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| Calif. Inmate at Center of Stun Belt Debate Dies |
| By Reuters |
| Published: 09/24/2002 |
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The petty thief at the center of a nationwide debate over the use of electric stun belts on inmates died hours before he was to be released from prison, his attorney said on Friday. Ronnie Hawkins, 52, was serving a mandatory sentence of 25 years to life for petty theft -- his third felony under California's three strikes law -- when he died on Thursday of AIDS-related illness at a prison in Vacaville, California, his attorney Stephen Yagman said. Last month, a U.S. magistrate ordered Hawkins to be freed, ruling that he had served enough time for the crime he committed. The paperwork for his release was completed three hours after he died, Yagman said. 'By sentencing him to 25 years to life the (trial judge) in effect sentenced him to life,' Yagman said. 'Hawkins asked the judge to give him some mercy, but the judge didn't care.' Hawkins sued Los Angeles County for allowing sheriff's deputies to use a 50,000-volt stun belt on him during his sentencing hearing in 1998. The judge ordered a deputy to shock Hawkins after he interrupted her several times and threatened to spit at people in the courtroom. The county settled the case for $250,000 and changed its stun belt policy. The devices now are used at lower amperage and only put on defendants who are considered flight risks. |
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