/he made me leave as the policy demanded. I complied all three times, albeit begrudgingly.

Mr. Tabatabainejad is nothing more than an anti-establishment zealot. He openly courted the conflict with the police. On his online profile he quotes Thoreau: “Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is in prison.” Well, I’m sorry Mr. Tabatabainejad, but your anger over Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo doesn’t give you free license to disobey librarians, student security officers and (then) police.

The police officers should be subject to a complete, vigorous and fair investigation. If necessary they should be disciplined.

Likewise, Mr. Tabatabainejad should be subject to investigation and disciplinary action. Persuant to his violations of the UCLA Student Code of Conduct (ie – failure to comply), Mr. Tabatabainejad should be either suspended or expelled. He went looking for trouble and found it. How masochistically noble of him. Now he must suffer the consequences. Was it Thoreau who was willing to go to jail for his disobedience? Or was it Emerson?

I have informed UCLA that if it reaches a monetary settlement with Mr. Tabatabainejad, I will never donate a single cent to the school. Many of my fellow alumni have promised the same and I encourage others to follow suit. I hope the University realizes that every dollar given to him is ten dollars lost from people like me.

And last but not least…Beat the Trojans!

Matt J.

Intesar Elder November 22, 2006 · 4:49 pm

When I saw the video, I was horrified and disturbed. The student did not pose any danger to the officers or his fellow students. How can the officers, the UCLA police, or the University justify the use of force for not having a student ID, especially after the student stated load and clear he a medical condition. Even if they do attempt to justify the officers’ actions, they cannot justify the multiple use of the taser, particularly when the student was handcuffed. When I was a student, I always forgot my ID, and I expected to be thrown out of the library. It is really sad when the punishment a student should expect for not having an ID is taser. Where have our liberties and freedoms gone? The officers need to be punished and the UCLA Police Department needs re-trained its force on the appropriate circumstance to use tasers.

Ron Rhodes November 22, 2006 · 4:51 pm

The “Duren Incident” should end up as a training tool in police academies. It is an excellent example of how to take a relatively straightforward incident and turn it into a near riot. Mr. Tabatabainejad should have been removed from the scene quickly irrespective of whether he was screaming or passively resisting. The police officers should have been able to handle that without the taser. As a crisis response mental health professional and ex-police officer, I understand force has to be used in some cases. It is imperative the officers on the scene have good judgment and exercise minimal force. The risk of having this kind of outcome during a mental health crisis is the reason why the agency I worked for only called for police backup in about one percent of the more than 1,000 incidents we dealt with on a monthly basis.

Charles S November 22, 2006 · 4:54 pm

The incident in question started by an officer simply requesting to see a student’s ID to make sure he was allowed to be in the library at that time. We then have a student, who by buying into the the propoganda the liberal media has been spitting out, believed he was being asked for his ID because of the Patriot Act. He then ignored officers orders to stand up, showed blatant discrespect towards them by cursing at them, and according to officers he even encouraged others at the library to join his resistance (presumably this happened before the video recording started).

Now it is important to know that UCLA has a policy that after 11pm the library is for students only, and security gaurds regularly check student ID’s in order to uphold this policy. In this particular instance, it was approximately 11:30 PM and the UCLA police requested to see Mostafa Tabatabainejad’s student ID card. Mostafa Tabatabainejad decided it was not necessary to comply with the officer’s request because he felt the officer was racially profiling.

The officer’s, after repeatedly telling him to stand up with no response then used a non lethal taser on him. He then started yelling about the Patriot Act (he is of Iranian decent after all), and abuse of power.

Wether the resistance is peaceful or not is irrelevant, the word resitance is the important word. What were the officers other options?
1) Continue yelling at him to stand up… and after peacefully resisting for 8 more hours he would have had a right to be there with no ID.

2) One officer could have grabbed his upper body, while the other grabbed his lower body and they could have physically removed him from the premesis. (Most likely with him kicking the officer the whole way)

3) They could have just ignored him all together, because he was “peacefully” resisting.

None of those 3 options seem plausible to me. Wether or not the officers used “excessive” force is a matter of opinion, however the fact that force was necessary is a matter of fact.

tomdog November 22, 2006 · 4:59 pm

the LAist kicks butt – hands down

tomdog November 22, 2006 · 5:03 pm

The other shame of this story is that when it finally started percolating into the national media outlets, student statements were nowhere to be seen while the police report was essentially just reprinted, as in “the suspect urged others to join him” even though this is patently untrue if you watch the video.

Dan C. Burkhart November 22, 2006 · 5:26 pm

The UCLA late night computer policy has been the same for YEARS. You MUST have your UCLA ID to use the computers after regular hours.

