Fourteen Year Old Girl Nearly Killed by Police with Taser to the Head

Police Chief Tasers Fourteen Year Old Girl in the Head

Tucumcari Police Chief Roger Hatcher has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation into last weeks Taser shooting of a teenage girl. Hatcher said he shot two Taser darts at Kailee Martinez, 14, Thursday while responding to a domestic dispute between the girl and her mother. One hit her in the head and the other struck her back.

Martinez said she was released from Albuquerques University of New Mexico Hospital following a two-hour surgery to remove one of the darts from her head. The surgery left her with 18 staples and six stitches. "I feel good being home," Martinez said Tuesday. "It is a lot better than being in a hospital."

Martinez mother, Stacy Akin, said she drove her daughter to police headquarters after they fought about a cell phone.

Hatcher said the girl walked away from the police station and when he talked with Akin she had a bloody lip and scratches from a fight. Hatcher said he found the girl in a city park, but when he tried to talk to her she ran into traffic without looking. Hatcher said he was unable to catch her and used the stun gun because he didnt know where she might go and he had to get her stopped.







"I was going to the park to clear my mind," Martinez said. "I go there when I get angry. It is a place where I can calm down." Martinez said she saw Hatcher drive around the park and did not want to stay there and deal with him. She said she was walking west across Monroe Street when Hatcher got out of his vehicle and told her to stop. "I remember him saying 'stop, stop' and then watching him pull it out (Taser)," Martinez said. "The next thing I remember was being in the ambulance, handcuffed."

Akin said her family has hired an attorney but declined to discuss any legal actions the family may take. Akin said they will return to Albuquerque in a week for a follow-up doctors appointment. "To be honest, none of this should have ever happened," Akin said.

City Manager Bobbye Rose said Hatcher was placed on administrative leave.

A private investigation concluded that Chief Roger Hatcher did not violate any city policies. After being on administrative leave for three weeks, Hatcher will return to work on July 29. The girl's family has filed a lawsuit against both Hatcher and the city, and that is still under litigation.

Update on Chief Roger Hatcher

The City of Tucumcari has fired Police Chief Roger Hatcher, according to a press release. Hatcher said Friday he received a letter from City Manager Bobbye Rose on Monday informing him of the decision. Hatcher was on paid administrative since Jan. 15. Hatcher would only discuss one of the reasons for termination cited in the letter, saying he felt they were all weak.

Hatcher said he has hired attorney John D’Amato of Albuquerque to fight the decision. D’Amato said he is still gathering information on the case and plans to meet with Hatcher next week. “I take exception to the city’s actions on someone who has had such an affect in the community of Tucumcari,” D’Amato said.

Tucumcari Fire Chief Mike Cherry is serving as Interim Administrator and Jason Braziel, an officer formerly assigned to schools, is serving as Interim Operations Commander until a chief of police is hired, according to the release.

Conclusion

Finally we have some city leaders with some common sense and some guts to do the nearly right thing. The right thing would be to prosecute him. It is only by the grace of God and a 2 hour surgery that the little girl is alive at all. They fought hard to save her life. This dirty cop just brushes this aside.

I read city resident's comments that he is a family man and a respected pillar in the community. I wonder why only the people that like him spoke up? I guarantee you for all those coming to his defense that 10 would give you the other side of the story, beating someone senseless, tasering babies, tripping old women. We need to wake up if we are seriously defending a dirty cop that nearly kills a little girl, over a family matter. Not only does he not have a grasp of law, he also has no understanding that a taser is a nearly lethal weapon. And, as we have seen on this very blog, it is sometimes a lethal weapon. Either way it is a weapon of last resort. It was invented as a step down from a gun.

We need to continuously clean house and remove these people that are a menace to society. There is no "mistake" when you have a gun. There is no "bad day" when you have a taser. Clearly if you nearly kill a little girl, you need to go.

My hat goes off to the city of Tucumcari's city manager Bobbye Rose.

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