Police Use Taser to Subdue Inver Grove Heights Man

An Inver Grove Heights man has been charged with domestic assault after an incident last weekend in which police say they had to use a Taser to subdue him.

Alphonso Terry Whitelaw, 26, faces a felony charge of domestic assault, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

According to the criminal complaint, Inver Grove Heights police were called to Whitelaw’s home just before 9:30 a.m. Saturday and found Whitelaw aggressively “yelling and moving at” a woman outside the home. The victim was holding a broom and trying to get away from Whitelaw, the complaint says.

An officer ordered Whitelaw twice to approach him, but Whitelaw ignored the orders, ran into the home and locked the door behind him, according to the complaint. An officer yelled through the door at Whitelaw, ordering him to unlock it and telling him he was under arrest; he refused to open it until his victim yelled at him to do so, the complaint says.

As an officer tried to arrest Whitelaw, he began running upstairs, the complaint says. The officer caught him, but Whitelaw continued to struggle; another officer stepped in to help, but Whitelaw continued to resist, according to the complaint.

Officers allegedly warned Whitelaw, but when he continued to struggle, an officer used a Taser on him, which subdued him enough to be handcuffed, the complaint says.

Upon searching Whitelaw, Officers found a large folding knife and a bag containing a “green leafy substance," the complaint said.

The victim told police that Whitelaw threatened to “[expletive] her up” after she told him she wanted nothing more to do with him, and she was so concerned about his reaction that she sneaked away to call 911.

Whitelaw, whose criminal history includes convictions for making terroristic threats and fifth-degree assault, remains in the Dakota County Jail on a $30,000 bond. An omnibus hearing in his case is scheduled for July 25 in Dakota County District Court in Hastings.