Woman suing East Bank, former police officer over Tasering

CHARLESTON -- An East Bank woman is suing the town and a former police officer over an incident where the officer admitted to using a Taser on the woman, who said she was pregnant at the time.

Candice White filed a lawsuit Feb. 13 in Kanawha Circuit Court against the town of East Bank and former officer Steve Smith, who was fired over the incident.

The complaint says that at the end of July 2008, Smith was on duty when he stopped at White's residence, but the call was not related to his law enforcement duties.

Smith, White and five other people were on the front porch of the residence and Smith was talking about what it felt like to be "tazed," the complaint said.

Smith was holding a Taser gun and talking about people he'd used it on and how he'd been "tazed" during his police training, the complaint says.

At some point, Smith allegedly asked the plaintiff if she would like to be "tazed," to which she allegedly replied, "Yeah, right. Go ahead."

The complaint says Smith told her he could put the weapon on a low setting and that she would hardly feel it.

He then allegedly "tazed" White twice on the thigh and she told him to stop, the complaint said.

Then she started to go into the house, but Smith followed her and "tazed" her on the lower back. White says she swatted at the Taser and ended up getting struck again on the hand.

White contends she later told Smith that she was pregnant and he assured her that being "tazed" wouldn't hurt the baby.

White is suing on grounds of constitutional tort, vicarious liability, negligence, outrageous conduct and intentional infliction. She's seeking compensatory and punitive damages.

Michael T. Clifford is representing White. Kanawha Circuit Judge James Stucky has been assigned the case.

Kanawha Circuit Court case number: 09-C-252