Fort Worth Weekly: "Taser Gets Zapped"

Quote of the Week:

“That was a fully fabricated lie,” said Burton.

Referring to a statement issued by Taser International's long-nosed spokespuppet Steve Tuttle in relation to the taser-caused death of Darryl Turner. [LINK]

CSM - 'Tasers in the crosshairs'

The Christian Science Monitor

Three deaths in one weekend puts Taser use by cops in crosshairs
Tasers were involved in three deaths over the weekend, renewing the debate over when and how the police-issued stun guns should be used. [LINK]

...recent studies have shown that the weapons can have an outsized impact on people with health problems or who are very high on drugs and in a state of "excited delirium." ... Tasers contributed to some 351 US deaths between 2001 and 2008, says Amnesty International, which adds that 90 percent of those tasered were unarmed at the time they were electrocuted. The website Truth Not Tasers claims that 39 people have died in relation to "conducted energy devices (CEDs)" this year in the United States, an average of five per month. ...

More background on KARBON Arms

From an on-line discussion:

I am not sure about your credentials on these products but I find your comments uninformed and very biased. I have been a Taser instructor for the last 6 years and have trained over 500 in the use of the Taser. I am also a Karbon Arms instructor and was a stinger 200AT instructor for the past 3 years before it was bought out. I work for a large Sheriff's office and we have had great success with both products. We just received our Karbons that you claimed "fishy". 100 this year and we are buying 100 more in 2011. I am alarmed buy the amount of TASERs that we have that are broken. TASER just released a training bulletin stating that 5 years is the expected life of their product. The Karbon works as good or better than the TASER. The $950 TASER vs the $500 Karbon is not much to think about. The lawsuit you refer to was against the Stinger 200 that was 1st generation technology. Karbon arms is now on 3rd generation technology and has their own patent that was awarded shortly after TASER won the lawsuit over the 1st generation technology that Stinger was no longer using. TASER International wants $450 each to fix the 27 broke TASERS we currently have in inventory. Close to half of those have the infamous defective on/off lever. [Somewhere online]

KARBON ARMS - An alternative to Taser International ?

Interesting...

KARBON MPID [LINK] - Highlights of the Karbon MPID include:
"Off The Shelf" batteries – Save your department time and money
Internal Cartridge Retention – Protect the cartridge when things heat up
Unbreakable Push Button On/Off Safety – Extremely durable and simple to use, ensures the Karbon MPID turns on when it’s most needed
Single Finger Cartridge Eject System – Eject the cartridge quickly and effectively, no fumbling equals no accidents.
Uni-Body Solid Frame Construction – Durability to last through daily abuse
Integrated Front Sight and Integrated Flashlight – Makes sure everyone knows where the darts are heading
Wireless Data Conveyance – No open ports on the unit, simple to place on data dock, has virtually no clock drift

Their features list is neatly aligned with the many practical failings of the products designed by the idiots at Taser International.

They also specifically mention that their waveform is constant current and computer controlled. If true, then perhaps it offers a slightly higher margin of safety (?).

The major question is so far unanswered: What are their claims of safety, and how are these issues communicated during marketing and training?

In other words, how are their basic ethics?

Toronto G20 thugs positively identified

Justice Melvyn Green's judgment caused a stir because of its harsh criticism of police tactics. He said police officers acted as the aggressors that evening. "The only organized or collective physical aggression at that location that evening was perpetrated by police each time they advanced on demonstrators," Green wrote. ... [LINK]

REMINDER: August 2010 - Taser International settles with Butler for $3M

News from about one year ago [LINK].

This was yet-another HUGE legal setback (loss) that they pretend to ignore.

Taser International tasers itself in the arse

Taser International's 2nd Quarter results are about as expected. They're idiots and have managed to post yet another loss (again(again(again...))).

They've abandoned the obviously-stupid 'Protector' product / "service" (sic); it's not exactly an unexpected failure. That real-world IQ Test cost them at least $1.4M. LOL.

They've also been forced by their legal loss in the Darryl Turner case to set aside $3.3M. I'm not bad at seeing the future and I predict that they'll not be winning the appeals in this case. That money, along with another $6M+ from their extremely unhappy insurance carrier, will almost certainly eventually be signed over to the family.

