Discipline ESU Lieut. Whose Taser Order Caused Fatal Fall

A Brooklyn Police Lieutenant was stripped of his gun and badge Sept. 25 after his direction that a Police Officer use a Taser on a naked, mentally ill man caused the man to fall 10 feet to his death.

At about 1:50 p.m., on Sept. 24, the NYPD's Emergency Service Unit responded to a report of an emotionally disturbed person at 489 Tompkins Avenue in Brooklyn. In an effort to evade police, Iman Morales, who was holding an eight-foot-long fluorescent light tube, fled out the window of his third-floor apartment to the fire escape and ultimately onto an awning, according to the NYPD. He jabbed at an ESU Officer, who was on the second-floor fire escape, with the light tube.

Nothing to Cushion Fall

Lieut. Michael Pigott directed Police Officer Nicholas Marchesona, who was on the ground, to fire the Taser at the man, police said. Mr. Morales fell abruptly from the awning to the sidewalk, striking his head on the pavement. He was pronounced dead at King County Hospital.

Police said as the scene was unfolding, officers radioed for an inflatable bag, but it did not arrive in time. "None of the ESU officers on the scene were positioned to break his fall, nor did they devise a plan in advance to do so," said Paul J. Browne, the NYPD's chief spokesman.

Both officers were disciplined after the incident. "The order to employ the Taser under these circumstances appears to have violated guidelines, re-issued June 4, 2008, which specifically state that 'when possible, the CED [or Taser] should not be used ... in situations where the subject may fall from an elevated surface,''' said Mr. Browne in a statement. The Lieutenant was placed on modified duty, while the Police Officer was assigned to administrative duty and kept his gun and badge.

The Lieutenants Benevolent Association declined to comment.

The Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes asked the Police Department to hold off on its investigation until prosecutors could interview both officers.

On Sept. 26, Mr. Kelly named Deputy Chief James Molloy as the Commanding Officer of the ESU, replacing Deputy Inspector Robert Lukach, who had been acting commander.

The Police Commissioner also directed that all 440 ESU personnel perform refresher training focused on response to calls for emotionally disturbed persons, including equipment and tactical scenarios for inside locations and outside elevated locations. ESU officers will also review the Patrol Guide, interim orders and laws pertaining to the mentally ill.

The training took place Sept. 29 at Floyd Bennett Field.