Cocaine, not Taser, killed man, coroner says
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A Pittsburgh-area man who died shortly after being zapped with a police Taser died from cocaine intoxication that stopped his heart, and there is no evidence the electric shock contributed to his death, a medical examiner said.
Andre Thomas died about an hour after he was subdued by police in the Pittsburgh suburb of Swissvale just before midnight Aug. 4. Thomas’ family contends excessive police force, including the Taser, caused or contributed to the 37-year-old man’s death.
Allegheny County Medical Examiner Dr. Karl Williams announced Wednesday that he concluded Thomas “died of a direct consequence of the consumption of cocaine.” Thomas’ blood-pressure medicine could have contributed to the cocaine-fueled “acute delirium” that caused cardiac arrest, Williams said, but the medical examiner stopped short of listing it on the death certificate.
Though technically an “overdose” because the drugs caused Thomas’ death, Williams said the cocaine level in Thomas’ blood was typical of “recreational” use and was not considered a lethal dose. Williams, with the help of an 11-slide computer presentation, discussed the case at a news conference Wednesday.