When Tasers were brought out in 1999, they were touted as an effective alternative to more lethal weapons, such as the department-issue pistol. However, when a Taser is used on an individual who is intoxicated or high on drugs—or simply suffers from a cardiac condition—the true impact of the Taser remains a huge question mark.Until such questions are answered, critics say, Tasers should be pulled from service before more people die.
This past June a US Department of Justice (DOJ) report fond that "a significant number" of individuals have died following exposure to the Taser, and "the Justice Department concerns bolster what Amnesty International has been saying for years," says DaNa Mashad, Director of Domestic Human Rights for AIUSA. "More data is needed. When police use Tasers on vulnerable populations, the true impact is simply unknown.
"This is cause for alarm."
Meanwhile, the US Justice Department is urging tighter controls by Orange County deputy sheriffs in the State of Florida after five people died after being stunned by the devices. Two people also died after being shocked by a Taser in Orlando.
Some of the Taser incidents have left people wondering why Tasers appear to be used so readily. Many have seen, and have reacted to, the video earlier this year of a student who was Tasered several times after simply protesting at a public event.
In March, a deputy sheriff working as a resource officer at a middle school actually turned the Taser on an 11-year-old girl. Reports suggest that she had swung at him. However, the jury is still out as to just what harm an 11-year-old girl could possibly do to a burly adult deputy sheriff and the use of the Taser on a child is unthinkable given the characteristics of the weapon.
Tasers are designed to deliver electrical jolts averaging 1,200 to 5,000 volts. Such a voltage can be extremely painful and debilitating. To someone under the influence, suffering from a heart condition or someone who is just very young, the consequences can be devastating.
As it is, the Justice report recommends that Tasers should never be used on children.
Most departments who use Tasers have strict guidelines with regard to their use and Tasers have been embraced as a way to help diffuse potentially dangerous situations, and to prevent injuries on the part of law enforcement officials.
Most departments also report that the availability and use of the Taser has dramatically reduced the number of injuries on the job.
Critics counter that deputies and police officers are too quick to use them, thinking in error that a Taser would be less harmful than the bullet from a gun or other weapon. However, depending upon the health or age of the individual the Taser can be equally as devastating.
Last year, Canadians were horrified to witness the Tasering of a Polish immigrant who appeared disoriented and confused at an airport. Admittedly, he was unruly and was damaging airport equipment. He was also a large man and suffered from a language barrier. However, officers were accused of using a Taser on the man repeatedly to subdue him and he died. Critics suggest the added force was unnecessary.
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At the same time as the DOJ is urging caution, numerous police departments across the country are expanding their use of the stun gun. In fact, the number of law enforcement agencies who employ the Taser is now estimated at 11,500.
Amnesty International is calling on law enforcement officials to either suspend the use of the Taser until more is known about the inherent risks, or at the very least severely restrict their use to situations in which the only alternative is deadly force.
The debate continues. In the meantime, it is assumed that people will continue to die.
That's because for some, the Taser is as deadly as taking a bullet to the heart.
All the more work for lawyers, in wrongful death lawsuits…