There's still a backlog of other cases that should keep them in court and in the red until the end of time.

Idiots.

News Flash! - Taser torture of inmates is a serious civil rights violation

NEWS FLASH!!

A former Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s deputy, Althea Mallisham, 52, has been charged with violating jail the civil rights of three inmates by using a stun gun on them. ... Mallisham is charged with using a stun gun to illegally punish the three inmates during separate incidents in June and September 2008. According to the indictment, she used an X26 Taser to shock the three inmates... Each of the inmates was injured as a result, according to the court document. ... Mallisham faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each count. ... [LINK]

What? Electro-torture of inmates is illegal? Geesh. Who would have guessed THAT?

Decades in prison? Seems fair...

Kotzebue, AK cop loses his immunity in stun-gun case

...The Alaska Supreme Court has reversed a judge's finding that a Kotzebue police officer who used a stun gun on an 11-year-old should get immunity... [LINK]

Something to think about.

"After ineffective taser attempt, police shoot man"

...officers surrounded the suspect in a neighboring back yard and the man threatened to shoot himself. After convincing the man to holster his weapon, officers deployed a taser, which was ineffective. Chief Steve Robinette could not address the reason why the weapon did not work. "We hope to determine why it was ineffective through the course of the investigation," he said. After officers deployed the taser, the man unholstered his gun. According to reports, officers fired at the man in order to protect themselves. He was apparently hit in the torso and the hand. ...[LINK]

Unreliable and dangerous (to all present) weapon.

Taser International claims it is "generally safe and effective", and utterly refuse to acknowledge the risks.

Illuminating taser use stats from New Zealand

Figures obtained by the Sunday Star-Times show police have "presented" Tasers to offenders 797 times since March 2010 and, of these, they were fired 102 times. However, the police's Tactical Options Research database shows the weapons were ineffective on 36 of those 102 occasions, meaning the weapons worked only two-thirds of the time. [LINK]

Tasers are "presented" about 800 times, but only deployed about one hundred times.

If this sort of 8:1 ratio applies more generally, then there 'should be' thousands of people falling over dead at the "presentation" of a taser (assuming that Taser International's disgusting lie about taser safety is true).

Tasers are ineffective in about one-third of all attempted deployments. For whatever reason, it's a huge and dangerous failure rate.

This well-known ratio reveals that Taser International's claim that tasers are "generally safe and effective" is a bald-faced lie from a bunch of bald-faced liars. They know about this sort of failure rate - it's been seen before. But they try to deflect attention away from it. Even though it is inherent with the flawed concept and design of the taser.

If they'll lie about tasers being "generally effective" then they'll also lie through their teeth about taser safety too.

Scum.

Random thoughts - Hubris comes home to Taser International

A federal jury awarded $10 million against TASER International Inc. for the wrongful death of a teenager who died after being shocked in the chest by a TASER. The jury found that the company failed to warn that discharging the device near the heart could cause cardiac arrest. The model in question was the X26 ECD. [all over the news]

The long-term impact of this finding is huge.

As critics of Taser International have been stating (the obvious) for years, tasers are perfectly capable of causing or contributing to death. Taser International has systematically (and deceptively) denied these risks for many years.

The case of Darryl Turner is one of the clearest examples. He was tasered directly in the chest, which killed him.

The scum at Taser International, and they are the worst type of scum, will continue to deny these risks, while simultaneously adding legal warnings to the fine print.

They will file appeals, primarily as a stalling tactic. They're madly trying to enter other markets (over-priced phone apps, and VASTLY over-priced ear-cams). I suspect that the timing isn't going to work out for them. Their total potential liability exceeds the market valuation of their company by several times.

Their liability insurance payments are probably going to increase. $6M for ONE case? Do the math. Hundreds and hundreds of taser associated deaths.

Their most-recent legal record isn't anything to be proud of. They've lost several significant cases.

Plaintiff lawyers should consider getting some subpoenas on the "private" information held by the insurance carriers. I don't believe that there is any priviledge in the insurance client-provider relationship.

