Advantages And Disadvantages Of Tasers

The media has made this topic a very controversial topic. If there is a story of someone getting tased anywhere in the United States for anything, including having a weapon in their hand pointed at a law enforcement officer, it will be on the Ten o'clock news top story. The media makes citizens question law enforcement actions because they only show the part of the story that has the greatest shock factor. The reporters play the part of the video that makes the point they do not show the complete video and explain what happened. Another issue that is on the rise is citizens believing that some suspects that die after being tased is the result of the Taser. This is another problem the media has created by telling the initial story and flashing Taser death all over the screen and don't do a follow up story explaining the other reason why the person died that was tased. There is usually a medical condition involved with the death. If the public does not receive the whole story how can they make an informed decision if Tasers are a safe and viable option to deadly force.

Kinetic energy and electric weapons are less-lethal weapons that are used by law enforcement officers today. Kinetic energy is used by specially developed firearm rounds that are designed to incapacitate a suspect non-lethally. The specially developed firearm rounds include rubber, wax, plastic, and beanbag tipped projectiles. For example, if law enforcement officers encounter a heavy set suspect with a knife that is unwilling to comply, they can fire at the suspect with a beanbag shotgun to knock the wind of the suspect in an effort to detain him/her. Electric weapons include stun guns and stun batons which use electricity to immobilize their targets (Grant, 2008). For instance, if a suspect that poses a threat is not following orders given to them by law enforcement officers then the stung gun can be used which ultimately stiffens their muscles rendering them unable to move. Therefore, kinetic energy and electric weapons are less-lethal weapons that are used by law enforcement officers today.

When used in self-defense, pepper spray causes an attacker to experience temporary blindness due to swelling and burning pain in the eyes (Melnick 2). When inhaled, pepper spray causes an attacker’s airways to become restricted making breathing difficult (Melnick 2). Stun guns, which typically are the size of a small handgun, are devices that expel electrical impulses instead of bullets. Voltages of stun guns can reach upwards of 30,000 volts. Since a stun gun must make contact with an attacker, it would likely only be used in close quarters situations to subdue an attacker. Importantly, use of pepper spray or stun guns would likely result in a person being subdued or scared away, but would not result in death. Use of these non-lethal alternatives to handguns would thus result in fewer accidental deaths of friends, family members, neighbors or children caused by handguns.

There is much controversy regarding police work and the use of deadly force, as there are great deals of individuals who feel that officers need to be limited and that this would have a positive effect on the rate of divisive police killings. Police authority to use both psychological and physical force in situations where criminals need to be apprehended is perfectly normal. Furthermore, officers have the right to use deadly force in conditions when individuals targeted pose a direct threat to people around them.

Taser International, Inc. v. Ward, Court of Appeals of Arizona, Division 1, May 13, 2010

It also illustrates that the use of Taser and other CEDs can reduce the statistical rate of injury to suspects and officers who might be involved in physical conflict based on an analysis of 12 agencies and more than 24,000 use-of-force cases demonstrates that the odds of suspect injury decreased by almost 60% when a CED are utilized due to a 2011 report provided by the National Institute of Justice. Nonetheless, a 2011 study shows that CED use has risen about 70% as the use of baton has decreased by 25% in 2008.

Thinking back to what happened to Amadou Diallo or even Rodney King, how easily could the situation have been handled differently if a Taser gun or pepper spray was used in both incidents? To begin with, If Rodney King was acting unruly, the police could have used the Taser gun instead of four different officers beating him with four different batons then place Rodney in handcuffs since handcuffs are good with “subduing uncooperative and dangerous criminals” (). Along with Rodney King, if Amadou was the suspect the police were looking for and the wallet that they assumed was a weapon, how could they of handled this episode differently? Of course the police could have revealed their weapon to exhibit authority, but if the verbal commands were not being followed by Amadou then action by the police could have taken place.

