Public Media from Michigan State University

Prosecutors Want Jury To Hear About Trooper's Use Of Taser

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Prosecutors want jurors to hear about a state trooper's use of force when he faces trial in the Taser-related death of a Detroit teen.

A judge will hear arguments on June 22 in the case of Mark Bessner. Prosecutors list four other incidents involving a Taser, sometimes when the targets were handcuffed.

State police tried to suspend Bessner for 10 days after a 2016 incident, but an arbitrator rejected the punishment. Tasers are intended to stun and immobilize people.

Bessner is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 15-year-old Damon Grimes last summer. The teen was shot with a Taser while driving an ATV. He crashed and died. Bessner quit the state police.

Forrest Harvey III says Bessner shot him with a Taser, weeks before the fatal crash, while he was riding an ATV.

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