An 87-year-old Chatsworth woman was just out cutting dandelions near her home and outside a boys and girls club when her family says she was stunned with a Taser by the police.
Everything started when investigators said they received a 911 call from the said club reporting about the woman with a knife.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">87-year-old woman Tased by police while cutting dandelions, family says <a href="https://t.co/7j9MTMoZvL">https://t.co/7j9MTMoZvL</a> <a href="https://t.co/JGPmK1poll">pic.twitter.com/JGPmK1poll</a></p>— WSB-TV (@wsbtv) <a href="https://twitter.com/wsbtv/status/1029492863745359872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The responding police officers claimed that when they got to the scene of the incident, they asked the woman to put down the knife she was holding. They said she didn’t obey the instruction, forcing them to shock her using a Taser. Police held the woman at gunpoint before bringing her to the ground with a jolt from the electrified prongs of a stun gun.
The woman has been identified as Martha Al-Bishara, 87 years old. She was charged with criminal trespass and obstructing an officer on Friday.
The relatives of the elderly woman are claiming, however, that Al-Bishara doesn’t speak English, explaining why she wasn’t able to immediately obey the police’s orders. They also stressed that she was merely out cutting dandelions using only a kitchen knife near her home in Chatsworth, about 85 miles north of Atlanta.
Some of the reactions on social media are sympathetic to the elderly woman.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Should have been handled better. They didn't have to tase her.</p>— DORIS ANNETTE BIVINGS (@CELB2000) <a href="https://twitter.com/CELB2000/status/1029496738082512896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I wish she was my neighbor. She can have as many of my dandelions as she can carry.</p>— Debra Jean Kennedy (@debrabayken) <a href="https://twitter.com/debrabayken/status/1029496484050423808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Old lives matter</p>— Mastermind (@JuCorleone_) <a href="https://twitter.com/JuCorleone_/status/1029493868159492096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Chatsworth Police Chief Josh Etheridge, who joined the response,however, justified their action despite the woman’s age. He said: “An 87-year-old woman with a knife still has the ability to hurt an officer. There was no anger, there was no malice in this. In my opinion, it was the lowest use of force we could have used to simply stop that threat at the time.”
Etheridge said when the elderly woman didn’t do as requested, he even “demonstrated” to her what they want her to do by taking his own pocket knife and throwing it on the ground.
Al-Bishara’s relatives are unconvinced by the police’s explanations. Solomon Douhne, the woman’s great-nephew, said: “If three police officers couldn’t handle an 87-year-old woman, you might want to reconsider hanging up your badge.”
Al-Bishara’s spent about two hours at the Murray County jail before being released Friday. Her relatives said, however, that she still has trouble sleeping and is nervous about going outside. They also said she is apologetic to them over the incident, and remains very stressed over the matter.
Etheridge said the police department is conducting an internal use-of-force review into the incident.
It is not clear at this point if the family of the elderly woman will be interested in pursuing complaints on the way the police handled the matter.
Source:
Twitter: #MAGA #KeepAmericaGreat! #Georgia #ElderlyWomanTasedbyPolice #Taser #CrimeNews
OH YEAH THE BIG BRAVE OFFICERS HAD TO TASE 87 YR OLD WOMAN. WOW. SICKENING.
these cops are morons but i will say that it doesn't matter what language one speaks, if two cops approach me holding guns, DROPPING THE KNIFE I was holding would be the fist thing to come to mind. …. i don't believe the cops that they threw down one of their pocket knives to demonstrate what they wanted the woman to do. that is so hokey…
A knife to cut dandelion !? My grand-ma was 82 when 2 robbers enter her home, 1 was in bad shape after the other came to is rescue with a basesball stick and knock her out.
Have you notice the forearms on that woman ?
no. 33928 has a good point !
In defense of the Police
1. A 911 call from the Group Home/Club reports a woman with a knife on property.
2. Police arrive and find a Foreign National head scarf covered person/female with a Kitchen Knife (Al-Bishara).
3. Is at a Group home/club for Children,
4. Said person is trespassing at Group Home /Club of Children,
5. Police verify the Person has a knife at a location filled with kids,
6. Police repeatedly tell the person to drop the knife and she still does not.
7. Having exhausted non-physical efforts, Police applied the next level of arrest adherence afforded them. A level that provides both the suspect and police officers a safe level of protection from greater injury or escalation to firearm use.
8. UNLIKE the Parkland Fla. Police, the GA police acted and secured the scene.
9. Now Liberals and whiners gripe that it was secured without any kid injuries.
Well people looking at the BIG PICTURE
I'll support the police officers in this case.
Questions to the mouthy Great-Nephew Solomon Douhne.
Why is your 87 year old Great Aunt out and about in 90+ degree dangerous heat without any family accompaniment?
Especially since She Does Not Speak English?
Where are is the 60+ year old Sons or Daughters.
Where are any of her 20+ year old grand kids?
Why is she at that location cutting dandelions instead closer to home?
I guess y'all never heard of Garden scissors?
BTW: we read Kitch knife…. was it a 2" pearing knife or a 10" +meat cleaver
That's sad. What a terrible world that an old lady would have to go through that.
If this was the UK they would have shot her.