Taser International found liable in killing of Darryl Turner

Taser International, manufacturer of potentially lethal stun guns, was found partially responsible for the death of 17-year-old Darryl Turner after police in Charlotte, N.C., used a Taser device on him during an altercation at a grocery store on March 21, 2008. [LINK]

Mr. Turner was young and in generally good health, was tasered and was dead almost immediately.

Taser International was ruled responsible for about $9.23 million of the total award; about $6 million of that will be covered by insurance. The city of Charlotte will cover $730,000 as part of a settlement, and $40,000 will be covered by workers’ compensation insurance.

The $3M+ judgment not covered by their insurance consumes their potential profit for even a good year; and that's going to bite very hard. The next pain they feel will be when their insurance carrier(s) realize that this is the new trend. The third pain will be when the investors (a.k.a. morons) read about this and start complaining.

I've not been posting much recently, primarily because I've been waiting for this day.

Taser International can appeal this judgment all they want. The cold hard fact remains that their "safe" product killed Darryl Turner directly.

This one will stick.

Sucks to be Taser International - maker of occasionally-lethal weapons

Scottsdale, Arizona arrived directly on "Autopsy confirms inmate killed by Taser".

All those false claims about taser safety that they promoted over the years. Now directly contradicted by real-world evidence, not to mention their latest legal warnings. Tsk tsk tsk.

The 'Curious Temporal Asymmetry' - finally, a counter-example.

It is extremely rare that the subject will die during a taser incident, unless the taser actually makes contact.

But finally we have what seems to be a clear-cut counter-example:

52-year-old Daniel Murrell - Louisville Metro Police Officer Matthew Mount pulled out his Taser, but didn't use it. Investigators then said Mount walked with Murrell a little further and then Murrell agreed to be handcuffed without incident. After Mount and Murrell returned to the corner of Greenwood and Cecil, investigators said Murrell collapsed. He later died. [LINK]

The Curious Temporal Asymmetry [LINK] is still the smoking gun that clearly demonstrates that tasers are perfectly capable of, and actually are, causing or contributing to death. It's just that we finally have a counter-example on the other side.

Just one. It should be (*) many hundreds or thousands. But just one so far.

(* If the fairy tales of taser safety were true...)

Const. Christopher "taser yer nuts" Hominuk bursts into tears

See [LINK] for full story...

Legally, that's 'Torture'. These actions (as have been reported) fit the definition perfectly.
The max of 14 years might be a bit harsh, but four years in the slammer would be about right.

Here's the disturbing punchline:
This is how tasers are often used. Typically not in the crotch, but as torture.

Howard Hammon multiple-tasered and then died "of car crash"

Questions continue to come up surrounding the death of Howard Hammon [LINK]

...There are questions about the number of times Hammon was tasered. The Chief claims it was twice, but police first-hand account records show he was hit five times by three separate officers. After Hammon was cuffed, he was left face down in a grassy area for five minutes while waiting for the ambulance to arrive. It was in this same position paramedics found him, not breathing and with no pulse. ...

Gee, I wonder what killed him?

Now that the claim that tasers are incapable of causing death has been shown to be a bald-faced lie, and it is now clear that tasers can and do cause death... ...then maybe, just maybe, the multiple taser hits caused or contributed to Hammon's death.

Unless clear-cut evidence of an alternate rational explanation is found (not guesswork under the banner of "excited delirium"), then taser-caused-death must be considered as a possibility.

Former officer Todd "taser in Ruiz's neck" Lappegaard PERSONALLY liable

IT IS RECOMMENDED that the Minneapolis City Council AFFIRM the City’s decision not to defend or indemnify the Respondent, Todd Lappegaard, in connection with Rolando Demetrio Ruiz v. City of Minneapolis and Todd Lappegaard. [LINK]

See also [LINK], [LINK], [LINK] and [LINK].

Good decision. If Lappegaard's life is ruined, then perhaps that will send a clear message to meat-heads everywhere - and thus help to protect the rights of citizens.

Autopsy confirms inmate killed by Taser

Taser International's nightmare has arrived.

