Utah woman charged with child abuse, aggravated assault after tasering 9-year-old boy
A Utah woman has been hit with multiple felony charges after she allegedly shocked a 9-year-old boy with a Taser.
April Shurtleff, 37, was charged in Salt Lake City with child abuse, two counts of aggravated assault, both felonies, and two counts of making a threat of violence, a misdemeanor.
The charges stem from an incident on Oct. 2 where Shurtleff confronted two children, a 9-year-old and a 10-year-old, who were riding scooters in a church parking lot, according to Deseret News.
When Shurtleff drove into the church parking lot, she began pointing her phone at the two boys. The boys left the parking lot but returned a short time later, but Shurtleff was still there.
As the boys rode behind her car, Shurtleff allegedly rolled down her window and pointed the Taser at the children while shouting "I’m going to f------ tase you!”
As the boys started scooting away, Shurtleff reportedly began backing up toward them at a high-rate of speed before giving chase. At one point Shurtleff got out of her car and chased the 9-year-old on foot after the boy ditched the scooter to try and run away on foot. When she caught him she pointed the Taser at his chest and fired for about four seconds.
Shurtleff drove away from the scene while the boy was still screaming and crying, according to witnesses as well as multiple pieces of home security camera footage that picked up the boy’s cries as well as the sound of squealing tires.
Shurtleff was arrested by Riverton Police after going to the station to explain that she had not actually used the device on the boy. However, after police compared a Taser found in her car to the boy’s “visible burn marks,” Shurtleff was arrested.
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