NEW YORK, Jan. 24, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- The law firm of Ballon Stoll Bader & Nadler, P.C. announces that a class action lawsuit was filed January 21, 2005, on behalf of all persons who purchased the common stock of TASER International, Inc. ("Taser" or the "Company") (Nasdaq:TASR) during the period of time from January 7, 2005, through and including January 14, 2005 (the "Class Period"), pursuing remedies under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act"). A copy of the complaint filed in this action is available from the Court, or will be available to be viewed on Ballon Stoll's website at: http://www.ballonstoll.com.
The action is pending before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against defendants TASER International, Inc., Dr. Phillips W. Smith (Chairman), Patrick W. Smith (C.E.O. and Director), Thomas P. Smith (President and Director), and Daniel Behrendt (C.F.O.). According to the complaint, defendants violated sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act, and Rule 10b-5, by issuing a series of material misrepresentations to the market during the Class Period.
The complaint alleges that defendants made statements during the class period that were materially false and misleading throughout the period from October 18, 2004, through January 6, 2005. Namely, defendants claimed increasing demand for its products and touted those products' safety when, in fact, defendants knew that studies had raised reservations with regard to the safety of Taser's products and consequently, orders of its product had been delayed. On January 6, 2005, Taser announced it had received a formal inquiry letter from the SEC regarding Taser's claims of safety and a $1.5 million order of its products from one of the Company's distributors. As a result of this announcement, Taser's common stock fell by $4.90 per share (18%) to $22.72. Subsequently on January 7, 2005, defendants further announced that orders for the first half of 2005 would be delayed and that one of Taser's distributor's had purchased $700,000 in order to help Taser out. Thereafter, Taser's common stock fell by an addition $5.95 (30%) to $14.10 per share. Moreover, defendants disclosed on January 8, 2005, that they had granted options to acquire Taser stock to police officials in departments which were considering and then purchased Taser products in the prior year.
If you purchased or otherwise acquired the common stock of Taser between January 7, 2005, and January 14, 2005, inclusive, and sustained damages, you may, no later than 60 days after the date of publication of this notice, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. A lead plaintiff is a representative party that acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Under certain circumstances, one or more class members may together serve as "lead plaintiff." Your ability to share in any recovery is not, however, affected by the decision whether or not to serve as lead plaintiff. You may retain Ballon Stoll Bader & Nadler, P.C., or other counsel of your choice, to serve as your counsel in this action.
Ballon Stoll Bader & Nadler, P.C., has offices in New York and New Jersey. The firm's attorneys have been litigating securities and corporate matters for over forty years and are active in major litigations pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States. Please contact the Ballon Stoll website for more information about the firm. If you wish to discuss this action with us, or have any questions concerning this notice of your rights and interests with regard to the case, please contact the following attorneys:
Irving Bizar Robert S. Schwartz Ballon Stoll Bader & Nadler, P.C. 1450 Broadway, 14th Fl. New York, NY 10018 (212) 575-7900
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca.