Let’s Be Honest: A Device That Delivers a 50,000-Volt Shock Is Not a ‘Stun Gun’
According to an Associated Press article published online today, a homeless woman in Oklahoma died after being stunned with a Taser, which was used on her even after she was on the ground and in handcuffs. Go to the Guardian website to read the article.
Amnesty International (AI) has been speaking out against the abuse of Tasers by U.S. police officers for years. In 2006, AI issued a press release, available on the organization’s website, accusing U.S. police forces of over-using Tasers and pointing to the mounting number of Taser-related deaths in America (now over 200 since 2001, according to AI!) and reports much like the one above, in which officers have turned Tasers against young, elderly, already restrained or otherwise vulnerable or non-threatening individuals.
Also of interest:
- The original—and very detailed—2004 AI press release examining the abuse of Tasers by U.S. law enforcement professionals
- The Amnesty International USA “Suspend Use of TASERs” news page
- My earlier post on the subject
As I’ve said before, I think it is unconscionable that TASER International continues to manufacture these weapons, and that the various law enforcement bodies continue to allow their almost indiscriminate use, while evidence of potential problems continues to mount.
What should happen, in my opinion:
- Use of Tasers should be suspended until proper investigations and research can be carried out by independent organizations.
- Laws should be passed severely limiting the use of Tasers in cases where the individual is young, elderly, of reduced mental or physical capacity, or has already been restrained or subdued.
- There should also be limits on the maximum number of shocks law enforcement officers are allowed to administer to any one individual.
- The government and/or individual agencies should impose several penalties on law enforcement officials who transgress these boundaries, just as there are for the misuse of firearms.
I repeat: it is simply unconscionable that these suggestions have not already been implemented. Add your voice to that of Amnesty International, and help them make it happen.
[Note: An earlier draft called the company that manufactures Tasers "TASER, Inc." The correct name is "TASER International, Inc." and has been corrected in the text.]
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December 6th, 2007 at 8:33 pm
I made a earlier comment on a connected thread on this subject, which was a stand-alone statement.
Now, I can agree with you on an -occasional- abuse of using a TASER when actually it might not be called for. That is being lazy.
BUT… a TASER -is- a stun gun; a stun gun that works across a distance of up to 20′ away (if you extend your arm all the way). A stun gun is used to disable a person temporarily by delivering a nonlethal high-voltage/ low current electric shock. Depending on the model, voltages can range from 35,000 to over 900,000 volts. The higher the voltage, the quicker the muscles will succumb due to a flood of Lactic Acid, and the sooner the person will drop. 400,000 volts will drop any person in about 1 second, yet do no damage.
Getting nailed by a stun gun (or TASER) is nothing like getting electrocuted, as electrocution properties are high voltage (2,400 volts), and more importantly, high current (20 amps). It is the brisance of the amperage that kills you, tearing apart cells and pathways enmass. If you happen to get electrocuted on a high-tension line it’s even worse, as the amperage is so high that limbs can get blown off.
Now, I’m actually not wild about TASER’s as they can cause harm to the perpetrator if they hit the ground/floor/cement/pavement too hard. Conventional stun guns are better because the shooter has a chance to hold the perpetrator as they fall down.
BTW, 50,000 volts from a stun gun / TASER is a bit on the low side of voltage and they generate a tad more current… when it should be the opposite way around; but the point of it is to put a little ‘sting’ into it so the perpetrator will think long and hard about resuming to fight back.