Pittsburgh Council Approves $155K Taser Settlement

The Pittsburgh City Council has approved paying $155,000 to a man who said he was wrongly Tasered for criticizing a city officer after getting a ticket for not using his turn signal.

Fifty-three-year-old Daniel Hackett III, of Mount Lebanon, sued claiming he yelled at the officer on March 15, 2008 during the city’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration.

Hackett yelled after he saw someone run a red light and another man urinating in public, complaining that police should ticket people like that instead.

Hackett says he was Tasered and handcuffed, only to have police later drop resisting arrest and disorderly conduct charges.

Council also approved paying $15,000 settlement to a woman who claimed an officer “offensively touched” her while removing her from a dance club in January 2009.