The longtime companion of a Thetford man who died after a shot from a state police stun gun says she’s not surprised by the autopsy that shows the electric charge killed him.
State police late Friday said the cause of Macadam Mason’s death was cardiac arrest due to an electrical weapon discharge.
Mason, who was 39, lived with Theresa Davidonis at her home in Thetford. Davidonis says the autopsy confirms what she witnessed in June.
"I knew that day. I watched him die," she says. "I mean, I watched the barbs fly; I watched them hit his chest. I watched his eyes roll back in his head. And I watched the most graceful fall I’ve ever seen in my life."
Four police officers came to her house after Mason had called a New Hampshire hospital threatening to harm himself or others. Davidonis says Mason was suffering the after-effects of an epileptic seizure. She says Mason was often disoriented and distraught for a day or two after an epileptic episode.
Davidonis’ neighbor is Thetford Democrat Jim Masland. He plans to introduce legislation to require additional training for police on stun gun use.
But Masland says he does not support a complete moratorium on the weapons.
"On the other hand, until training is in place, and the right policy is in place, utmost caution is absolutely important," he says.
Police have said Mason was shot after he made a threatening move toward them.
Davidonis, who has filed a lawsuit against the state police, says Mason had his hands in the air in a surrender gesture.
State police have called Mason’s death a homicide. But they said in a statement that homicide is a medical classification, not a legal one.
The case is the subject of a criminal investigation by the Orange County state’s attorney and the attorney general’s office.