This senior student was asked repeatedly for his UCLA ID and refused to show it. Then he was asked to leave. When he refused, he was told to leave. When he refused, the UCLA PD was called. Then they asked for his ID AGAIN. When the student refused, the police told him that he had to leave. When he refused, they attempted to remove him physically. When he resisted the policer officers’ attempts to remove him, he was tased to prevent his resistance from escalating to violence where the student, the officers, or others might have been injured.

At every junction, this student had the opportunity to solve this situation. It has been called “passive resistance.” What, might I ask, was he resisting – the UCLA Computer Lab ID policy? The UCLA PD’s responsibility to protect students when they are working late into the night? What grave injustice was this individual attempting to protest by repeatedly refusing a quite reasonable request? Ask yourself that before you unthinkingly lash out at police officers, whose lives often depend upon assuming that the worst WILL happen.

I believe that this individual deliberately aggravated the situation that night, with the hope that national attention would be gained from a knee-jerk, anti-cop reaction.

Dan C. Burkhart November 22, 2006 · 5:32 pm

Hey! Your article is INCORRECT. The student was NOT SHOT. They held the taser against him – there was no penetration of the skin and the effects from such use are substantially less severe than had the officers actually shot him. To say he was shot is inflammatory, and just plain wrong!!

Matt J. November 22, 2006 · 5:47 pm

Tomdog,
According to eye witness accounts of students in the library, the kid tried to rally support against the cops before the video began. That’s why you don’t see it. The filming didn’t begin until the zealot started screaming in resistance.

tiffany November 24, 2006 · 1:20 pm

actually, dan and charles, in the video, tabatabainejad said pretty loudly and clearly that he was leaving *before* he was tasered.

there were at least three cops present. and none of them thought about how to defuse and remove tabatabainejad without need for a taser.

instead one officer got his feelings hurt by a smart-mouthed college brat almost 20 years his junior and decided to zap him. there’s some smart, quality police behavior for you. in fact, there’s some smart, quality *adult* behavior for you. i’d expect better from a 40+ adult police officer with 18 years experience.

those officers could easily have blocked him from going back into the library, while nudging him out of the door. there was no need to even touch him. they just needed to keep walking towards him and invade his personal space enough so that he would back out of the library.

once he went limp, they could have held him down until enough officers arrived to help carry him out.

that he was tasered at all was just a really, REALLY bad way of handling this incident. to continue tasering him AFTER HE WAS HANDCUFFED is inexcusable.

rich turyn November 24, 2006 · 4:49 pm

Any cop who wants or needs weapons to safely expel, restrain, arrest or subdue an unarmed person is not fit to serve in that job.

Btw, the idea that police are required to be obeyed in social situations is not appropriate to a free country, but to a police state.

It is the law that has to be obeyed and cops do not represent the law when they act illegally or make illegal demands.

This does not exonerate the tresspasser for some of the responsibility for the videotaped incident, but the cop clearly also has something to answer for here. I would not want him around in any role of authority.

Andrew November 24, 2006 · 4:51 pm

I’m not sure what is more disturbing–the initial police abuse (by a guy with a history of shooting first and following procedure later) or the defenders of police brutality in the comments. I’m sure there are a raft of closet fascists who would love to see jackbooted officers kick the teeth out of anyone who dares question authority, but to give public voice to that belief is more than mildly shocking.

Max M November 28, 2006 · 12:50 pm

For real. Whatever the “facts” are about this students “resistance,” if you are defending police officers TASERING someone FIVE times while they are LYING ON THE GROUND, that is just sick. There’s no other way to say it.
Cops get out of control and a physical abuse of power is a terrible offense to humanity of the worst kind. However, a disgrace like this is bound to surface from time to time. I am much more appalled that anyone is going to speak out in defense of the officers TASERING A YOUNG STUDENT FIVE TIMES WHILE HE IS LYING ON THE GROUND. They could have handcuffed him and carried him out. The only way I can see the school saving face is to fire every officer involved in the incident, give a large cash settlement to the student who’s life was put in jeopardy, and pursue their own independent investigation and persecution of the officer that pressed the button. Let’s get real. This could have happened to anyone. No one deserves this kind of treatment.
Let’s taser everyone that may falsely accuse another of racism. I guarantee that all the sickos defending the offending officers make false accusations all the time. Let’s get real here.

Robin Huang July 7, 2007 · 2:02 am

I was a victim of Officer Duren’s aggressive behavior. I was on my bike in the bike lane going with traffic and was given the pit maneuver by his car and thrown from my bike at high speeds on campus. Their claim.. a stolen bike, but of course it was mine. I suffered a concussion and multiple laceration wounds from sliding 10 feet on the asphalt. I was immediately arrested and detained for hours before treatment. Their mistake became mine in paying for his vehicle damages. There must be many more untold stories. The department manages with a blind eye because they can get away with it.