had_enough

We all heard that more and more police officers are being equipped with taser, but what we dont hear about is how many people die as the direct result of being shocked by these weapons.

http://www.plenglish.com/article.asp...7D&language=EN

John2006

I don't have a problem with them if they're used properly. They should only ever be used as an absolute last resort, but it's clear that there are some gung-ho police officers out there who will abuse them.

Did anyone see that footage of that police offercer using his CS spray on that guy in the car? Very worrying.

had_enough

I dont think its a question about using them incorrectly, but rather that people die after been shocked by them. We dont want our general police to use firearms...for fear of them killing people, but turn a blind eye when people are killed by tazers....

Does'nt quite make sense to me.

SeanUK

As yet, there are no recorded fatalities which can be directly attributed to the use of Tazer by the police. Tazer is a fantastic tool which has already saved a great deal of lives in this country. There are situation which firearms officers face which have been quelled by the use of less-lethal weapons; the only other alternative being lethal force.

I'd just like to reply to the comment about the CS and the man in the car. I too saw that video clip on the news, and I don't personally see anything wrong with it. I'm not sure if you've ever suffered the effects of CS, but I for one would much prefer to be sprayed then wrestled to the ground and possibly injured in the process. But then I for one wouldn't put up a fight against a police officer acting in the lawful execution of his or her duty.

Sean

SeanUK

Sorry just want to correct myself - that should read that there are no deaths attributed to the use of Tazer in this country. The policy for use in the USA is completely different though.

Daft Punk

I think John's problem is more to do with excessive and unecessary use of police weapons. From what I know of the police officer and the CS spray incident, it appeared to be most unecessary. Also in the USA there have been several cases of people dying as a result of being hit by a taser.

According to Amnesty international tasers have been used there against, "unruly schoolchildren, pregnant women (one of whom lost her baby afterwards) a 71-year old half-blind woman and startlingly, a 9-year-old girl who was already handcuffed." http://www.amnesty.org.uk/ni/news/080306.shtml

We need to at least weigh up the pros and cons, it may prove too easy to use a taser, and lives may be lost as a result.