Georgia Chief Defends TASER Use on 87-Year-Old Knife-Wielding Woman
Chatsworth Police Chief Josh Etheridge defends his officer's deployment of a TASER on an 87-year-old woman because she refused to comply with commands to put down a knife she was holding near the property of the local Boys and Girls Club.
Screen grab taken from video of Chief Josh Etheridge explaining the actions of one of his officers who deployed a TASER on an 87-year-old woman holding a knife.
Chatsworth, GA, Police Chief Josh Etheridge defends his officer's deployment of a TASER on an 87-year-old woman because she refused to comply with commands to put down a knife she was holding near the property of the local Boys and Girls Club, according to the Dalton Daily Citizen-News.
Body cameras captured the incident in which Chief Etheridge and Officer Steven Marshall confronted Martha Al-Bishara, pleading repeatedly with the woman to drop the knife.
"There was no anger, there was no malice in this," Etheridge said. "In my opinion, it was the lowest use of force we could have used to simply stop that threat at the time. And I know everyone is going to say, 'An 87-year-old woman? How big a threat can she be?' She still had a knife."
Etheridge said the body camera footage will not be released because criminal charges against Al-Bishara are pending.
Al-Bishara was charged with criminal trespass and obstruction of an officer, both misdemeanors. She was released on her own recognizance.
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