Taser

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For the company, see Taser International.
For the debate on safety see Taser safety issues.
The M-26 Taser, the United States military version of a commercial Taser.

A Taser is an electroshock weapon that uses Electro-Muscular Disruption (EMD) technology[1] to cause neuromuscular incapacitation or NMI[2] and strong muscle contractions through the involuntary stimulation of both the sensory nerves and the motor nerves. The Taser is not dependent on pain compliance making it highly effective on subjects with high pain tolerance. For this reason it is preferred by law enforcement over traditional stun guns and other electronic control weapons.[3][4][5] Currently there are two main police models, the M26 and X26. Both come with various accessories, including a laser sight and mounted digital video camera that can record in low-light situations. Taser International is also marketing a civilian model called the C2 model.

Tasers were introduced as less-lethal weapons to be used by police to subdue fleeing, belligerent, or potentially dangerous subjects, often when what they consider to be a more lethal weapon would have otherwise been used. The use of Tasers has become controversial following instances of Taser use which have resulted in injury and death.[6][7]

Name

The Taser is named after a fictional weapon: Thomas A. Swift's Electric Rifle.[8] Taser is a registered tradename. It has prompted a backformed verb "to tase" which means "to use a Taser on", although "to taser" is also commonly used.

History

Jack Cover, a NASA researcher, began developing the Taser in 1969.[9] By 1974, Cover had completed the device, which he named for his childhood hero Tom Swift. The Taser Public Defender used gunpowder as its propellant, which led the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to classify it as a firearm in 1976.[8][10] In 1991, a Taser supplied by Tasertron to the Los Angeles Police Department failed to subdue Rodney King. Its lack of effectiveness was blamed on a faulty battery.[11]

Taser International CEO Rick Smith has testified in Taser-related lawsuit that the catalyst for the development of the device was the "shooting death of two of his high school acquaintances" by a "guy with a legally licensed gun who lost his temper."[12] In 1993, Rick Smith and his brother Tim began to investigate what they called "safer use of force option[s] for citizens and law enforcement." At their Scottsdale, Arizona facilities, the brothers worked with the "... original TASER inventor, Jack Cover" to develop a "non-firearm TASER electronic control device." [13] The 1994 AIR TASER Model 34000 had an "anti-felon identification (AFID) system" to prevent the likelihood that the device would be used by criminals; upon use, it released many small pieces of paper containing the serial number of the Taser device. The US firearms regulator, the ATF, stated that the AIR TASER was not a firearm. In 1999, Taser International developed an "ergonomically handgun shaped device called the ADVANCED TASER M-series systems" which used a "patented neuromuscular incapacitation (NMI) technology." In May 2003, Taser International released a new weapon called the TASER X26, which used "Shaped Pulse Technology."

The use of the Taser has come under scrutiny in Canada following national media coverage of the 2007 Robert Dziekański Taser incident in which a Polish immigrant died after being tased by Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Vancouver's airport. As a result several official reviews of Taser safety are underway in Canada and two police forces have put large orders of the device on hold.[14]

See also: Braidwood Inquiry

Function

Police issue X26 Taser with cartridge installed

A Taser fires two small dart-like electrodes, which stay connected to the main unit by conductive wire and propelled by small compressed nitrogen charges similar to some air gun or paintball marker propellants. The air cartridge contains a pair of electrodes and propellant for a single shot and is replaced after each use. There are a number of cartridges designated by range, with the maximum at 35 feet (10.6 meters).[15] Cartridges available to non-law enforcement consumers are limited to 15 feet (4.5 meters).[16] The electrodes are pointed to penetrate clothing and barbed to prevent removal once in place. Earlier Taser models required the electrodes' barbs to penetrate the skin, but newer versions (X26, C2) use a "shaped pulse" that increases effectiveness in the presence of barriers.[citation needed] Early models had difficulty in penetrating thick clothing, but the 'pulse' models are designed to bring down a subject wearing up to a Level III body armor vest.[citation needed]

Drive Stun

A Taser, with cartridge removed, making an electric arc between its two electrodes

Some Taser models, particularly those used by police departments, also have a "Drive Stun" capability, where the Taser is held against the target without firing the projectiles, and is intended to cause pain without incapacitating the target. Taser defines "Drive Stun" as "the process of using the EMD weapon [Taser] as a pain compliance technique. This is done by activating the EMD and placing it against an individual’s body. This can be done without an air cartridge in place or after an air cartridge has been deployed."