LILLINGTON, NC - The North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner issued autopsy results Tuesday that list a Harnett County inmate's cause of death as complications from being Tasered multiple times. "Given the autopsy and investigative findings, it is our opinion that the cause of death is complications of conducted energy device application," reads the report. ... [LINK]

24-year-old Brandon Jolvon Bethea of Fayetteville. Reportedly not restrained in any other way.


Taser International makes weapons that can kill.

And yet, they once claimed that Tasers were essentially inherently safe.

Scum. Slimeball scum.

Taser Quote of the Month: "Tasers do not usually kill..."

Tasers do not usually kill... [LINK]

Fair enough.

Put another way, Tasers sometimes do kill.

That's a long way from the old lie that Tasers were inherently incapable of ever causing or contributing to death.

It shouldn't be such a great mystery when some people react to taser hits by dying.

Taser International may play word games, but the fact remains that Tasers can and do cause or contribute to death. Therefore, their use must be tightly regulated.

Taser fails to help Vancouver Police with sword-wielding man

File under: Unreliable weapon

CBC News:

Police used rubber bullets and a Taser to try to take down a sword-wielding man in downtown Vancouver near the busy intersection of Burrard Street and Georgia Street on Monday. ...a shot from a Taser stun-gun failed to take the man down, and he was then tackled to the ground by several officers... [LINK]

Not only inherently potentially dangerous. But also dangerous due to the relatively high rate of it being ineffective.

FAIL.

Canadian Province of Nova Scotia heading in correct direction

The province and policing partners agree that the use of conducted energy weapons should only occur when a person’s behaviour is aggressive or violent and could harm the person or the public or the police officer. [LINK]

Geesh. Basic Common Sense 101.

File under: Duh!

I've stated several times that if the subject is actually violent, then I don't care of the police are forced to use "a fricken flamethrower" on the subject. That statement is, I readily admit, a vast overstatement. Hopefully the brave police would display restraint and heroism, and would struggle to find a way to defuse the situation rather than mindlessly meet mindless violence with more mindless violence. Especially in the cases where the subject is probably mentally ill.

...it speaks volumes that the use of the stun guns has already dropped by over 70 per cent since Hyde’s death in 2007

Not a bad start.

But it's still about thirty times the historical rate of police use of lethal force.

That ratio should be more like about five (roughly) to achieve an ethical balance.

New civilian agency to probe police incidents in B.C.

CBC News - British Columbia's solicitor general has introduced long-awaited legislation to create an independent civilian agency to conduct criminal investigations into serious incidents involving all police in B.C., including the RCMP. Solicitor General Shirley Bond introduced the legislation to end police investigations of other police in serious incidents that result in death or serious harm... [LINK]

It's 2011 - about time.

Memo to police in B.C. - covering-up for your brother officers will not be accepted.

Prediction: They'll still fall in groups.

Mounties in Dziekanski Taser case charged with perjury

Perjury charges have now been laid against the four Mounties who confronted Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver's airport and repeatedly stunned him with a Taser in October 2007. The officers - Const. Bill Bentley, Const. Kwesi Millington, Const. Gerry Rundell and Cpl. Benjamin Robinson - are accused of lying during the testimony they gave during a public inquiry into Dziekanski's death. [LINK]

What about the bought-and-paid-for so-called "expert" witnesses brought in by Taser International, not to mention the executives too. Some of their testimony was described by Justice Braidwood as being "an insult to the intelligence" and was rejected. Other testimony was in contradiction to the company's official position and other statements made before and after the Inquiry. Their testimony is at least as far fetched as that from the four RCMP Officers, and should also result in perjury charges.

Allen Kephart 'died' immediately after being taser multiple times

43-year old Allen Kephart died after he was tasered multiple times by a San Bernardino County sheriff's deputy. ... The deputy used his taser to subdue him. Moments later Kephart was unconscious. Despite efforts to revive him, Kephart died. [LINK]

Alive for 43 years. Dead moments after being tasered multiple times.

Hmmm....

Of course there can be contributing factors. But those contributing factors have failed to kill him for weeks, months, years, decades. He was tasered multiple times, and his immediate reaction was to become unconscious and die. It seems obvious that the use of the taser is in a cause-and-effect relationship with his death. Any other description is a cover-up.


