Florida Cop on Paid Leave After Tasing Elderly Black Woman

by Nana Aduba-Amoah

A Tallahassee police officer has been suspended and placed on paid administrative leave after using a stun gun to tase a 61-year-old black woman for resisting arrest on Tuesday.

According to Tallahassee police, the officer, Terry Mahan, was among the few officers in the neighborhood responding to complaints about drug sales at around 5:20 p.m. Another officer detained three people when 61-year-old Viola Young attempted to approached him to inquire about an individual being detained. In a Youtube video captured by a bystander on nearby porch, Mahan can be seen walking towards Young in an attempt to grab her. When Young tried to walk away, Mahan fired a taser cartridge on her back, causing her to fall face-first onto the floor.



 A police report later released by authorities stated that Young and another man were yelling at officers and when Mahan tried to control the situation, Young refused to listen and “obstructed officers while in the course of completing their legal duties.” Mahan claimed Young was unwilling to back away when asked. He attempted to arrest the 61-year-old and tased her because she resisted.

According to MSNBC reports, Young was cleared by Leon County paramedics then charged and jailed with resisting arrest without violence. Tallahassee Police Chief, Michael DeLeo, stated that Mahan has been suspended and placed on administrative leave while authorities continue to investigate the incident.

Watch video of the incident below:

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Nana Aduba-Amoah is a graduate student at DePaul University in Chicago pursuing her M.A in Journalism. She received her B.A. in communications at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. She's a Ghanaian native who currently resides in the Chicago area. She's passionate about covering political issues and loves to write poetry on her spare time.