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Mediator to Hear Missouri Case Over Stun Gun, Traffic Stop

Scott Davidson via Flickr

Mediation is the next step for a federal lawsuit that alleges a former Missouri police officer nearly killed a teenager with a stun gun during a 2014 traffic stop.

Bryce Masters' lawsuit was filed against the city of Independence, its former police chief and the former officer who fired the stun gun, Timothy Runnels. Online court records show a mediator will hear the case Aug. 9.

Witnesses testified that Masters went into cardiac arrest when Runnels shot him with a stun gun after Masters refused to get out of his car. Masters was 17 at the time.

Video from Runnel's patrol car shows Runnels using the stun gun and, after Masters goes limp, handcuffing and dragging him to the curb. Runnels is serving a four-year prison sentence for violating Masters' civil rights.

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