Taser Laws & Policies
Taser Policies May Get Supreme Court Review
The U.S. Supreme Court may change the way stun guns are used, after the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida petitioned the court on behalf of a north Florida man claiming a law enforcement officer was excessive with the device.
They will hear testimony from law enforcement administrators and industry experts putting the most positive spin possible on the design and use of this "valuable non-lethal law-enforcement tool". After all, it was introduced as an enlightened step up from the unfortunate circumstance of police having to use their guns to subdue or restrain violent and resisting parties.
Tasers - which stun a person with up to 50,000 volts - have some under harsh criticism from Amnesty International who claim more than 70 deaths in Canada and America have been linked to the weapon.
Scalia probably thinks it's just a glorified joy-buzzer. Or, more likely, the majority will rule that TASER use is not in and of itself unconstitutional, provided that law enforcement is appropriately circumspect in such usage.
According to officials from the ACLU, this is the first time the issue of stun gun abuse will be heard by the Supreme Court and could change the way officers are allowed to use these devices on the job. The court was petitioned on Tuesday and will send a response within 30 days.
In the petition the ACLU alleges the officer violated the victim's Fourth Amendment rights - the right of the people to be secure in their person and a ban against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Maria Kayanan, associate legal director for ACLU in Florida, said this case is presenting a very narrow question on the use of stun guns.
"For law enforcement agencies around the country, this has become the instrument of choice. We are hoping the court takes the case," said Kayanan. "We don't condone the use of Tasers, but this is a narrow issue of what reasonable force could be used."
The Eleventh Circuit Court ruled that the use of stun guns in all circumstances was reasonable and constitutional, said Kayanan. The federal district court held that the officer wasn't entitled to full immunity, but that opinion was reversed by the circuit court and any further appeals were denied.
Thousands of police departments across the country issue stun guns to their officers. According to Taser, the largest international supplier of stun guns, there are 13,400 law enforcement and military agencies across the country which use the devices.
If police want tasers then they should have to justify using it the same as if it was a gun and only in situations where it would be acceptable to use a gun. Not against unarmed, handcuffed members of the public. Not as punishment or to make someone co operate. Only when there is a clear and present danger to life should it be acceptable to give someone a very painful, potentially lethal electric shock.
look at how this co. has ingratiated itself with law enforcement across the country. And where does the funding for these weapons originate? Homeland Security!
According to Connie Baron, spokesperson for the City of Cape Coral, local officers use two stun gun models, the M26 and the X26. Both are interchangeable and deploy small cartridges up to 35 feet.
Stun gun technology depends on a phenomenon called neuromuscular incapacitation (NMI) which temporarily shuts down the neurological and muscular controls of the body. The brief NMI allows an officer to subdue and take a suspect into custody.
"These Tasers have about 50,000 volts, although voltage is not the main contributor to the NMI," said Baron. "In fact, it is the amps delivered, not the voltage, which causes NMI."
The incident at the core of the ACLU's petition involved Florida resident Jesse Buckley who was arrested on March 17 for refusing to sign a traffic citation. Deputy Jonathan Rackard processed Buckley, placed him in handcuffs and sat him on the ground near the trunk of his car.
Deputy Rackard attempted to have Buckley - weeping emotionally on the ground - accompany him to his patrol car asking multiple times "Mr. Buckley stand up." When he didn't comply the officer warned Buckley that he would use his stun gun - a Taser.
Moments after Buckley replied "I don't care anymore," Rackard used the 50,000 volt Taser three times on his skin. The entire incident was captured on Rackard's dashboard camera mounted in his patrol car and was later uploaded onto You Tube by Buckley's attorney James Cook.
Stun guns are perceived as a non-lethal alternative for officers, yet a 2009 study by two cardiologists at the University of California at San Francisco found the number of in-custody deaths increased six-fold after a number of police departments began using stun guns. Researchers sent out surveys to police departments across California asking the rates of in-custody sudden deaths in the absence of lethal force.
Regarding the number of American citizen related deaths since 2000, I refer readers to Lawanddisorder.org for the statistics...close to 400 dead by these non-lethal devices.
