Smoking Gun Number Three

CPC has released a report with a wealth of information.

Please continue reading this post before wandering off to review the report.


One thing caught my eye:

Table 15: CEW Deployment Characteristics...
2002-2007 (%)
X26 Model 26000 24.3%
M26 Model 44000 75.7%

In other words, during the period 2002 to 2007, the older M26 taser was used (actually deployed) about three times as often as the newer X26 taser.

But when you look at the taser-associated deaths covering this same period, in every case where I have access to information indicating the model of taser used, it is X26 in all cases. Nine out of nine. [LINK]

(The following data needs to be further checked. See [LINK].)

Deaths in Canada
1. Terry Hanna, 51 – Burnaby, BC - April 19, 2003 - RCMP - X26 [?? before 30 May 2003 ??]
2. Clayton Willey, 33 – Prince George, BC - July 22, 2003 - RCMP - X26 - Cause of death: drug overdose
3. Clark Whitehouse, 34 – Whitehorse, YK - September 2003 - RCMP - X26
4. Ronald Perry, 28 – Edmonton, AB - March 23, 2004 - X26
5. Roman Andreichikov, 25 – Vancouver, BC - May 1, 2004 - X26
6. Peter Lamonday, 33 – London, ON - May 13, 2004 - X26
7. Robert Bagnell, 44 – Vancouver, BC - June 23, 2004 - X26 - Cause of death: "restraint-associated cardiac arrest" due to acute cocaine intoxication and psychosis
8. Jerry Knight, 29 – Mississauga, ON - July 17, 2004 - X26 - Cause of death: “restraint asphyxia” with cocaine-related excited delirium
9. Samuel Truscott, 43 – Kingston, ON - August 8, 2004 - X26 - Cause of death: drug overdose (Coroner Jim Cairns)
10. Kevin Geldart, 34 – Moncton, NB - May 5, 2005 - RCMP - Cause of death: excited delirium with contributing factors including repeated shocks with a taser and pepper spray
11. Gurmeet Sandhu, 41 – Surrey, BC - June 30, 2005 - RCMP
12. James Foldi, 39 – Beamsville, ON - July 1, 2005 - Niagara Regional Police, X26 - tasered 12 times
...

Why do the taser-associated deaths actually seem to be the X26-taser-associated deaths?


This observation raises some very interesting questions doesn't it?

It casts doubt on many of the blame-the-victim excuses, doesn't it?


CPC Report [LINK]
Table 15 [LINK]