Update: The Alligator previously reported law enforcement needs to have reason that there is a threat posing risk of bodily injury or death when using a stun gun. It has been updated to clarify this is the case for service pistols.
Update: It was confirmed Emery Gainey lost the election for Alachua County Sheriff after the recount.
On Aug. 1, 20-year-old Jamari Kinsler was riding his bicycle home from work when he was pulled over for riding without lights.
According to the officer from the arrest report, James Leber, Kinsler did not respond to the officer’s orders to pull over. Once Kinsler stopped, the officer stunned Kinsler.
Stun guns are a tool used by law enforcement usually when detaining individuals, inflicting pain onto the person being stunned to immobilize them. In Alachua County, stunning by law enforcement happens nearly on a weekly basis. Many experts said they are concerned about the health effects of stun guns and how their use by law enforcement can damage residents’ perspectives of police officers.
“It's just such an unnecessary show of force,” says Robert Rush, Kinsler’s lawyer.
Kinsler was given medical attention at the scene. Rush said medical officials were concerned because the placement of the stun gun prongs in Kinsler’s body were close to muscle and veins.
When a stun gun’s trigger is pulled — like those produced by the brand Taser — electrodes come into contact with a body and a charge comes into contact with the muscles, according to ABC news.
According to records from the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, 2024 has seen 51 stun gun deployments — an average of about once a week.
“I’m afraid that there’s a lot of other people who may be a victim of tasers that we never hear about,” Rush said. “What does that communicate to every young person? Be afraid of the police?”
David Clay Washington is a civil rights attorney based in Los Angeles. He attended UF for undergrad and the University of Pennsylvania for law school. In looking at the body cam footage and arrest report, he said the officer used excessive force during the encounter with Kinsler.
The body cam footage showed Kinsler biking for some time before stopping.
In the body cam footage, the officer points his gun at Kinsler when Kinsler stops biking. In order to fire a gun, Washington said an officer needs to have reason that there is a threat posing risk of bodily injury or death.
“There is no indicia in this police report anywhere that this kid was a serious risk of both bodily injury or death to anyone,” Washington said.
“It's just wildly excessive in my mind to pull his service pistol out and aim it at this kid,” he said.
Washington also said the officer did not give Kinsler enough time between his warning and when the officer stunned Kinsler. According to body cam footage, the officer ordered Kinsler to get on the ground, and stunned him only 3 seconds after the warning.
Chanae Jackson, organizer and director of Florida For All, an organization that advocates for democracy, says the force used on Kinsler was excessive, despite that
Kinsler did not pull over immediately when directed to by the officer.
“For law enforcement officers to continue to think that they're justified by tasing, shooting people or doing any of these things because a person runs, it’s insane,” Jackson said. “A natural response to defend ourselves often is to run.”
The death of Marcus Goodman, an inmate at the Alachua County Jail, in 2023 caused uproar amongst the community as his death was allegedly caused by a stun gun. Inmates allege that Goodman was stunned three times before he was pronounced dead, according to an article by The Alligator.
According to a statement by the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, Goodman suffered a “medical emergency,” which they say caused his death.
Registered nurse Kali Blount said his experience with patients has shown that stunning can cause devastating health impacts on the human body.
“I think tasing is no different than shooting a gun. It can alter heart rhythm,” Blount said. “It is not a benign, non-deadly weapon.”
Blount also said that many police officers have suffered “dire health effects,” as a result of being stunned for practice purposes.
Joshua Ney is a local advocate for safe streets. He co-founded the local organization Gainesville is for People, which advocates for affordable housing in Gainesville. It often partners with Gainesville Citizens for Active Transportation, which advocates for accessible streets for walking and cycling.
Ney said it’s important to prioritize public safety, but “the use of force should always be proportionate to the threat posed.” He doubted Kinsler posed enough of a threat to warrant the use of a stun gun, he said.
The unnecessary use of a stun gun undermines trust in law enforcement and can further escalate a situation, Ney said.
“Safety should always be a priority, but it must be achieved through approaches that respect individual rights and limit the use of excessive force,” he said.
The Alachua County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on Kinsler’s stunning.
Kinsler is now being charged for resisting arrest without violence. In cases where a defendant is charged with resisting arrest, it can be harder to prove in a civil suit that the force was excessive.
The case came just before Sheriff Emery Gainey ran for reelection as Alachua County’s Sheriff. The race is currently undergoing a recount as a result of a close race.
Contact Sofia Meyers at smeyers@alligator.org. Follow her on X @SofiaMeyer84496.
