Stun Gun Used on Pregnant Woman
Posted by
Richard SchulteNovember 30, 2007 4:46 PMTROTWOOD, Ohio (AP) -- The FBI is investigating whether a policeman violated a pregnant woman's civil rights when he used a stun gun to subdue her, authorities in this Dayton suburb said Thursday.
The woman had gone to the police department Nov. 18 asking police to take custody of her 1-year-old son, but tried to leave with the child after the officer started asking her questions, said Michael Etter, Trotwood public safety director. He added that the woman wore a winter coat and did not tell the officer she was pregnant.
Etter said the officer feared the boy could have been harmed had the woman been allowed to leave with him.
"I don't think any of this would have happened had she cooperated with us," Etter said. "We probably would have called her a minister, called a crisis counselor, but you've got somebody telling you, 'I'm not telling you anything, and now I'm going to leave.'"
Valreca Redden, 33, was arrested and taken to jail; Etter said charges of obstruction and resisting arrest are pending. When she arrived at the jail, it was discovered that she was pregnant, and an officer took her to Good Samaritan Hospital.
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