Defense rests after second day of Tyler Rambo testimony

During the latest day of his trial, Tyler Rambo told the court Tuesday he was in “survival mode” when he ran from the scene of a fight on the Fourth of July 2019 where he had fired a gun.

The 20-year-old went on to tell the court that when he stopped running near the basketball courts in downtown Coeur d’Alene, he didn’t know police were chasing him until he saw their lights in his peripheral vision.

It’s the second week of Rambo’s trial for allegedly shooting at one man, Jawaun Anderson, and assaulting Anderson’s then-girlfriend, Jazmin Smith, who was also involved in the fight. Further charges stem from the confrontation with police that Rambo described Tuesday.

Rambo told Judge Cynthia Meyer and the jury that he ran from the initial fight because he was scared Anderson or some of his friends would come after him and continue to attack him.

He said he was disoriented and couldn’t see or hear clearly. Rambo completely denied seeing any police officers while he was running, or making eye contact with Officer Kyle Cannon, who testified he and Rambo made eye contact near the portable toilets in the park before Rambo ran away.

“That just simply did not happen,” Rambo said.

As he was running, Rambo said he pulled off his zip-up hoodie and noticed his 357 revolver had been cocked at some point since he fired it, but he was unsure when.

He continued to run until he reached the basketball courts, where Rambo said he felt comfortable stopping because people had dispersed enough for him to see his surroundings.

Rambo said he dropped his hoodie on the ground and then saw police lights out of the corner of his eye. He turned around to see five or six uniformed police officers, Rambo said.

Immediately, Rambo said his first instinct was to put his hands up “because I wanted to make it very clear I was not a threat.”

In body camera footage, the seven officers on scene can be heard yelling multiple commands at Rambo, including “drop the gun” and “get on the ground.”

Rambo said he heard their commands but was scared to drop the revolver that was in single action and have it misfire, potentially hitting a bystander, one of the officers or himself.

Rambo also said he was “disoriented and dazed” after the initial fight and running through the park.

While on the stand, Rambo struggled to answer the prosecution’s questions, at points appearing frustrated.

“In that moment, I barely knew what the heck I was thinking,” Rambo said.

Due to his fear of a misfire, Rambo said he lowered his left hand in a “hold on” motion while he attempted to de-cock the revolver. That’s when Rambo said he was hit with a stun gun and lost control of the hammer, causing the gun to fire.

The prosecution has argued over the last week that Rambo had control of his arms after being hit by the stun gun, citing movement in his arms shown in body camera footage, and alleging he used one arm to break his fall.

Gerry Staton, a taser expert from Austin, Texas, who was paid to testify by the defense, said Tuesday that while Rambo clearly moved his arms, it’s impossible to tell if he had control over them.

Staton has been a certified taser instructor since the late 1990s and has had “extensive training” on the weapons, even co-authoring a peer-reviewed research paper on the psychological and physical effects a subject feels while receiving a taser current.

Staton disagreed with the prosecution’s expert witness, Idaho State Police Corporal Michael Grigg, who told the court that he believed Rambo was somewhat incapacitated by the taser but could still move his arms.

An individual’s reaction to pain, along with the space between taser probes, affects their reaction to being hit, Staton said.

“This is not 100% science,” Staton said of how tasers impact the body.

Staton, like Grigg, testified to a “flinch” reaction to falling or getting hit with a stun gun that could cause a gun to go off. Grigg told the court that there was too much of a delay for this to be likely, while Staton disagreed.

Staton observed Rambo’s arms curl up when he was hit, which he said is common. He also said it’s common for an individual receiving a shock to be unable to even hear commands given to them. Staton said he has never seen a trainee who voluntarily was being tased be able to comply with commands during the exposure.

“It’s possible,” that Rambo was able to move his arms voluntarily while being shocked, Staton said, but “it’s impossible to know for sure.”

After Staton’s testimony, the defense rested its case. During rebuttals, the prosecution again played slowed-down body camera footage from the confrontation with police. Coeur d’Alene Police Detective Thomas Sudol said he observed Rambo’s left arm come down simultaneously with the shot from his gun being fired, and implied that action shows Rambo had control of his arms.

Rambo testified that when law enforcement returned fire just seconds later, he was first hit in his left forearm, which was positioned across his body .

“The first bullet that hits you is something you don’t forget,” Rambo said.

Prosecutors said that description does not appear to align with the video, but Rambo said he knew where his arm was when he got shot.

Rambo was shot more than 14 times by police that night, resulting in the amputation of both of his legs at the hip.

Attorneys are set to give their closing arguments Wednesday , when proceedings resume at 9 a.m. The jury will then deliberate.