HOUSTON – In August, Alan Pean drove himself to St. Joseph Medical Center having a “manic episode.”
While at St. Joseph, he was shot by Taser and shot by Houston Police Officerspolice officers working as security at the hospital. They charged him with aggravated assault and reckless driving.
The last of all charges were dropped Thursday, and Alan said his real mission begins.
Speaking to our TV cameras for the first time, Pean said he is not the monster police claimed he was.
“People claiming I was combative, that was not the case at all. I wanted to use this moment to state that, I was never combative when I was tased and shot in my hospital room,” Pean said.
The Pean family now advocates for mental health, telling KPRC Alan has had two manic episodes in his lifetime.
Alan Pean said he tried to get to the hospital as soon as he felt one coming in August. He showed up at St. Joseph disoriented.
A government investigation found St. Joseph's hospital failed to have a number of systems in place to prevent the situation with a confused patient from getting out of hand.
“What kind of message is the state sending when someone who is seeking treatment is tased, shot and shackled, in his hospital room, unarmed and naked and then potentially has to go to jail for it,” Christian Pean, Alan’s brother, said.
In November, a grand jury felt the shooting was justified. The officers involved were not charged. Now, Alan is also set free, all charges against him dropped.
“The state maintained that he was assaulting police officers. However, we were able to present medical evidence that he was going through a psychotic break at the time,” attorney Kent Schaffer said.
“Today I feel a little bit of relief in that I don't have any charges pending anymore, you know, for seeking medical treatment, but there still is a lot to do,” Pean said.
Pean can still pursue legal action against the city or the hospital.
The Houston Police Department and St. Joseph Medical Center both declined to comment.
