A Las Vegas police officer used a stun gun seven times and an unapproved neck hold on an unarmed man in a deadly foot chase at a casino over the weekend, authorities said Wednesday. The officer reported that he thought the man was trying to carjack a pickup truck before the officer used the stun gun and choking technique to subdue him early Sunday at The Venetian, Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said. Authorities say 40-year-old Toshii Brown shook off the effects of the stun gun. McMahill said the officer was heard on a body camera recording saying he used a "rear naked choke," a prominent mixed martial arts technique. it could take several weeks for a ruling on Brown's cause of death, the AP reports.
Brown grew up in Hawaii, where records show he was released from prison in January 2016 after serving a sentence for assaulting his girlfriend. In Las Vegas, he pleaded guilty in February to misdemeanor driving under the influence. Brown was a father of two children in Hawaii and lived with his mother in Las Vegas where he had a business selling shoes, hats, and clothing, according to Tynisa Braun, a cousin in Honolulu. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said there will be a public use-of-force review to air the findings of the investigation of Brown's death. (More Las Vegas stories.)