Man dies after being shocked with Taser by Sonoma County sheriff’s deputy

A man died Saturday morning after being shocked with a Taser during his arrest by Sonoma County sheriff’s deputies who were responding to a domestic dispute at a west county home, police said.

The man’s name has not been released. As part of protocol for an officer-involved death, the Santa Rosa Police Department is investigating the incident, while the Marin County Coroner’s Office is conducting the autopsy.

The incident began at 8:12 am when deputies were dispatched to the Hacienda Bridge area for a domestic dispute inside a gray 3500 Dodge truck, according to a statement from the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

The caller said two people were possibly in a fight and that the truck was traveling west on River Road. A deputy was then flagged down by a local resident at the True Value Hardware of Guerneville who said he heard a woman’s voice scream “somebody help me” inside a nearby home, the Sheriff’s Office said.

The deputy responded to the residence and the couple came out, with the woman asking for help while the suspect held on to her, police said.

The deputy attempted to separate the man from the woman and a fight began, the Sheriff’s Office said. Another deputy arrived at the home, saw the altercation and then used his Taser to subdue the suspect, who continued resisting the deputies, police said.

After being placed in handcuffs, the man suffered a medical emergency, police said. The deputies began “life-saving measures” on him and called for paramedics. Emergency medical personnel arrived and pronounced the man dead outside the home, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Santa Rosa Police Lt. Dan Marincik said his department will interview both deputies in the coming days as well as review video footage on their body cams as part of the investigation. He added that there were also other witnesses to the incident.

“We’re still kind of in the initial stages with interviews,” Marincik said. He said the man and woman did know each other, but he did not know the status of their relationship.

The Sheriff’s Office said it will be doing its own administrative review to determine if the deputies followed its policies during the arrest.

You can reach Staff Writer Bill Swindell at 707-521-5223 or bill.swindell@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @BillSwindell.