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Screaming Florida Student Tasered At Kerry Forum

Investigation Launched Into Incident

POSTED: Tuesday, September 18, 2007
UPDATED: 8:59 am EDT September 18, 2007

An internal investigation was launched Tuesday into whether officers had a right to shock an unarmed University of Florida student who was Tasered and arrested Monday when he attempted to speak at a forum with U.S. Sen. John Kerry, Local 6 reported.

Andrew Meyer, 21, asked Kerry why he did not contest the 2004 presidential election, which he lost to President Bush, and why there had been no moves to impeach Bush.


IMAGES: Screaming Student Shocked
VIDEO: Student Shot With Taser

"He apparently asked several questions -- he went on for quite awhile -- then he was asked to stop," university spokesman Steve Orlando said. "He had used his allotted time. His microphone was cut off then he became upset."

While as many as four police officers tried to remove Meyer from the forum, he yelled for help and asked "What did I do?" Minutes after Meyer started speaking, he was Tasered.

Meyer was charged with resisting an officer and disturbing the peace, according to Alachua County jail records. No bond had been set. Meyer was scheduled to appear in court Tuesday morning, a jail official said.

Orlando said university police would conduct an internal investigation on the incident.

"The police department does have a standard procedure for when they use force, including when they use a Taser," Orlando said. "That is what the internal investigation would address -- whether the proper procedures were followed, whether the officers acted appropriately."

The event was sponsored by the UF student government speaker's bureau, according to a news release. A telephone message left at the speaker's bureau office was not immediately returned Monday evening.

It was not known if Meyer had an attorney.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.
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