Those that seek to obscure the truth will play evil games with language.

"Man Dies After Being Tasered 34 Times", nothing to see here, move along

A Man Dies After Being Tasered 34 Times, But The State Rules Police Officers Involved Aren't Responsible For His Death [LINK]

... Taser International, maker of the electronic weapon that has become a police mainstay, is ferociously opposed to any suggestion that these stun guns can be lethal. Their spokesmen insist that when someone dies after being Tased, the actual cause of death is some other condition such as drug use, psychiatric- or obesity-related diseases. ...

Their public protestations that tasers-R-safe does not align with their official, legal warnings issued 1 May 2010 [LINK]. They are contradicting themselves so obviously that it is to the point of being farcical. Courts do not look favorably upon such self-contradictions.

It's a fact - tasers can kill.

Allowing a lax Taser Use Policy can permit great evil to occur.

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, s.12

The prevalent use of the Taser, in my view, is unconstitutional under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which states in Section 12: "Everyone has a right not to be subjected to any cruel and unusual treatment or punishment. ..." [LINK]

Many taser deployments are clear cases of exactly that.

Especially those that involve the use of the taser in "pain compliance" mode (a.k.a. Touch Torture mode, Drive Stun mode, Dry Stun mode).

Also, repeated taser-torturing of those that are incapable of obeying shouted orders.

Four RCMP Officiers charged with perjury - commentary about the evil 'Blue Brotherhood'

Isn't it interesting: Four out of four.

Isn't it interesting: Other than being reassigned, these four have not had any internal discipline imposed.

Isn't it interesting: Paul Pritchard had to hire a darn lawyer to gain return of his video of Mr. Dziekanski's taser-caused death.


Although the rate of intentional misconduct by police officers is not high, it really seems that the rate of coverup is extremely high. It's probably about time for the courts to pay attention to this issue of  The Blue Brotherhood of Silence  (and sometimes even Lies).

Taser Quote of the Month

The Taser was initially conceived as an alternative to deadly force. In practice, it's often fired by police officers hoping to avoid a physical struggle or to get someone to comply with an order. [LINK]

40-year-old Daniel McDonnell was already in a jail cell. He was tasered_and_died. Up to the point of being tasered, he had lived 40 years. Tasered_then_dead.

Google the taser's "Curious Temporal Asymmetry".

Corruption of "Science" revealed by analysis

Lee's study looks at other Taser studies funded by Taser International. He found results come out favorably 75 percent more often than other studies funded independently. "We have seen this with the cigarette companies and now I think we're seeing it again with the Taser companies," said Lee. ... [LINK]

Many of those involved in mass production of so-called "scientific" studies are financially linked to Taser International. Unsurprisingly, their "scientific" studies essentially never find any danger with tasers.

The danger that has now been revealed is the corruption of the scientific method.

Taser International is following in the footsteps of Big Tobacco.

By the way, did anyone bother to go back and jail any of the bought-and-paid-for scientists that were in the pocket of Big Tobacco? There should be severe penalties to go along with the stock options.

Same thing for these more-modern scoundrels that are in the pocket of Taser International.

Steve "Tuggle" with Taser International makes a joke

Steve Tuggle (sic, and sick) with Taser International said, "Most of our research goes through a conflict of interest committee run by the Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota." [LINK]

Bwa ha ha ha ha ha...

For those that don't know...

Jeffrey Ho, MD, is associated with the Department of Emergency Medicine, Hennepin County Medical Center. Dr. Jeffrey Ho is a sworn peace officer and serves as an expert consultant to TASER International on issues of research and sudden, arrest-related death. He owns shares of stock in this company. His research in this area has received funding from TASER International, Inc.

Dr. Ho's testimony at the Braidwood Inquiry was described by Justice Braidwood as "...an insult to the intelligence...".


Yes indeed. It certainly is a Conflict of Interest committee.

Hennepin County Medical Center is a hot-bed of Taser fan-boys. Anyone that examines the many financial links from Taser International to some of the people there would see that they couldn't be trusted.

It's simply disgusting.

