Gedanken

Sometimes when things don't make sense, you have to turn it around to see it from the other side.

A thought-experiment:

Imagine if a perpetrator has an X26 taser. He walks up to his perceived enemy (to make this clear in your mind, imagine his enemy is perhaps a police officer, or a judicial official), carefully trips him backwards onto the floor, shoots the X26 from short range so that the barbs land in the worst possible spots on the vicitm's chest and he starts to taser away repeatedly. Tasers and tasers and tasers away. Pulls up a chair, and takes all the time he needs until the job is done. The batteries will last almost 200 of the five-second cycles (more than 16 minutes).

Let's just imagine, just for a moment, that the victim dies.

No no no - I'm not claiming anything - this is just a hypothetical example. But imagine that the victim died. There might be an element of (bad) luck involved. But let's just assume the worst for this thought experiment.

And the victim didn't die from banging his head. Not from drugs. Not from drinking six beer. Not from excited delirium. Not from any pre-existing medical condition. We're not exactly sure from what. The autopsy is inconclusive; except it is fairly certain in its one firm conclusion that the victim is, in fact, no longer alive.

So the attacker was arrested and is charged with what?

Murder?

Nope - we know that it 'couldn't possibly' have been the taser. So therefore it can't be murder.

Man-slaughter?

Nope - it was 'obviously' nothing the perpetrator did - all that he did was to taser the vicitm. And we all 'know' that the taser is 'safe'. So it can't even be man-slaughter.

Assault with a Deadly Weapon?

"Deadly weapon"? Nope - that can't be right either.

Assault? And perhaps Possession of a Restricted Weapon?

Yep, those are the only ones that seem to fit.

So he is found guilty on these two charges and sent-up for perhaps 5-years at most. And out in two years with good behaviour.

So, is that the result that we're headed for?


By turning this around, I hope that you can see the illogic. Are we headed for an outcome on the taser safety issue that would allow the above 'thought experiment' to actually unfold like this?

I sure hope not!


Be careful what you wish for - you may actually get it.


Disclaimer: This post is intended to point out the illogic when the issue is flipped around. It is not intended in any way, shape, or form, to suggest committing any crime. I do not condone tasering any officials at any time.