MONTARA, Calif. — A man walking his dogs in a federal park was hit with a stun gun and arrested by a park ranger who accused him of not putting a leash on the animals and giving a false name, astonishing passers-by who say the reaction was excessive.
The ranger deployed the Taser stun gun on Gary Hesterberg on Sunday after he ignored the ranger’s orders and tried to walk away, the National Park Service said. Hesterberg was allegedly walking his dogs without leashes in violation of the rules of Rancho Corral de Tierra, which was incorporated into the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in December.
The area was privately owned before. Residents were accustomed to letting their dogs roam there, said Howard Levitt, the recreation area’s communications director.
Hesterberg allegedly refused to provide the ranger with printed identification, and she realized he had told her a false name when she called dispatchers to verify, Levitt said. While she was on the telephone, “the man failed to heed repeated orders to remain at the scene” and the ranger used her Taser, he said.
A witness, Michelle Babcock, told the San Francisco Chronicle the ranger never gave Hesterberg an explanation as to why he was being detained and then hit him with the stun gun in the back.
“He just tried to walk away,” Babcock said. “She never gave him a reason. … It didn’t make any sense.”
Calls to a telephone listing for Hesterberg were not immediately returned Tuesday.
