Why taser, if it can kill?

trooper3316

In over 97% of taser deployments, there is no injury at all. Of the remaining 2%, most injuries are from falls.

Only a fraction of 1% of taser deployments result in a later death, and almost every one of those is complicated by drug overdose. A even smaller percentage are complicated by medical conditions. Those statistics only consider deployments. They do not consider the tens of thousands of times the person complies just at the sight of a taser, making the chance of injury even more negligible.

Compare this with the alternatives: If an officer goes hands on, there is a 45% chance he will be injured, and a 55% chance the suspect will be injured. If the officer uses a baton, there is an 80% chance the suspect will need medical treatment. Use a firearm, and that rises to 100%.

No weapon is perfect, but the taser has by far the best statistics for both the officer and the suspect. The only thing safer than a taser would be to just let the suspect go. That is not practical.

The power used in a pacemaker is measured in joules. Most operate at over 100 joules. The taser has .76 joules, and has no affect on a pacemaker. I'm not aware of any cases where someone wearing a hearing aid was killed.

There is no movement in the medical community to have them banned. The only group I've seen oppose them is Amnesty International.

raviet31

Almost everyone that has been killed after a taser was deployed had significant quantities of drugs or alcohol in their system. Those that die seem to die not because of the electric shock but through physiological reactions brought on by fighting with the police, drugs in their system, and often pre-existing conditions.

The taser is a tool that helps prevent deaths and injuries, not just to the offender, but to the police as well. Using the taser helps keep the police officer out of harms way, especially if the offender is brandishing a weapon or is swinging wildly.

Henry B

What other non-lethal force would you use.The percentage of deaths is so small.If they were obeying the law in the first place there would be no need to use any force.

John S

There is no proven link between taser use and interference with any medical electronics. However, people have died in taser attacks, perhaps due to a pre-existing heart condition, etc. So, your point is valid, even if the examples aren't.

The problem is, however, that shooting to kill will definately kill. Using a taser has a very small chance of killing. Most criminals willing to try to have a physical fight with police will probably not be the faint of heart, either. It is obviously better to opt for less fatalities on statistical chance than for a lot more fatalities based on luck.

dadof7n2001

There is a small percentage of people that slip and fall in their showers at home so, based on your perspective, we should not have them in our home. People have been killed by electricity so maybe we should move back to the dark ages.
The real answer is that we should do better job of screening and evaluating the people who we give badges to. I have been tased a number of times in training. I have also used a taser in the line of work. I have not received any permanent injury or marks from the incidents nor have I inflicted permanent marks on others during the use of one.
The only way I win in my day to day activity in law enforcement is when I go home to my family every night. That is my number one priority. I can't dictate to you what should be your number 1 priority other than to suggest that you don't do anything that would cause you to have a negative relationship with your local law.
Simply put, how hard is it for you to obey the law?

gorglin

I think that both are serious as well -- whichever action is taken by the officer can be serious to the perp -- but they should not be committing the crime in the first place...so what do officers prefer to do instead

tase or shoot...

Pfo

Very few people needing a tasering have pacemakers or hearing aids.

A gun will be 100% lethal, why needlessly destroy lives if you just need to keep the peace?

GrimJack

Well, if that's the case, then anyone who has a pacemaker or a hearing aid should try extra hard to not get Tasered. In fact, since able-bodied people have a nonzero risk of dying from a Taser, then perhaps everyone should avoid getting into an altercation with police that might result in being Tasered.

lone butcher Spartan remembers

It doesn't kill. Like trooper said, the only deaths are from drug overdoses.. either because the electricity interfered with their heart rate (that is high as the freaking sky FYI.. nice poetry huh?) or because it made them still, so they couldn't move around and that harmed the heart.
If a person with a pacemaker or hearing aid does something where the taser is necessary then.. sorry to say it but that's what happens. And a taser isn't a non-lethal weapon, it's a less-than-lethal weapon. Meaning it's less likely to kill than say, a .45.
Gee yes a small percentage makes it okay, since the ones that die are overdosed anyways, it isn't like it's the cop's fault and he needs to let the guy go because he's on drugs and can't be tasered.
Which would you rather? A less-than-lethal weapon that incapacitates the bad guys and in a very few cases kills them because they're overdosed, or a gun?

samhillesq

As soon as the first person died from it they should have been banned!

captainspaldingiv

If you have a pacemaker or a hearing aid, don't resist arrest.

jamie foxx sucks gurafalo's

tasers should be oulawed, period!!! since most cops tend to get power hungry over time and some new ones let it go to their head,they tase poeple for no good reason, like kids in high school for example and women in hand cuffs!

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