Hercules to hold town hall following police tasing young man with epilepsy
WARNING DISTURBING: Hercules police use Taser on man suffering medical emergency
Hercules body camera video, obtained by KTVU, shows Hercules police officers using a Taser on Jack Bruce, then 21, in April 2024. He had just suffered an epileptic seizure.
HERCULES, Calif. - The city of Hercules is hosting a special town hall meeting on Wednesday following a controversial case where police officers were seen on body camera video using a Taser on a young man suffering a medical, epileptic seizure.
No specifics at town hall
In communications with residents, city leaders have said they will not specifically address the case of Jack Bruce, 22, who suffered an epileptic seizure on April 1, 2024, while driving home from his grandmother's house.
Police were seen yelling at Bruce and tasing him three times when he didn't heed their commands to get out of the car, despite state medical standards and training that teaches officers to recognize the effects of a brain seizure and how to handle that situation appropriately.
The training also teaches officers that people experiencing these seizures will be in a fog for sometime after and cannot obey instructions.
KTVU and the San Francisco Chronicle first reported this story on Feb. 7, the day Bruce's attorneys filed a federal lawsuit, alleging excessive force.
What the city will be doing is holding a general community meeting on public safety at 7 p.m. in council chambers. The meeting, at this point, will not be available on Zoom but will be aired live on the city's public TV channel 28 and recorded for future viewing.
In order to comment, people will have to go in person to 111 Civic Drive to attend and make their voices heard.
Who will speak
The agenda item states that the city manager and the mayor will speak and consultant Brian Addington, and former police chief of Antioch and Pittsburg, will moderate.
The public will be allowed to comment in a Q&A session.
Councilman Alex Walker-Griffin said that the city, in general, will discuss such things as police use-of-force and how the city investigates police complaints. He said that town halls have historically not been held on Zoom, other than the pandemic.
He does know that residents are upset with what happened.
"I definitely hear you," he said. "I read and hear what people are saying. Their feelings are valid."
The fact that the meeting won't be on Zoom is bothering some residents.
"I have to question why this meeting is not on Zoom, when they do it for every other meeting," resident Sarah Creeley said on Tuesday. "And why isn't it being promoted? It doesn't feel like this is a priority. It's not characteristic of all other meetings."
WARNING DISTURBING VIDEO: Body camera video shows Hercules officers using Taser on Jack Bruce
City Manager Dante Hall did not immediately respond for comment, and neither did Mayor Dion Bailey.
Hercules police have previously said their department and the city of Hercules' policy is to refrain from commenting on pending litigation.
Bruce also filed a use-of-force complaint against the police department, which was reviewed by KTVU, before filing a federal lawsuit against the police.
That complaint - which asked for an investigation – was denied, as the Bruce family were verbally told the officers' use of their Taser fell within policy.
Hercules police Tase Jack Bruce who suffered from an epileptic seizure on April 1, 2024. Photo: Bodycamera video
Residents want controversy addressed
Creeley, a teacher, said it's also unfortunate that the city is holding a town hall meeting, but that no one in leadership will address the specific controversy at hand.
"I understand they're being sued," Creeley said. "But I disagree that residents should be forbidden to talk about it."
The city had intended to host a "Coffee With a Cop" in February, but canceled it after hundreds of people left negative comments on the Hercules Facebook page about the police officers' actions.
The idea for the town hall came from the mayor, who said publicly at the Feb. 11 council meeting that seeing what happened to Bruce was "difficult and troubling to watch."
Creeley said that when she attends the town hall on Wednesday, she will remind the city that its mission statement emphasizes that Hercules aims to treat everyone with compassion, humility and respect.
"It's important that officers follow those guidelines," she said. "We really have to look at our Taser policies and our body camera policies and look at the consequences when those policies aren't being followed."
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