A Las Vegas police document says "The Drive Stun causes significant localized pain in the area touched by the Taser, but does not have a significant effect on the central nervous system. The Drive Stun does not incapacitate a subject but may assist in taking a subject into custody."[17] "Drive Stun" was used in the UCLA Taser incident and the University of Florida Taser incident. It is also known as "dry tasing", "contact tasing", or "drive tasing".

Accessories

The TASER CAM™ is a specialized device designed for the Taser X26 to record audio and video when the Taser's safety is disengaged. The CAM is integrated into a battery pack and does not interfere with the Taser's existing function.[18]

Users

Taser use in Phoenix increased from 71 in the year 2002 to 164 in the year 2003. In addition, the number of officer-involved shootings decreased by seven during this time period. In Houston, however, police shootings did not decline after the deployment of thousands of Tasers.[19]

According to the analysis of the first 900 police Taser incidents by the Houston Chronicle, no crime was being committed and no person was charged in 350 of those cases.[19] In addition, it has been reported that the Houston Police Department has "shot, wounded, and killed as many people as before the widespread use of the stun guns" and has used Tasers in situations that would not warrant lethal or violent force, such as "traffic stops, disturbance and nuisance complaints, and reports of suspicious people." In Portland, Oregon, meanwhile, police found that 25 to 30 percent of the situations in which a Taser was employed met the criteria for the use of deadly force. [20]

Although Tasers were originally proposed as alternatives to lethal force, they have entered routine use as a way to incapacitate suspects or as a "pain compliance" method at times when the use of firearms would not be justifiable. The American Civil Liberties Union alleges that, since 1999, at least 148 people have died in the United States and Canada after being shocked with Tasers by police officers.[21] Police departments counter that while Tasers were used to subdue these individuals, their in-custody deaths were un-related to their encounter, and could have likely been caused by more traditional police impact weapons (like batons).

A recent development has included marketing Tasers to the general public. A line of pink tasers are specifically being targeted to women. The Taser website states "Who says safety can't be stylish?" in reference to its "latest designer TASER C2 colors" and patterns, which include zebra stripe-style patterns and a range of colors. [22]

Legal

Canada

Tasers are considered as 'prohibited weapons' by the Firearms Act and can only be used by members of law-enforcement agencies after they are imported into the country under a special permit. The possession of restricted weapons must be licensed by the Canada Firearms Centre unless exempted by law.[23] A 2008 review of the Firearms Act found that the act classifies "the Taser Public Defender and any variant or modified version of it" instead as "prohibited firearms". Canadian police forces typically treat Tasers as "prohibited weapons", inconsistent with the restrictions on firearms.[24]

Hong Kong

Under HK Laws. Chap 238 Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance, "any portable device which is designed or adapted to stun or disable a person by means of an electric shock applied either with or without direct contact with that person" is considered as 'arms' and therefore, the importation, possession and exportation of tasers require a license by the Hong Kong Police Force.

US

Taser devices are not considered firearms by the U.S. government.[25] They can be legally carried (concealed or open) without a permit in 43 states. They are prohibited for citizen use in the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, and Wisconsin, as well as in certain cities and counties. Their use in Connecticut and Illinois is legal with restrictions. [26]

Safety concerns

Main article: Taser safety issues

Taser International claims that Tasers are safe, but critics disagree, citing the number of deaths occurring after Taser use. Amnesty International has documented over 245 deaths that occurred after the use of Tasers.[27] Amnesty International Canada and other civil liberties organizations have argued that a moratorium should be placed on Taser use until research can determine a way for them to be safely used.[25]

A number of studies have investigated the potential dangers of Taser use. They have included examination of incident records, limited human testing, and experimental studies on pigs. Although tests on police and military volunteers have shown Tasers to function appropriately on a healthy, calm individual in a relaxed and controlled environment,[25] Amnesty International asserts that they "do not take into account real life use of Tasers by law enforcement agencies, such as repeated or prolonged shocks and the use of restraints".[28]

Taser International recommends that users be tased during training.[citation needed] At least one police official has been tased to demonstrate confidence in the device's safety.[29] Police officers in at least five US states have filed lawsuits against Taser International claiming they suffered serious injuries after being shocked with the device during training classes.[30]

