VANCOUVER, B.C. – An epidemiologist says multiple stuns with a Taser were likely the most significant factor in Robert Dziekanski’s death.
Dziekanski died at Vancouver’s airport in October 2007 after being confronted by a group of RCMP officers and jolted several times with the stun gun.
A public inquiry into his death has heard from an array of medical experts, some saying the Taser played a part and others – mainly those paid by the weapon’s manufacturer – insisting it had no impact.
The latest to testify is Vancouver-based epidemiologist Dr. Gordon Chambers, who says he believes the Taser stuns were likely the biggest factor in Dziekanski’s death.
Chambers says it appears Dziekanski died of a fatal heart arrhythmia caused by the stress of being restrained by police and several jolts from the Taser.
He says Dziekanski’s response to the stun gun – his screaming and struggling, for example – were much stronger than when he was restrained on the floor, suggesting the Taser had a much larger effect.
