Friends of a Simi Valley man who died after struggling against police officers are speaking out about the good nature and musical talent of the 35-year-old.

Meanwhile, a look into criminal history of Charles Anthony Torrence reveals an incident that could help explain why Simi Valley officers handled the man with such force on the night of July 17.

Torrence died the morning after he battled officers in front of his Parker Court home. A 911 call reporting domestic violence between Torrence and his girlfriend came in close to midnight, and, after resisting arrest, Torrence lead officers on a foot chase.

According to police reports, officers used physical restraint and deployed a Taser in an attempt to subdue Torrence. Shortly after the arrest, the man began experiencing medical problems and was taken to Simi Valley Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a few hours later.

Torrence was a computer network engineer and an active DJ in the Los Angeles area. He had two children: an 8-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy.

Eulogized online

According to his MySpace profile on the Internet, Torrence was born in Lemoore, Calif., and was raised in Oxnard for most of his life. Charles started working as a DJ in 1989 while still in high school.

Torrence co-founded Dance Progression, a group of upandcoming Southern California DJs and music producers.

On his page, Torrence said he expected 2009 to be a “great and exciting journey.”

Many of his friends and fellow DJs have shared stories and support on their MySpace pages.

“Those who knew him were blessed by knowing him and having such a unique (and) positive personality in their lives,” said Jorge Espaza. “Charles was always an upbeat person who wanted no less than for all around him to be happy in all aspects of their lives. He gave us plenty of happy memories and plenty of great music.”

Fellow DJ Darren Tate also lamented the loss.

“Charles ran the Dance Progression events in L.A. and had a massive passion for dance music; however, I’m sure those that knew Charles will best remember him for being an awesome human being, a vibrant and personable soul and a friend to all,” Tate wrote. “He was loved my many and will be sorely missed.”

Short pursuit, grave results

According to police reports, Torrence became “combative” when officers tried to detain him in front of his home after an altercation between Torrence and his girlfriend was reported.

Sgt. Adam Darough said the first officer on the scene approached Torrence, who was fighting with a neighbor in front of his home. When the officer attempted to arrest him, Torrence fled.

After a short foot pursuit, the officer caught up with Torrence, who, according to police, started to resist again. Additional officers arrived to assist and, according to reports, they attempted to restrain Torrence using “a number of tactics,” which Darough said included verbal commands and physical restraint.

One officer attempted to deploy a Taser, but police say it’s unclear whether the Taser made contact. Eventually officers were able to handcuff him.

According to the report, Torrence began experiencing medical problems soon after the arrest.

Use of a Taser

Sgt. Darough said the officers don’t know if the Taser stunned Torrence. Ventura County Chief Medical Examiner Ronald O’Halloran said he didn’t find marks on the body that would confirm the Taser made contact.

Tasers do have a hard drive within the gun that records the date and time of when the trigger is pulled, as well as how long the charge is emitted. Lt. Paul Fitzpatrick said the Tasers used by SVPD emit a charge for five seconds every time the trigger is pulled. If the trigger is held down the charge will emit until it’s released.

The Taser does not record whether the weapon makes contact, Fitzpatrick said.

Information on how many times the officer pulled the trigger or for how long the charge was emitted has not been released.

Fitzpatrick said it’s part of the investigation into the three officers who were involved in the confrontation, who were identified last week by SVPD as Officer Kathy Vigil, Officer James Wismar and Senior Officer Charles Shorts.

The officers have not been suspended during the investigation.

The Ventura County medical examiner’s office performed Torrence’s autopsy last week, but O’Halloran said his staff is still “unsure” of how he died.

O’Halloran said he is waiting for toxicology results, which can take up to four months to be released, although O’Halloran said they could come back in less than a week.

O’Halloran would not release any other details on the state of the body when it arrived at the coroner’s office.

Previous run-in with police

Torrence was convicted of a misdemeanor last year after an altercation with a girlfriend’s father.

Torrence pulled a semiautomatic handgun on a man after his daughter said her father had broken her nose, Fitzpatrick said.

The woman, then 19, and her father, were arguing in January 2008. The father agreed to take his daughter to her boyfriend Torrence’s home.

Torrence approached the car with a long wooden stick and broke a side-view mirror. When the man exited the car to inspect the damage, Torrence took a .380 handgun from his garage, although, according to Fitzpatrick, he did not point it.

When police arrived they found cocaine on Torrence. Torrence was charged with vandalism, making terrorist threats, use of a firearm and drawing a firearm, although the last charge was dismissed. He was convicted of a misdemeanor in July 2008.

Fitzpatrick said the officers that responded to the July 17 call may have had the information about Torrence’s past arrest.