On October 29, 2021, Jason Jones walked into the Catskill Police Department. Police had previously walked him out of a nearby bar and he came to their station for unknown reasons. He was inside of a closed room in the station and may have been intoxicated as he banged on windows, made noise and took his shirt off while arguing with police inside of the station. He seems to have been detained and unable to leave the station at that time.
Police detained him. In the process, right in front of police, for unknown reasons, he poured the hand sanitizer over himself that police had provided. Police engaged him in a “scuffle” during which they tasered him. The alcohol in the hand sanitizer caused him to erupt in flames when the taser electroshocks ignited it. Instead of helping, several police officers including the taser officer ran out of the room and hid in a corner.
Jason Jones was severely burned when the taser shock ignited the hand sanitizer police had provided him ignited. He was hospitalized and died from his burns and severe damage to his lungs from chemicals and burns.
Jason Jones had been unarmed and no threat to police at any time to warrant use of a 50,000-volt electroshock device.
Jason Jones lingered in the hospital for 47 days with agonizing burns until he died from the burns caused by this taser assault.
Police did know or should have known the risk of him bursting into flames as this is a well-documented risk in taser use. Additionally, police hid when Jones erupted into flames and failed to render aid. Jones was known to police to be unarmed and it is unclear why a taser was used on him at all.
The case was investigated by the police and the Attorney General for 2 full years until on 10/13/2023, the Attorney General of New York despite obvious mishandling of the situation by police cleared the officers, stating their actions leading to the death of this unarmed man did not warrant criminal charges.
https://wnyt.com/archive/graphic-video-released-in-catskill-taser-scuffle-that-fatally-burned-man/
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