Police taser third man since April

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

By Patrick Dolan

Jackson Hole, Wyo.-The corner of Broadway and Cache streets on Town Square has been a hotspot for late-night shenanigans, as of late, with the most recent incident ending in the use of a taser.

A rowdy argument that spilled to the street from the Town Square Tavern early June 19 resulted in two arrests, as well as the third use of a taser by Jackson Police, since April. 

According to Jackson Police Chief Dan Zivkovich, at around 2 a.m., Friday, Officer Trevor Aigken stopped to observe a large, noisy crowd on the boardwalk near the corner of Broadway and Cache streets.  There, 33-year-old Jackson resident Steven Irish was allegedly arguing with a group of people.

Aigken was the only officer on the scene, initially, but was able to successfully restrain Irish without force after drawing his taser, according to Zivkovich.
Once Irish was in custody, 24-year-old Andrew Frye, of Donegal, Penn., confronted Officer Aigken and refused to comply with repeated orders to stop interfering and step back.

A witness to the scene confirmed that Frye was asked several times to back away. Zivkovich said that according to reports, Frye was within two to three feet of Aigken while being asked to step back.

Agiken fired his taser at Frye, who was then taken into custody for interfering with an arrest.

According to Captain Tripp Wilson, Irish was not compliant upon booking at the jail and refused to submit to a portable breath test. Irish is charged with public intoxication.

Zivkovich said that officers carry both tasers and pepper spray, and it’s up to them which weapon they use.

“Fortunately, neither man was hurt,” Zivkovich said.

This is the third use of a taser by the Jackson Police Department to subdue an uncooperative individual since April, according to Zivkovich. He said that there was at least a dozen more times that an officer has drawn a taser, but did not use it. Zivkovich said that people generally comply when they see a taser drawn.
The Sheriff‘s Office, on June 6, held a BBQ luncheon, at which Captain Wilson took a taser charge to combat fears about that the “less-lethal” weapon. On the scene was attorney Kent Spence, who was prepared with statistics on the number of people who have died from taser charges. 

Prior to the tasering, only moments before police arrived, a reporter witnessed two men involved in an argument. One man put a cigarette out in the other’s face just below his eye.  On June 1, a Jackson man discharged a handgun in the area following an argument about a poker game. And on May 7, a man left to hold a $2,300-purse took off with the money. Reportedly, the area also sees a high number of bicycle thefts. JHW


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