Four Mounties face charges of perjury in Dziekanski taser case

Four Mounties involved in a fatal confrontation with Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski will face charges of perjury in relation to the evidence each officer gave at the Braidwood inquiry into the 2007 incident, the provincial criminal-justice branch said Friday. [LINK]

Good. Holding these officers to account for their outrageous testimony is critical.

No citizen is safe (not even YOU dear reader) if the police can get away with lies and deception on the witness stand.


If they are convicted, they must be punished at the high end of the scale. These are "Officers of The Law", and they must therefore be held to the highest standards. If they are found to have lied, then nail them to the wall.

--

PS: Now, what about those scoundrels sent by Taser International to "testify" at the same inquiry? Remember Dr. Jeffrey Ho's te$timoney was described by Justice Braidwood as "an insult to the intelligence"? [LINK] What about that other 'unknown' Taser-funded walking-talking ethical-vacuum that tried to stuff the ballot box of a poll that this blog was running at the time? [LINK]

Tainted Taser Studies

UCSF Cardiologists Find Taser Studies Tainted - Research funded by the stun-gun maker significantly more likely to conclude the weapon is safe [LINK]

A new study by two UCSF cardiologists suggests that many of the studies attesting to the safety of Tasers are funded by the stun gun's manufacturer or authored by researchers affiliated with it.

Dr. Peyman N. Azadani and Dr. Byron K. Lee looked at every study of Taser safety that they could find -- some 50 of them -- and found that 23 of the studies were funded by Taser International or written by an author affiliated with the company.

The researchers found that studies either funded by Taser or written by authors who were affiliated with the company were significantly more likely to conclude the devices were safe than studies that were funded independently.

Some 96 percent of studies supported by Taser concluded that the devices were “not harmful” or “unlikely harmful.” By comparison, only 55 percent of the independent studies found the devices to be “not harmful” or “unlikely harmful.” ...

Possible explanations:
1. Coincidence (odds 0.00%)
2. Corruption (bingo!)
3. Conniving (bingo!)
4. Cash (bingo!)

The taser's 'Curious Temporal Asymmetry' caught in action

Nine dead in Connecticut after being Tasered by police. That’s the estimated body count during the past five years from incidents in which a person was hit by a police electronic stun gun and died immediately or soon after, according to reviews of state records, interviews and news reports. In none of those cases were the deaths directly attributed to the use of Tasers. Autopsy results included causes of death such as “cocaine toxicity,” a self-inflicted stab wound to the chest, heart disease and (in three cases) “excited delirium,” a finding not recognized by top medical authorities. ... [LINK]

Isn't it curious how nobody ever dies in that often very long-winding shouting match that precedes a typical taser use (after the taser is drawn and displayed, but just before it is about to be used). Plenty of people die after they've been actually contacted by the taser, but nobody in recorded history has ever died at the sound of the "Taser! Taser! Taser!" warning. There should be hundreds or thousands of such cases, if their fairy tales about "excited delirium" were true.

Considering that tasers are displayed about ten times more often than actually fired, it's a very curious temporal asymmetry.[CLICK HERE]

Consider also that Taser International now "officially" - but very quietly - acknowledges the risk of taser death (while simultaneously lying about it in public forums), the existence of this temporal asymmetry is no mystery.

Tasers can cause or contribute to death. That's a fact. A sad fact.

And perhaps that's why so many people are dying immediately after being tasered.

Those that lie about taser safety in public forums have blood on their hands. They themselves are causing or contributing to taser overuse, that can only lead to more unnecessary deaths.

Evil scum.

Report: "X26 Tasers have had a greater than 25 per cent failure rate"

It's simply amazing how often we are exactly correct...

We've noted before that there seemed to be a very high rate of reports that tasers were ineffective. Ineffective tasers puts the poor officer into a situation that has suddenly become violent, but his taser ain't working.

We figured the rate of ineffective tasers was significant, by the fork-tongue stungun salesmen denied it.

Now this:

Police figures show the X26 Tasers have had a greater than 25 per cent failure rate since they were reintroduced in 2010. [via TNT]

That's a very dangerous level of unreliability.

Search this blog for "ineffective" [LINK].

People have been KILLED because of ineffective tasers.