While their intended purpose is to circumvent the use of lethal force such as guns, the actual deployment of Tasers by police in the years since Tasers came into widespread use is claimed to have resulted in more than 180 deaths as of 2006.[31] It is still unclear whether the Taser was directly responsible for the cause of death, but several legislators in the U.S. have filed bills clamping down on them and requesting more studies on their effects.[32] Despite the growing controversy, a study funded by the U.S. Justice Department asserted that majority of people tasered from July 2005 to June 2007 suffered no injury. A study led by William Bozeman, of the Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, of nearly 1,000 persons subjected to Taser use, concluded that 99.7% of the subjects had either minor injuries, such as scrapes and bruises, or none at all; while three persons suffered injuries severe enough to need hospital admission, and two other subjects died. Their autopsy reports indicated neither death was related to the use of a Taser.[33][34]

In October and November 2007, four individuals died after being tasered in Canada, leading to calls for review of its use. The highest-profile of these cases was that of Robert Dziekański, a non-English speaking man from Poland who died in less than two minutes after being tasered by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) at the Vancouver International Airport, October 14, 2007.[35][36][37] Followed by three other post-Taser deaths, this incident led Amnesty International to demand an end to Taser use in Canada.[38]

On December 12, 2007, in response to the death of Robert Dziekański, Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day requested that the federal Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP (CPC) prepare recommendations for immediate implementation. The CPC report recommended to "immediately restrict the use of the conducted energy weapon (CEW)" by reclassifying it as an "impact weapon."[39] The commission released its report on 18 June 2008; recommendations include restricting use to experienced officers (5 years or more), providing medical attention to those who have been zapped, improving previous documentation of specific deployment of the weapon, among other things. [40][41]

In June 2008, a federal jury ordered Taser International to pay the family of Robert Heston, Jr., $6 million in punitive and compensatory damages for the 2005 death of the man who died a day after being shocked repeatedly by officers using Tasers. According to a press report, the jury "found that Arizona-based stun-gun manufacturer Taser International should have more effectively warned police that Taser shocks were potentially dangerous."[42]

"Excited delirium"

Main article: Excited delirium

Taser and its supporters in the police community regularly attribute the cause of deaths that follow Tasering to "excited delirium", a phenomenon in which agitated or disturbed individuals being apprehended by police respond in an irrational, bizarre and hyperactive manner. Critics argue that as this alleged condition only exists in relationship to being apprehended by police, its existence is dubious.[43] Grame Norton, director of the public safety project of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association argues that "Anytime you see a specific condition being referenced in only one context it raises serious question." Other critics assert that the term is used to mask police brutality. While the term "excited delirium" has been accepted by the National Association of Medical Examiners in the United States it has been rejected by the American Medical Association while the Canadian Medical Association Journal dismisses it as a "pop culture phenomenon".[43] The condition is not recognized by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

Police psychologist Mike Webster testified at a British Columbia inquiry into Taser deaths that police have been "brainwashed" by Taser International to justify "ridiculously inappropriate" use of the electronic weapon. He called "excited delirium" a "dubious disorder" used by Taser International in its training of police.[44]

Incidents

Use in schools and on children

Police officers that patrol schools, including grade schools, in several U.S. states (including Kansas, Minnesota, Kentucky, and Florida), currently carry tasers. In 2004, the parents of a 6-year old boy in Miami sued the police department for tasering their child. The police said the boy was threatening to injure his own leg with a shard of glass, and claimed that using the taser was the only option to stop the boy from injuring himself. Taser International asserts that the taser is safe for use on anyone weighing 60 pounds (27 kg) or more. Nevertheless, the boy's mother told CNN that the three officers involved might have found it easier to reason with her child. Two weeks later, a 12-year-old girl skipping school was tasered in Miami-Dade.[45]

Supporters of taser use in schools argue that merely switching on the device, and threatening to use it, can be effective in frightening violent or uncooperative students into desisting from inappropriate behaviour, if verbal reprimands have not succeeded. Critics counter that tasers may interact with preexisting medical complications such as medications, and may even contribute to someone's death as a result. Thus, critics say, they should either be prohibited altogether in schools, or classified as possibly lethal weapons and as a consequence, should be regulated very tightly. Critics also argue that using a taser on a minor, and especially a young child, is effectively cruel and abusive punishment, and therefore it should be banned on the same grounds that other, older forms of physical punishment such as canings have been banned from use in many schools. [46] [47] [48] [49] [50]

