Serving the UMN community since 1900

The Minnesota Daily

Serving the UMN community since 1900

The Minnesota Daily

Serving the UMN community since 1900

The Minnesota Daily

Daily Email Edition

Get MN Daily NEWS delivered to your inbox Monday through Friday!

SUBSCRIBE NOW

Police punch back

A 24-year-old man was punched and Tasered by police Saturday.

A part-time University of Minnesota police officer repeatedly punched a man in the face, and his partner used a Taser twice on the man Saturday outside TCF Bank Stadium . The man had been interfering with paramedics and tried to punch one of the officers in the face, according to police. Police found the 24-year-old Eagan man âÄúbelligerentâÄù outside the student entrance and trying to prevent Hennepin County Medical Center paramedics from loading his fiancée , who was extremely intoxicated, into an ambulance, police said. Police could not confirm if the man is a current University student, said University police Deputy Chief Chuck Miner. The suspect could not be reached for comment. Despite the objections of police, the man repeatedly grabbed the gurney and attempted to pull the woman away from paramedics. The man told officers he did not want to be separated from his fiancée, according to the report. When a University police officer put his hands on the manâÄôs shoulders, the man spat in the officerâÄôs eye and punched at the officer, according to the report. The officer punched the man in the face six or seven times in response, according to the report. The man then struggled to get away as the officer tried to pull him to the ground, but a second University police officer helped restrain the man by driving her knee into his leg, according to the report. Officers grappled with the man, who continued to struggle, so the second officer drew her Taser and ordered the man to comply. The man did not present his hands to be handcuffed, so the officer deployed her Taser, according to the report. The man continued to resist arrest, so the officer used her Taser a second time. Though it is unusual, Miner said police are allowed to use hand-to-hand combat in tight situations or when drawing a weapon would be too slow a response. âÄúGenerally, we try to go up to the next level, which is using a weapon of our own, but sometimes the quickest way is to respond with the officerâÄôs hands, as well,âÄù Miner said. The man was left with a cut and swelling above his eyes and was later booked at Hennepin County Jail, records show. The man had been ejected from the stadium earlier in the day after he allegedly punched another spectator in the head, according to another police report. The man could face charges for assaulting a police officer and emergency personnel. Busted and unbuckled A University of Minnesota police officer cited a University undergraduate student for disorderly conduct after he found the student standing in a street and facing two women with his pants unbuckled and open, according to a police report. The student, who was standing in the middle of Pillsbury Drive Southeast near the Civil Engineering Building , had both hands near his groin and was holding a cell phone at the time. The two women âÄúhad a surprised look on their face[s] while they were stepping away,âÄù according to the report. The student buckled his pants when the officer engaged him, telling the officer that his pants were not open and that his buckle had a tendency to open inexplicably, according to the report. The officer arrested the suspect and another man in the area who had attempted to incite a crowd of onlookers, according to the report. The two women left the area before University police were able to question them. The student was unavailable for comment.

Leave a Comment

Accessibility Toolbar

Comments (0)

All The Minnesota Daily Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *