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Tom Crann
St. Paul, Minn.

Training law enforcement to use tasers

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A Fridley, Minn., man died this week after Minnesota State Troopers used a taser on him.

Troopers were responding to a traffic accident Tuesday afternoon in New Brighton, Minn., when they encountered Mark Backlund. The troopers described him as an "uncooperative driver."

After the troopers shot him with a taser, 29 year old Backlund was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating the case, and Autopsy results are expected within the next couple of days.

Virtually unheard of a decade ago, about 7,200 different law enforcement agencies now use taser-like devices in the U.S.

Human rights groups have complained about the use of tasers, claiming the devices are linked to over 100 deaths since 2001.