It is safer for the officer to use a taser against a combative suspect rather than using hand to hand combat. Using hand to hand combat puts the officer and suspect at greater risk for potential injury. Researchers conducted an analysis of 12 of the largest agencies on the east coast. The analysis confirms that in those 12 agencies using a taser was safer than using hand to hand combat (Bulman,2010). Tasers are safe when used on a healthy person. Although they are safe to use on health person the officer has to follow the guidelines of the manufacture to ensure the safety of the people. If the person is on stimulant drug while being tased it increases their chance of injury. Those stimulant drugs include methamphetamine, crack, cocaine, ecstasy, and caffeine. Not all officers are trained to tell what kind of drug a suspect is on just by the way they act. Officers are careful when dealing with suspects who are on drugs but only are able to do so much before they have to use force to ensure their

Moreover, to limit officer’s discretion on unjustly use of deadly force, law enforcement agencies need to adopt new practices and techniques when dealing with the public if deadly use of force is not required. Officers should adopt new practices of using the taser as a means of force. “Tasers [are] developed to subdue suspects with non-lethal means” (DeLone, Thompson, 2009, p.416). Many law enforcement officers praise the use of tasers as a tool to “increase the safety of both officer and citizen by decreasing the use of deadly force” (DeLone, Thompson,2009, p.418). Individuals who are not complying/showing aggression with officers and or have some sort of weapon can be easily subdued and controlled with the taser rather than being shot at

There has only been 26 deaths(because of tasers) from 2003 to the present in Canada. That number compared to the thousands of times that tasers have been used, means a very low death ratio. As well as the possibility of someone dying with a healthy heart from being tasered is also very low. Tasers were not made to deliberately kill someone, but to do the literal opposite.

Ever wondered if use of Tasers should be banned for all police officers in Canada? The Government of Canada must not ban the use of tasers of all police officers in Canada because tasers saves lives, tasers are less lethal weapons, and for the safety of the police officers. Tasers saves lives as instead of shooting someone, they can be tased and still live. Tasers are also less lethal than a gun, reducing the risk of dying. Also, police officers feel much safer by having them knowing they can safely take someone down rather than shooting them.

This use of force matrix utilizes a graded approach whereas an officer will use only the force necessary to exercise and arrest. Law enforcement officers may use that amount of force necessary to effect the lawful purpose intended, provided that no reasonably effective alternative to the use of force appears to exist at the time the force is used. The privilege to use force is not limited to the amount of force necessary to protect themselves or others, but extends to that amount reasonably necessary to enable officers to effect the arrest or otherwise neutralize the resistance of a subject. If a suspect refuses to be arrested the officer will have to utilize a higher level of force dependent upon the suspects actions. For example, if a suspect is resisting arrest, the officer may use a taser or other force methods to arrest the individual. An officer cannot simple resort to higher levels of force without proper justification. Officers must utilize only the force which is necessary and justified. There are times when an armed suspect may prompt an officer to use the highest level of force, deadly force, if he feels him or another person’s life is in jeopardy. The result of not going utilizing his weapon on this use of force scenario could mean death to the officer or the public.

Use of fire arms as the choice weapon by police officers have been around since the late 1800s. Police departments started issuing firearms to police officers in a response to better-armed criminal populations, (Bulman, 2010). Recent studies have shown that less lethal weapons decrease the rate of police officers and suspect injuries. Because evidence supports less lethal weapons for police officer, many law enforcement agencies have agencies are stressing the use of less-lethal weapons. In the early 19th century, the less than lethal weapon of choice was the wooden club, (Bulman, 2010). Less than lethal weapons have evolved to technology such as conductive energy devices (CEDs), commonly known as the Taser.

Once contact is made and both electrodes are in contact with the body, the Taser sends out an electric current that disrupts the targets ability to control the neuromuscular system. The end result hoped for is the incapacitation of the individual being targeted with the Taser. Someone targeted with the Taser will feel an over stimulation of their sensory and motor nerves which will cause strong involuntary muscle contractions. The Taser has several strengths and weaknesses that should be noted. Taser is a great tool in situations involving a subject’s failure to comply with legal orders and also in situations involving physical resistance from an individual. The Taser can be extremely effective in stopping a combative individual who may mean to cause a police officer harm. This device also is used commonly in situations that in the past required the use of a firearm which could cause unnecessary deaths. The drawbacks that I have found from using the Taser is that it sometimes does not work properly to lack of proper contact on the target individual. Another complication with the use of Tasers would be the recent discovery of Taser’s involvement in deaths. It is unknown at this point exactly

The first major delimitation is that fact that excessive force by police officers is a relevant issue at present time. Furthermore, the questions administered in the survey where constructed for yes or no responses. This produced valid data from professionals within the field of study. Moreover, the research did not cross over into other areas of nonlethal training. The study was strictly about training efforts within the department and its record of