After police use stun gun, man dies

LANCASTER, N.Y. (WIVB) - Police confirm a man died after an officer used a stun gun on him at a house in Lancaster.

It was meant to do just that -- stun the man, and get him to settle down. But instead, he went into cardiac arrest and died.

It started as a domestic disturbance. Lancaster Police were called to a home in the town early Tuesday morning, where, according to a press release, they "were confronted by a 6'4", 275 pound, 28-year-old male out of control and assaulting another adult male."

Officers used their Tasers on the man, but it wasn't enough to restrain him. As he was being put onto an ambulance gurney to be taken to the hospital for a mental evaluation, the man suddenly went into cardiac arrest. He was pronounced dead at St. Joseph's Hospital in Cheektowaga just before seven o'clock Tuesday morning.

The irony is that Tasers are supposed to be used to subdue a suspect without causing him any physical harm.

Erie County Sheriff Timothy Howard said, "We know that our officers routinely face individuals that sometimes require us to use deadly physical force and it's just the opportunity, the possibility of using something that's less than deadly physical force."

Tonawanda Police Officer Patrick Day said, "It's a split second decision usually. We'd like to use that Taser to try and save that person's life rather than have to shoot them."

According to his family, the victim is 27-year-old Nicholas Koscielniak. A relative tells News 4 Koscielniak was at his uncle's house Tuesday morning, and got into a confrontation with the uncle's roommate. The relative didn't know anything more about what happened, and didn't want to be interviewed on camera.

The Lancaster Police Detective Bureau is investigating the incident. The family member we spoke with Tuesday said Koscielniak was less than two weeks away from celebrating his 28th birthday. He is survived by his 2-year-old son and fiancée.