An alumnus of the College died last Thursday after police used a Taser on him twice.
Philip O. Coleman (A.B.’96) was arrested for allegedly beating his 69 year old mother in her West Pullman home Wednesday, according to a Chicago Tribune article. On Thursday, Chicago police officers used the Taser on Coleman during transfer from the Calumet police station on East 111th Street to court because he became “combative,” police said.
He was then taken to Roseland Community Hospital, where police said he became “physically aggressive” to hospital staff and police officers, leading the officers to use the Taser on him a second time. Coleman was admitted to the hospital and given a sedative, which hospital president Dian Powell said is hospital protocol, the Sun-Times reported. He died Thursday evening while still in police custody.
The results of an autopsy were deemed inconclusive, and the medical examiner’s office said the cause of death is pending further investigation, according to the Tribune.
The incident is being investigated by the Independent Police Review Authority, WGN reported.
