Nearly one in four Manitoba Mounties will be carrying Tasers by the end of this year, as part of a plan by RCMP to increase the number of the controversial stun-guns in use in the province by around 10 per cent.
RCMP Manitoba division spent about $162,000 to buy and ship 160 newer models of the X26 Taser Model 26001 CEW, as well as holsters and data ports to download information stored in each Taser about the date, time and duration of its use, according to purchasing orders placed last winter. ... The information was in documents released to the Free Press under the federal Access to Information Act. According to the documents, RCMP officers will not be re-trained on how to use the X26 Tasers, also known as a "conducted energy weapons" (CEWs).
Winnipeg police used a stun gun on a 16-year-old during an arrest Tuesday morning.
Spokesman Const. Blair Good said officers were trying to arrest the male teenager on suspicion of dealing drugs around 5 a.m. on Aberdeen Avenue, in the city's North End neighbourhood.
He fled police, and when officers caught up with him, he began to fight them, Good said. An officer then deployed a Taser, which uses an electric shock to incapacitate a person.
<blockquote><cite>Posted By: Mr. Nobody</cite>Ya, but the question is, who dictates the situation. They can't rely on folk not having a problem before they make a decision.</blockquote>
The same people who dictate the usage of an arm bar, a baton, or a headlock.
I would rather see a cop debilitate a person from a distance using a taser than risk the cop getting closer with the potential of being stabbed or injured.
It comes down ultimately to the best judgment of the police officer who is an imperfect person just like the rest of us.
With batons, pepper spray / mace, shields and brute numbers, they have enough "tools" to subdue anyone, anywhere, anytime. Seems the cops don't want to get their hands dirty anymore (literally and figuratively).
<blockquote><cite>Posted By: Jimmytufish</cite>With batons, pepper spray / mace, shields and brute numbers, they have enough "tools" to subdue anyone, anywhere, anytime. Seems the cops don't want to get their hands dirty anymore (literally and figuratively).</blockquote>
If you were holding a taser or a baton which would you use?
It has nothing to do with "getting ones hands dirty" it comes down to ensuring the safety of the police officer. If a cop can subdue a violent individual without touching them I am sure that his wife and kids at home prefer him to go that route instead of potentially getting stabbed by a concealed weapon or dirty needle.
Sput, just responding to Zwik. Personally, i think every cop should have one, and if you can't follow his order, be prepared for a ride. Here's a tip, if you see a red light or dot aimed at you, follow orders.
I still think it is a matter of using the taser properly (minimal use in the right situations). I tend to agree with JTF, that there seems to be a general ease of use. (I'm not saying that is the case in the latest situation in Wpg, but I'm speaking more generally)
<blockquote><cite>Posted By: Mr. Nobody</cite> and if you can't follow his order, be prepared for a ride. Here's a tip, if you see a red light or dot aimed at you, follow orders.</blockquote>
I think that's the dumbest thing I've ever (virtually) heard... Especially following the previous comment by Sput...
<blockquote><cite>Posted By: Sputmeister</cite> police officer who is an imperfect person just like the rest of us.</blockquote>
<blockquote><cite>Posted By: Jimmytufish</cite>That's exactly the point that I question..."officer safety" bullshit. They do it because it's the easiest thing to do...no fuss, no muss, (usually).</blockquote>
Thats right. Much better for the cop to be involved in a physical altercation, get injured, even a minor one, have to go to hospital, spend the rest of the shift filling out forms, taking 2 cops and a car out of service, getting a couple of days off to heal, meaning more overtime for someone else, and having a guy sitting at home for 2 days earning $60,000 a year because "officer safety" was bullshit.
Perhaps we should hire different cops (bigger, tougher, & smarter) then we won't have them get injured.
If you can't stand the heat or the danger of hot stoves, stay out of the kitchen I say. We seemed to have turned the heat down to allow just about anyone on the force. You have to be in better shaper to become a firefighter, and that says it all imho.
Sorry J2, you should take a walk to the PSB or the training academy on Allard, the cops are bigger, smarter, tougher.
Freethinker, don't forget to add in the litigation costs to a police department if a perp felt excessive force was used. US studies have shown all the costs you mentioned including litigation are significantly lower since the weapon has been introduced. You are right, officer safety first.