Tools of political suppression

Tasers and other electroshock weapons have been used at political protests such as those by the anti-globalization movement in the United States, France, Switzerland, Germany, Spain, and several other countries. Members of the movement, as well as world press are concerned that the technology, and other "less-lethal" weapons, are likely to become tools for suppressing legitimate protest associated with imposition of "neo-liberal economic policies".[51] Thomas Gebauer, of the German non-governmental organisation Medico International, describes "non-lethal weapons" as a symbol of "the growing repressive character of European and North American governments" willing to suppress protests against the spreading social injustice. According to Gebauer, "the aim of these weapons is to guarantee social borders, to install perennial control of movements, to restrict democracy."[51]

Torture

The United Nations Committee against Torture reported that the use of Tasers can be a form of torture, due to the acute pain they cause, and warns against the possibility of death in certain cases. [52] [53] Amnesty International has reported several alleged cases of excessive electroshock gun use, that possibly amount to torture, including the death of an individual after being struck 12 times with a Taser in Orange County, Florida.[54] They have also raised extensive concerns about the use of other electro-shock devices by American police and in American prisons, as they can be (and according to Amnesty International, sometimes are) used to inflict cruel pain on individuals. For example, Eric Hammock of Texas died in April 2005 after receiving more than 20 taser shocks by Fort Worth police officers.[55] Maurice Cunningham of South Carolina was subjected to continuous shock for 2 minutes 49 seconds, which a medical examiner said caused cardiac arrhythmia and his subsequent death. He was 29 years old and had no alcohol or drugs in his system.[56]

In response to the claims that the pain inflicted by the use of the Taser could potentially constitute torture, Tom Smith, the Chairman of the Taser Board, has stated that the U.N. was "out of touch" with the needs of modern policing.

"Pepper spray goes on for hours and hours, hitting someone with a baton breaks limbs, shooting someone with a firearm causes permanent damage, even punching and kicking - the intent of those tools is to inflict pain, ... with the Taser, the intent is not to inflict pain; it's to end the confrontation. When it's over, it's over."[57]

- Taser Chairman Tom Smith

Tasers may also not leave the telltale markings that a conventional beating might. The American Civil Liberties Union has also raised concerns about their use.[58]

