15-year-old tasered in Dunbar High fight

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FORT MYERS, Fla.- A Lee County mother is demanding answers, after a school resource officer used a Taser on her 15-year-old son to break up a fight.

The boy’s parents say, not only are they disturbed by the video, but also the Lee County School District’s reaction.

“When I saw the video, I got real disturbed,” said Michael Searcy, referring to the cell phone video, taken by a student at Dunbar High School.

It shows the moment his son, 15-year-old Michael Searcy was tasered by a school resource officer.
Searcy had been fighting with another student in the Dunbar High School cafeteria Monday.
The video upset his parents.

“When my child rolled over on his back, the officer go ahead and tasered him on his upper chest near his heart,” said Michael’s mother, Denise Hutchins.

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office says the officer acted correctly.

WINK News asked if officials thought 15 is too young an age to be tasered.

“I do not. Fifteen, you are on the verge of manhood,” said Sgt. Matt McDaniel.

According to Searcy’s arrest report, the officer says he tried to break the students up, and almost got punched. He says when the kids continued to fight, he tasered them.

We asked if it was okay that he was tasered twice. Sgt. McDaniel said “I think it’s correct to tase them until they are into compliance.”

Perhaps even more disturbing for the family they say, was the lack of communication they got from the school district.

Michael’s parents claim they only found out about the fight, and the tasing, through another parent.

When Michael’s mother called the school, she says they told her, “We would like to get authorization to take your child to the hospital,” said Hutchins.

But that’s all the school would say, they wouldn’t tell her that her son was in a fight, or had been tasered.

“I think Lee County School District is broken,” said Hutchins.

The school district says they will not call parents about an incident if law enforcement is involved, that’s the sheriff office’s responsibility.

But we asked why they couldn’t tell Michael’s mother over the phone what happened even after they asked to take her son to the hospital, they said that answer was “confidential.”

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