PIPESTONE TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A southwestern Michigan man suspected of domestic violence has died after being struck by a police stun gun and arrested in a wooded area.
State police used the stun gun on Josh Tanner Wednesday as he was holding a knife to his own throat in Berrien County's Pipestone Township, according to state police.
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Officers and a police dog had tracked Tanner, 49, and found him sitting against a tree.
“After refusing to comply and to protect the suspect from injury, troopers successfully deployed a taser, which allowed them to take him into custody,” police said in the news release.
Tanner indicated he was physically unable to walk out of the wooded area on his own, and paramedics were called. He experienced a medical emergency and became unresponsive, state police said.
Officers performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation until paramedics arrived. Tanner later died at a hospital.
His death is being investigated by the state police. Autopsy results and a toxicology analysis are pending.
Troopers assisted Berrien County sheriff's deputies in tracking Tanner, of Baroda, who was accused of aggravated domestic assault and attempted arson. He also was wanted on warrants, state police said.
Pipestone Township is about 90 miles (144 kilometers) southwest of Grand Rapids.