Taser Watch Australia - Counting the Deaths by Less Lethal Weapons
Brocke:
Whoa, whoa, whoa! "A Taser was used on the youth three times in "stun mode" before it took effect, New South Wales Police said." What other MODE does a Taser have?! Are the Australian police using Tasers that have another MODE other than "stun"? What would that other mode be? "Excited Delirium" Mode perhaps?
This thread is for the unfortunate soul who is yet be the first Australian death by Taser. God help us...
Police use Taser on teenager
AAP
November 22, 2008 12:04pm
POLICE have used a Taser stun-gun on a teenager who allegedly assaulted an officer while resisting arrest.
A Taser was used on the youth three times in "stun mode" before it took effect, New South Wales Police said.
Police said the youth became "aggressive and violently resisted arrest" after being involved in two fights inside and outside a take-away shop on Anzac Parade, Maroubra in Sydney's east, about 7pm (AEDT) last night.
"When an officer was struck in the face, the youth was warned by a sergeant that a Taser would be deployed if he failed to comply," the statement said.
"The device was then deployed three times in drive stun mode, taking effect on the third occasion."
Before police used the Taser, several youths were involved in a fight with a 45-year-old man inside the fast food restaurant on the corner of Maroubra Road and Anzac Parade, police said. The youths then became involved in another fight on the footpath before police intervened.
Police said the group of males fled after police approached the 16-year-old and the 45-year-old who had a head injury.
The alleged assault on police occurred when officers tried to arrest the youth. The 16-year-old boy has been charged with assault, assaulting police, resisting arrest, offensive language, and affray. He has been refused bail to appear at Parramatta Children's Court today.
The 45-year-old man was treated by ambulance officers before being taken to Prince of Wales Hospital where he was admitted with facial bruising and lacerations.
The use of the controversial weapon comes after the NSW Ombudsman last week recommended a two-year moratorium on the roll-out of Taser stun-guns to all general duties police, saying operating procedures are "inadequate" and should be reviewed.
The report raised concerns about the risks posed by last month's $1 million roll-out of Tasers to senior general duties officers.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,,24001511-2862,00.html
mr anderson:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24678451-5013871,00.html
Belinda Merhab | November 20, 2008
THE NSW Ombudsman has recommended a two-year freeze on further roll-outs of Taser guns, saying police standards for their use are inadequate, and the health risks are unknown.
Bruce Barbour told state parliament yesterday that general-duties police, who were issued the stun guns last month, were using Tasers at a higher rate than special operations police, who began using them in 2002.
"It is clear the number of incidents where Tasers will be used in the future will increase significantly," Mr Barbour said.
"There is already evidence of this. Tasers have been used on people on five occasions in the first two weeks of general-duties use. This compares with only 48 incidents over a five-year period" by special unit officers.
The Ombudsman's investigation found officers from special units had predominantly used Tasers from a distance, but in the first two weeks of use by general-duties officers, in four out of the five incidents the Tasers were used in drive-stun mode, where the gun is applied directly to skin or clothing.
The use of Tasers, which stun a victim by emitting a 50,000-volt electric shock, have been linked to heart complications and death.
Queensland police last week Tasered a 16-year-old girl who had ignored police instructions to move on, because she was waiting with a sick friend for an ambulance to arrive.
In another case, a 56-year-old NSW man who had threatened police with a frying pan died 12days after receiving three Taser shocks.
According to his death certificate, the man, who had heart disease, hepatitis C and schizophrenia, died of a heart attack.
Mr Barbour was unable to say whether the Taser played a role in the man's death.
NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said he was only made aware of the man's death through the Ombudsman's report on the case.
Mr Scipione said there was a training manual for the use of Tasers, and officers had to get an 80 per cent pass rate in a written exam before they were accredited to use the weapon.
Mr Scipione said Tasers had been drawn, but not necessarily used, 70 times since last month's roll-out of the weapons. He said there had not been related injuries to police or citizens.
Every Taser use was recorded by an inbuilt camera and was then downloaded and reviewed by Deputy Police Commissioner Dave Owens, he said.
But Mr Barbour said general-duties police were inadequately trained and informed on Tasers and the associated dangers.
"They do not give adequate guidance about situations where they shouldn't be used," the Ombudsman said. "It must be remembered that Tasers are not a non-lethal weapon, they are just a less lethal weapon."
Mr Barbour recommended a two-year review into Taser use, and said the standards that deemed Tasers safe applied only to healthy people.
Brocke:
Give us Tasers or face work bans, say Victorian police
Article from: Herald Sun
July 11, 2008 12:00am
POLICE have called for a ban on issuing fines in a push for more staff and equipment, including the force-wide introduction of Tasers.
The Police Association is deciding on how and when to implement a range of workplace bans, including a refusal to issue penalty notices, after a series of meetings with officers across the state.
Key issues raised were a lack of manpower and up-to-date equipment, force command interference in the running of the union and powers bestowed upon the Office of Police Integrity.
Work bans could be enforced as soon as the end of this month.
