Eielson security airmen use stun gun on driver, 81
The Associated Press
FAIRBANKS – Airmen from Eielson Air Force Base security forces used a Taser on an 81-year-old driver they say became belligerent after they gave him a ticket for going 11 miles over the speed limit on the Richardson Highway.
Glen M. Wilcox of Fairbanks says he was roughed up last Wednesday by four men.
An Eielson spokesman told The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner they used a minimum amount of nonlethal force.
A criminal complaint filed in court says Wilcox refused to accept the ticket and sped down the highway.
“They waved to me and I thought that meant I could go on,” Wilcox said. “They stopped me again and told me to get out of my car.”
When he was stopped, documents say he used profanity and tried to pull away from the airmen as they tried to handcuff him. Wilcox says he can’t physically put his hands behind his back.
“I showed them I could barely touch my fingertips and they insisted,” he said.
After several warnings, one of the airmen used a Taser on Wilcox to take him into custody. Wilcox said he was hurt and had to see a doctor for a bruised arm.
“It hurts like hell,” he said. “I’m laying on the ground when they Tasered me. It’s painful and very sharp.”
Wilcox pleaded not guilty to resisting arrest and failure to stop at the direction of a peace officer.
Air Force regulations authorize law enforcement officials to use Tasers to arrest people who are actively resisting arrest or noncompliant with law enforcement orders, said Staff Sgt. James Stewart, a spokesman for Eielson. Regulations do not give different directives on how to deal with older subjects.
) to report an inappropriate comment. Three moderation votes will hide a comment.
or 
) to rate comments. These ratings do not effect the status of a comment.
November 3rd, 2009 at 10:51 am
Hmmm, Buff young jack-booted military thugs tasering old men for a speeding ticket. What on earth is this country coming to.
Report this comment
November 3rd, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Lifelong – I disagree. It’s like the video of the grandma getting tasered. When will people learn? I figure, if I speed 25% of the time, and I get a ticket once every 5 years, then I should just shut my mouth, (I know I’ve been speeeding) graciously accept the ticket as a small portion of possible penalties I could have gotten, thank the officer for doing his/her job to try and keep us all safe, and drive slowly away. I think there’s no question this man was being an A&&, for which there is no excuse – particularly when you are clearly in the wrong (speeding) and dealing with someone wearing a gun. It’s $20, or $50, or whatever. Pay it and be done. The old man has no one to blame but himself.
Report this comment
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:02 pm
LifeLongAlaskan – Way to stereotype
In any case, the man was clearly in the wrong. He was being belligerent to law enforcement officers (Be it airmen security forces or police).
In Juneau, there is a serious problem with elderly and driving. In the past couple years, I’ve noticed that the elderly either drive way to slow (Sometimes 30 mph on Egan), fail to merge correctly, go way to fast, and in general, ignore the rules of the road (Then again, you see that with 16-20 year old drivers too).
Report this comment
November 3rd, 2009 at 2:17 pm
As I said ………………………… What on Earth is this country coming to?
Report this comment
November 3rd, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Wow, for once I agree with LifelongAlaskan. It sounds like these guys abused their power, not only by tasering the man but also by insisting that he put his hands behind his back after he showed them he was physically unable. Jack-booted thugs indeed! I hope they are disciplined and also forced to undergo a training session during which they’re shot with an actual taser, like *real* cops undergo before they’re given tasers.
Report this comment
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Yeah the elderly man was in the wrong… On the other hand, a taser was really not necessary. Come on now, 4 airmen vs. 1 elderly man. You do the math.
Report this comment
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:21 pm
why were air force personnel enforcing speed limits on a State Highway? Why are they authorized to give tickets to citizens? Have they gone through the Alaska police accademy or have they passed an equal test and set of training in Alaska law to be a police officer in Alaska. The older fellow may have been in the wrong and if an Alaska State trooper had stopped him and been force to taser him I would not have had a problem with it. Unless trooper Wooten
Report this comment
April 8th, 2010 at 5:28 pm
I like what you have done here. Mostly i like the part where you say you are doing this to give back and looking at all the comments it seems that this is working for you as well.
Report this comment