Tased wreck victim's family speaks out - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports

Tased wreck victim's family speaks out

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VALDOSTA, GA (WALB) -

GBI agents tell us preliminary autopsy results show a taser shock was not a factor in the death of a Valdosta man this week.

Otto Kolberg died after a Ware County deputy tased him. Kolberg was involved in a wreck.

Deputies say he was so combative with emergency workers who were trying to help him after the crash. They had no choice but to tase him, but Kolberg's family isn't so sure.

Autopsy results show this man 55 year old Otto Kolberg died as a result of an auto accident not from a taser. His brother doesn't believe that explanation.

"I don't think it was blunt force trauma," said Perry Kolberg, the victim's brother. "I think it was from the accident, him being in shock that that taser finished him up and it wasn't til then they said his heart stopped."

Investigators say Kolberg crashed his Toyota Tundra into a utility pole on Georgia Highway 38 in Ware County Wednesday.

"He got out of the truck and was walking around and answering their questions and it seemed like everything thing was going fine," said Perry Kolberg. "He refused their medical treatment and he has a right to do that."

Ware County authorities say Kolberg bit an EMT's hand and kicked her in the chest. They say he tried to bite and kick a paramedic and firefighters. Deputies say after they warned Kolberg, they used an X26 Advanced Taser to drive stun him. Family members say the use of a taser was uncalled for.

"He's not a big, strong person and there was enough people to hold him down if that's what they wanted to do," said Kolberg.

Deputies say the drive stun technique is used to bring an aggressive person under control safely. They say the drive stun does not have a significant impact on the central nervous system but rather stays in one area that's touched.

Investigators are still waiting for a complete autopsy report including toxicology results.

Kolberg's family says he worked for Archer Daniels Midland Company in their railyard and had driven to Waycross to pick up some parts.

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