One resolution stated: "As the current State Government and Chief Commissioner of Police have refused to take adequate steps to resolve the issue of resourcing and, as it affects community safety and members of Victoria Police, this meeting calls for the implementation of work bans."
Another read: "That this meeting demand force command supply all members with a non-lethal option of Tasers by January 1, 2009."
Police officials said their hands were being forced on the issue.
"This meeting has been forced to make the motions (regarding work bans) and does so reluctantly, but wants the Police Association to make it clear to the public that we are taking these actions in the interests of community safety and member welfare," it was stated at one of the meetings.
The 14 meetings were held as a follow-up to the vocal mass police rally at Rod Laver Arena in April.
Outgoing Police Association secretary Sen-Sgt Paul Mullett said the association executive met last Tuesday to discuss the outcome of the meetings.
The association was planning some form of action and would have a series of meetings with workplace delegates to help to determine what kind, he said.
Sen-Sgt Mullett said that concerns highlighted in a recent Herald Sun police survey -- a lack of resources being the biggest worry -- remained.
"Nothing has changed in terms of the attitude of our members," he said.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,,24001511-2862,00.html
Brocke:
Was this the first death?
Taser death was news to me: police chief
November 19, 2008 - 10:48AM
NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione says he was only made aware of the death of a person after use of a Taser when he read a report by the NSW Ombudsman.
NSW Ombudsman Bruce Barbour released a review on Wednesday raising concerns about the training of police and their use of Tasers, referring to the death of a person 12 days after being shocked with the weapon.
Mr Scipione said he read a copy of the report on Tuesday
"That incident has been identified to us only through the course of this particular review," he told reporters.
"That's why we've said we need more information."
Mr Scipione said the person involved had a history of severe medical issues and the incident happened before Tasers were distributed to general duties officers on October 1.
"I'm assuming that it happened well before we rolled out to general duties. It must have been a number of years ago," he said.
"If the police use the Taser and that person was released and dealt with and subsequently died, how or why would the police know?"
Mr Scipione said there was a training manual for Tasers and officers had to get an 80 per cent pass in a written exam before they were accredited to use the weapon.
"There are clear rules in there," he said.
In response to concerns that Tasers had been rolled out to general duties officers while the Ombudsman's report was in preparation, Mr Scipione said he had seen no good reason to delay.
"I had no idea of the timing of the report," he said.
The Ombudsman has called for a moratorium on the roll-out of Tasers to general duties officers until another independent review over the next two years has been completed.
Mr Scipione said no decision had been made on a further roll-out.
"I have always said that I would review the process after we assess and evaluate their use by mobile supervisors," he said.
General duties police had used Tasers on 70 occasions since they were issued them on October 1, Mr Scipione said.
Every Taser use was recorded by an in-built camera and was then downloaded and reviewed by Deputy Police Commissioner Dave Owens, he said.
http://news.smh.com.au/national/taser-death-was-news-to-me-police-chief-20081119-6aud.html
Brocke:
Police chief defends taser use
21/Nov/2008
By David Petale
POLICE Commissioner Karl O’Callaghan has defended the increasing use of stun guns by officers, saying they are the preferred option for taking down an offender.
Opposition police spokeswoman Margaret Quirk said there had been a four-fold increase in the use of tasers by police in the last year and has called for greater scrutiny.
“There is no question that tasers are an important tool for police to deploy in life-threatening situations,” she said.
“They should, however, be used as a last resort. Anecdotal evidence in Western Australia suggests there may be instances of inappropriate use and we need to be confident that the use of tasers does not become routine.”
Mr O’Callaghan told 6PR radio that police preferred to use tasers as the non-lethal option because they were the safest and most effective weapon in their arsenal.
“No person has been shot by an officer in WA since we issued tasers,” he said.
“If you use capsicum spray the offender is down for about 40 minutes washing the gas out of their eyes, if we use the baton we are trained to strike the elbows and knees and that could break a limb. The taser is fast and over quickly.”
Mr O’Callaghan said officers were trained to use tasers as a last resort.
“Any time the taser is used there is a recording inside the device so we know when it has been used, they then have to complete a use of force report, and we review those reports. I am happy with our policies and the policy is becoming tighter and tighter”.
However, Ms Quirk said she was concerned the use of tasers was becoming too common and called for more training in their use.
“Experience and professional judgement are important factors in the use of tasers. Less experienced police officers should be provided with adequate training and supervision,” she said.
She claimed a report by the New South Wales Ombudsman suggested tasers could cause an irregular heartbeat and threaten lives.
“The report concluded that while it was safe to use a taser on a healthy adult, doubts existed on its use on a range of other vulnerable people who police typically encounter in serious situations,” she said.
Mr O’Callaghan acknowledged the risks but said he was confident tasers were the best non-lethal option for front line police.
“There is always a risk in whatever type of force you use, but I’m happy with the level of training our officers receive and we will continue to look at their use and how we can improve it,” he said.
http://inmycommunity.com.au/news-and-views/local-news/Police-chief-defends-taser-use/7513247/
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