See also

References

  1. ^ International Association of Chiefs of Police, Electro Muscular Disruption Technology: A Nine-Step Strategy for Effective Deployment, 2005
  2. ^ " Neuromuscular Incapacitation (NMI)", Taser International, published March 12, 2007, accessed May 19, 2007
  3. ^ "Chief's Counsel: Electronic Control Weapons: Liability Issues" By Randy Means, Attorney at Law, Thomas and Means, LLP, and Eric Edwards, Lieutenant and Legal Advisor, Phoenix Police Department, and Executive Director, Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police, The Police Chief magazine, February 2005
  4. ^ Electronic Control Weapons in Georgia: Review and Recommendations, Submitted by the Ad Hoc Committee on Electronic Control Weapons, Adopted by the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police Executive Board June 20, 2005
  5. ^ ELECTRONIC CONTROL WEAPON MODEL POLICY, Section 4.02J, Intergovernmental Risk Management Agency (IRMA), Adopted January 2006
  6. ^ eg, Mounties To Curb Taser Use After Report Robert Dziekanski died on October 14, 2007, after [Canadian] police zapped him [several times] with a stun gun. Police said they used the Taser after he began acting erratically at an airport. Dziekanski, an immigrant who spoke only Polish, had apparently become upset after waiting for 10 hours at the airport for his mother, who was supposed to pick him up. His death brought international attention and intense criticism after video of the incident was released. . . More than a dozen people have died in Canada after being hit with Tasers in the last four years, according to Amnesty International.
  7. ^ [1] Kevin Piskura, 24, was pronounced dead at 4:17 p.m. Chicago time of injuries suffered when police in Oxford, Ohio, fired the stun gun at him early Saturday morning.
  8. ^ a b Talvi, Silja J. A. (November 13, 2006). "Stunning Revelations". In These Times. Retrieved 2006-12-17. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ Langton, Jerry (December 1, 2007). "The dark lure of `pain compliance'". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2007-12-01.
  10. ^ "Jurisdiction over the Taser Public Defender (#236)" (PDF). U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. 1976-03-22. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
  11. ^ Riordan, Teresa (2003-11-17). "TECHNOLOGY; New Taser Finds Unexpected Home In Hands of Police". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-05-24. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Taser chief gives jurors demonstration of stun-gun blast in court - CourtTV.com - Trials
  13. ^ Corporate History
  14. ^ "We can learn from Taser video, B.C. premier says". CBC News. 15 November 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-15. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ TASER Cartridges (Law Enforcement & Corrections), TASER site. Retrieved December 15, 2007.
  16. ^ TASER Cartridges (Consumers), TASER site. Retrieved December 15, 2007.
  17. ^ Use of the Taser, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
  18. ^ TASER CAM
  19. ^ a b The Taser Effect: Two years after HPD armed itself with the stun guns, questions linger over how and how often the weapon is being used Jan. 14, 2007
  20. ^ How the Taser Works Dec 2007
  21. ^ "Unregulated Use of Taser Stun Guns Threatens Lives, ACLU of Northern California Study Finds". [2]. Retrieved 2007-12-22. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  22. ^ TASER - Home
  23. ^ Police investigate after Taser loaned to doughnut worker
  24. ^ MacCharles, Tonda (2008-06-28). "Taser use could put police under fire". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2008-07-16.
  25. ^ a b c "In depth: Tasers". CBC News. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
  26. ^ Taser C2, C2 Taser, Less-than-Lethal Weapons, Non-Lethal Weapons
  27. ^ County police getting Tasers May 23, 2007
  28. ^ Amnesty International's continuing concerns about Taser use (in the USA) 2006
  29. ^ Top cop tastes a Taser May 17, 2007
  30. ^ Steven DiJoseph (November 21, 2005). "Arizona Sheriff Announces Test of Alternative to Taser Stun Gun" (reprint).
  31. ^ Parker Waichman Alonso LLP, Associated Press, Jun 14, 2006. Justice Department to review TASER deaths. Retrieved December 3, 2007.
  32. ^ KHAMPHA BOUAPHANH, AP file, Houston & Texas News. Retrieved 12-03-2007.
  33. ^ The study by William Bozeman of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center
  34. ^ "Study Suggests Taser Use By US Police Is Safe", Catharine Paddock, Medical News Today, October 9, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  35. ^ Witness blames RCMP, Vancouver airport for death of Tasered man
  36. ^ CTV.ca | New details emerge in Vancouver airport death
  37. ^ Taser video shows RCMP shocked immigrant within 25 seconds of their arrival
  38. ^ AFP: Fourth Taser gun death in Canada: police
  39. ^ "RCMP watchdog releases report on Taser use". CTV News. December 12, 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-12.
  40. ^ Rookie Mounties should be barred from using Tasers: watchdog, CBC News, June 18, 2008
  41. ^ RCMP fire Tasers multiple times despite health hazards: probe, CBC News, June 11, 2008
  42. ^ "Taser held responsible in Salinas death", The (Monterey County) Herald, June 7, 2008
  43. ^ a b Humphries, Adrian (2008-05-17). "'Excited Delirium' Blamed For Deaths - 'Not About Tasers'". National Post. CanWest. Retrieved 2008-05-19. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  44. ^ Hall, Neil (2008-05-14). "Police are 'brainwashed' by Taser maker; Psychologist blames instructions". Vancouver Sun. Canwest. pp. A1. Retrieved 2008-08-30.
  45. ^ CNN, Susan Candiotti, contributor. Police review policy after Tasers used on kids November 15, 2004
  46. ^ Police Use Taser On 12-Year-Old On School Bus: Police Say Boy Threatened, Assaulted Officer June 10, 2005
  47. ^ Kansas Students Speak Out Against Tasers In Schools Apr. 6, 2006
  48. ^ Teen dies after being shot by stun gun Nov. 1, 2006
  49. ^ Tasers Implicated in Excited Delirium Deaths - NPR February 27, 2007
  50. ^ More UK Police to be equipped with TASERs 16 May 2007
  51. ^ a b Julio Godoy, IPS, Paris, 'Non-lethal Weapons' Tackle Protests Several European governments are arming their police forces with a new range of "non-lethal weapons" to put down protests against globalisation and among immigrants. Accessed December 2, 2007
  52. ^ Committee against Torture Concludes Thirty-Ninth Session, press release, United Nations Office at Geneva, November 23, 2007. Accessed 26 November 2007
  53. ^ Tasers a form of torture, says UN, The Daily Telegraph, November 24, 2007.
  54. ^ USA - Amnesty International 2003
  55. ^ "Electro-shock weapons", Supplementary Briefing to the UN Committee Against Torture, Chapter 9.1., p.38, USA Amnesty International, AI Index: AMR 51/061/2006
  56. ^ Amnesty International’s continuing concerns about taser use 2006
  57. ^ "UN 'out of touch' on torture: Taser boss". Australian Broadcasing Commisson. 2007-11-28. Retrieved 2008-06-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  58. ^ ACLU Taser search

External links

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