Complaint filed after Montreal taser death

March 6, 2008
Irwin Block, The Montreal Gazette

The father of Quilem Registre, who died after Montreal police use a Taser gun to subdue him, has filed an excessive-force complaint with the Police Ethics Commission. The complaint, sent Tuesday by Augustin Registre, also alleges that officers were negligent and abused their powers when they tasered Quilem Registre Oct. 14. It also alleges the use of the Taser by police who were trying to arrest him caused his death four days later.

Police have said Registre was suspected of drunk driving when he was stopped. He was pronounced dead four days later at Sacré Coeur Hospital after suffering multiple heart attacks. The Black Coalition of Quebec, which supported the complaint, is part of a group that is calling for a moratorium on Taser use until an independent study can look at the medical and psychological consequences of being hit by 50,000 volts of electricity.