New York Attorney General Letisha James has released the video footage of a man who caught fire after being tasered by police. Jason Jones died after dousing himself in hand sanitizer and then being tasered by the Catskill Police Department in October of 2021. What is really disturbing is that after the officers see Jones is on fire, they run into another room, rather than administer aid. One officer is seen on camera peeking around a corner, watching Jones try to extinguish the fire, and does not help in any way. It's not until about 30 seconds or so later that an officer finally comes back out into the lobby to try to help the very agitated Jones. The investigation into his death is ongoing. The Attorney General's Office says it released the videos for trust and transparency,

The release of this footage follows Attorney General James’ directive that videos obtained by her office in the course of investigations conducted by the Office of Special Investigation (OSI) be released to the public in order to increase transparency and strengthen public trust in these matters.

***WARNING***
This video footage is graphic and may be disturbing to some viewers

It seems pretty reckless of police to taser him; you would think they would know better since he had flammable liquid on him. There were three officers, who could have physically subdued him and put him in handcuffs. And the fact that they ran away scared and didn't attempt to help is horrific. I hope his family gets some justice.

Original Story:

A 29-year-old New York man caught fire when police tasered him. Jason Jones had poured hand sanitizer on himself prior to the incident. Officers with the Catskill Police Department said that he had appeared intoxicated. He allegedly walked into the police department and confronted police officers. That's when police used the taser on Jones. A law enforcement source close to the case said that he took some of his clothes off and doused himself with the hand sanitizer.

If that's true, it would seem reckless of police to taser him. While Catskills officers' uniforms do not have cameras on them, there are cameras in the police station, according to a former investigator with the New York State Police.  Jones' attorney did not comment on the matter, but he did say,

We've requested preservation of all recordings and written materials and have no further comment.

The incident is being investigated by the Greene County District Attorney's Office.  Jones is in critical condition in the burn unit of a Syracuse hospital.  The reason for his pouring hand sanitizer on himself has not been revealed, but it could have been a prank or possibly a mental health issue.

While tasers are usually considered "non-lethal," they have caused deaths or serious injury.  A New York officer was stripped of his badge after a naked man was tasered and fell to his death in 2008.  A Queens man died of a heart attack after being tasered seven times by police in 2020.  A Bronx man also suffered cardiac arrest after being tasered by police.

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