Heart Expert On Taser Case

Heart expert Dr. Charles Swerdlowfor has told a public inquiry into Robert Dziekanski's death that he doesn't think the stun gun contributed to the man's death.  Dziekanski died in October 2007 after four RCMP officers confronted him at Vancouver's airport and stunned him several times with a Taser.  The expert, a heart specialist who sits on Taser International's medical advisory board, says he doesn't believe the death is at all related to the Taser.  MetroNewsca Vancouver reports:

Swerdlow says if electric current causes an irregular heartbeat, such as ventricular fibrillation, it would happen immediately.  He notes that an airport security guard testified he checked Dziekanski's pulse three times before firefighters arrived, and he had a pulse each time. An autopsy concluded Dziekanski died of sudden death following restraint.