The day of reckoning may finally have arrived for the maker of Tasers as a California jury awarded $6.2 million to the family of a man who died after police repeatedly shocked him with the stun guns.

Out of more than 70 wrongful death or personal injury lawsuits involving Taser shocks, the case of Robert Heston is the first in which a jury has found Taser International (Nasdaq: TASR) liable. The verdict includes $1 million in compensatory damages and $5.2 million in punitive damages for negligent marketing of the Taser M26 product.

An autopsy showed dangerously high levels of methamphetamine in Heston's blood and Taser attributed his death to “excited delirium as a result of his chronic substance abuse, heavy use of methamphetamine, and an enlarged heart caused by his long-term drug abuse.” Heston, 40, died a day after being arrested at his parents' home in Salinas, Calif.

But “excited delirium” is not recognized as a diagnosis in official medical manuals and the federal court jury accepted the theory of Heston's parents that the repeated shocks from the Taser “electronic control device” caused him to have a heart attack.

“[A]s a consequence of the prolonged deployment of Taser ECDs prior to his death, Robert C. Heston suffered acidosis to a degree which caused him to have a cardiac arrest,” the jury ruled June 6, finding Taser liable for failing to adequately warn users of the potential effect of repeated shocks.

Acidosis is a buildup of lactic acid in the blood that can be caused by the rapid contraction and relaxation of muscles resulting from electric shocks.

The jury cleared four Salinas police officers of using excessive force and found Heston 85 percent responsible for his death, but the comparative negligence finding applies only to the compensatory damages, leaving a net award of $203,150 to Heston's estate and $5.15 million to his parents.

“I think Taser's going to have to rethink its litigation strategy and its warning policies,” plaintiffs' attorney John C. Burton said.

Taser has aggressively defended its products, asserting the “excited delirium” defense and even suing coroners who have cited Tasers in autopsy reports. Only last month, a judge ordered the Summit County, Ohio, coroner to remove any reference to Tasers in her reports on three men who died after confrontations with Taser-wielding police officers.

Taser attorney Mildred K. O'Linn argued there was not a “scintilla” of evidence proving the 50,000-volt Taser M26 caused Heston's death. But the jury's ruling has shot a big hole in the “excited delirium” theory.

Heston's father called police Feb. 19, 2005, saying he was “acting strangely.” He turned blue after officers shocked him multiple times with their Tasers -– even when he was lying face-down on the floor –- and died the following day.

The plaintiffs alleged that Taser negligently marketed the M26 by not providing adequate warnings that repeated shocks can cause cardiac arrest, especially in persons who are in an agitated or excited physical state.

Taser's stock fell more than 11 percent today, with analysts attributing the decline to the Heston verdict.

By Matthew Heller
6/9/08