No charges to be filed in Taser death

The Shawnee County District Attorney’s office won’t file charges in connection with the death of Walter Edward Haake Jr., who was stunned three times by a Taser and handcuffed by authorities after declining medical treatment.

Shawnee County District Attorney Robert Hecht issued a report Tuesday saying he found no evidence that any of those involved acted recklessly in the incident.

Haake, 59, was an employee at the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. plant in Topeka. After work on March 29, the sheriff’s office was called to try to stop Haake from driving away because he had been acting disoriented, possibly from a head injury, officials said.

But Haake refused to leave his vehicle, so officers took his keys away and then stunned him with a Taser, authorities said.

When he got out of his car, there was “a brief physical confrontation” and Haake was handcuffed, according to authorities. He then collapsed and was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The Shawnee County Coroner’s Office had earlier ruled the death accidental. Haake had a history of heart disease and diabetes, Coroner Erik Mitchell said. “Mr. Haake died while held face down on the ground and as handcuffs were applied,” Mitchell said. “The cause of death is of cardiac nature with contribution by compression of the torso.”