10 months later: Student questions death

Nearly a year after Southern Oregon University student Nick Hanson's death, one woman still has questions.

Hanson died Jan. 22 from what an autopsy showed to be an overdose of sleeping pills. Ashland Police officers used a stun gun to subdue Hanson that night before he was taken to Rogue Valley Medical Center. He died en route.

Mandy Bans, an SOU student who knew Hanson, has been studying the case. In a forum on community policing Tuesday at SOU, Bans and others raised questions about the use of "tasers" in police work. Tasers are used to subdue suspects by either incapacitating them by jamming the sensory and nervous systems or controlling them through pain.

"I don't think it's fair to be tasing people who are having medical events," said Steve Ryan, a graduate student at SOU.

On the night of Hanson's death, he was on the phone with his adopted parents — who worried he would harm himself. Ron Hanson, Nick's father, was on the phone with him when police arrived at his home.

"We were concerned that Nick was going to take something, so we wanted to get the police in there as soon as possible," Hanson said.

Nick Hanson, a two-time all-American track and field athlete, had struggled with depression. In 2004, he attempted suicide. Hanson was born in Brazil and was adopted by Portland parents. He was later adopted by Ron and Jodi Hanson of Bend.

The day he died, Hanson bought four bottles of sleeping pills. He reportedly ingested a lethal dose of the medication before police entered his home.

"What becomes of concern is that Nick reportedly consumed three times the lethal amount of sleeping medication (Unisom) prior to the entrance of the two officers and sergeant who initially responded to the emergency," Bans said.

The student questioned discrepancies in police reports that described Hanson as "sluggish" and "slow" in some reports and "sharp" and "aggressive" in others.

"We started asking questions, and it just raised more questions," Bans said. "There's a pretty big flashing red light in it."

Despite questions by Hanson's friends, the autopsy done by Dr. James Olson, a deputy state medical examiner, said Hanson would have died immediately if the shock from the taser had been fatal.

Ron Hanson said the family is still coping with the death of its son and is not taking any legal action against the Ashland Police Department. However, Hanson and his son's friends agree that better training would help police understand better how to use tasers and who to use them on.

Hanson is not the only case where people questioned the use of tasers on people who were suicidal, mentally ill or having a medical event.

A recent high-profile case in Portland raised questions about how police deal with people who are mentally ill. James P. Chasse Jr., 42, a man with schizophrenia, died Sept. 17 in police custody. An autopsy showed Chasse died of blunt trauma to the chest.

Hassam Harris, a friend of Hanson's, said he feels like college students are targeted by police. He said he doesn't believe his friend was trying to commit suicide. He thinks there needs to be more investigation.

"It gets on my nerves because it seems like nothing's getting done," Harris said.

Ron Goodpaster, interim chief of police for the APD, was not available for comment this week. However, he is working on educating the police force about the use of tasers. At the time of Hanson's death, Mike Bianca was Ashland's chief of police.

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Staff writer Alan Panebaker can be reached at 482-3456 x 227 or apanebaker@dailytidings.com.