We spank 'OfficialTASER'

OfficialTASER (Hi Steve!) shows up and gets a good spanking. [LINK]

I pity them (not really, they're scum). They've put themselves into a position on the subject of taser safety that, quite literally, cannot be legally defended without causing hilarity in any court.


excited.delirium at 3:31 PM May 6, 2011

It's also worth noting that tasers are used about one-hundred times as often as police have historically and generally-acceptably used their guns. This overuse ratio varies with jurisdiction and varies over time, but 100X is a good round number.

Keep this in mind in case anyone drags out the old argument that "tasers are better than guns".

Such claims, while very attractive, are about 99% beside the point.

Taser most often replace lower and EVEN-LESS-LETHAL forms of force.

excited.delirium at 3:27 PM May 6, 2011

DaveDavid, assuming it's the same David E. Z____n as last time, is a retired USN corrosion expert. He is apparently (based on his interest in stocks, specifically Taser International) heavily invested in Taser International stock. He vigorously defends Taser International in many on-line forums, and then he sends a message to "Official Taser" to join in with a follow up.

As has happened here...

excited.delirium at 3:23 PM May 6, 2011

Amnesty International dug up 150 autopsy reports (not easy) for taser associated deaths and they found that 50 (or about one-third) listed the taser as a cause or contributing factor.

One third. That fraction can only be a low ball value. Taser International has gone to extreme lengths to install "excited delirium" as the place holder cause of death in cases where no other postmorten evidence is found. I personally suspect the honest ratio is much higher; not 100% obviously, but probably well over half.

The list of taser associated deaths now reaches 600+ (most up-to-date list is on Truth Not Tasers). If the one-third ratio is holding firm, then tasers have caused or contributed to at least 200 deaths.

excited.delirium at 3:16 PM May 6, 2011

The government of the Canadian province of British Columbia held a multi-million dollar public inquiry into the taser death of Robert Dziekanski at Vancover airport.

Google the Braidwood Inquiry.

The arguments of Taser International's bought-and-paid-for experts was rejected as being an "insult to the intelligence." Justice Braidwood concluded that the most significant event in the last minutes of Mr. Dziekanski's life was the repeated and long duration tasering. That was the "most prominent" cause of death.

excited.delirium at 3:13 PM May 6, 2011

Taser International settled with Steve Butler for $3 million. Mr. Butler's heart was stopped by the application of a taser. His life was saved, but the after-effects included permanent brain damage. Taser International tried to keep this settlement secret, but the court would have none of it.

excited.delirium at 3:11 PM May 6, 2011

The condition sometimes called "Excited Delirium" has a long history. It was originally called Bell's mania, where mental patients stopped eating and slowly died over a period of many weeks. This condition had no obvious root cause and left no postmorten clues. So it was adopted by Taser International as a handy-dandy excuse for taser associated deaths since tasers also leave few postmortem clues. They even promoted excited delirium via their funded front - the IPICD. Plenty of funny-business going on between Taser International and IPICD.

As far as testing goes... Those studies have never proven that tasers are completely safe. The studies have been misleadingly characterized as such, but they do not prove that tasers cannot kill. One so-called study demonstrated that tasers are safe, but accidentally also indicated that they don't work at all. There's plenty of dirt in this area as well.

excited.delirium at 3:11 PM May 6, 2011

With respect to taser use and its causal relationship to those that die after its use, what is striking is how nobody has ever died at the sound of the "Taser! Taser! Taser!" warning. Individuals that die in incidents involving tasers die vastly more often after being tasered, than in the often long-winded shouting match that precedes many taser deployments. It's a 'Curious Temporal Asymmetry' (Googe the phrase) that clearly indicates a cause-and-effect relationship between actual contact with the taser and the fatal reaction that occassionally follows.

excited.delirium at 3:10 PM May 6, 2011

One year ago, Taser International modified their "official" position on taser safety. Up until that point they had repeatedly claimed that tasers could never affect the heart, and could never cause or contribute to any death. But on 1 May 2010, Taser International released a new training package that contained newly-updated legal warnings that finally acknowledge what so many people have already concluded: tasers can affect the heart, especially if the darts land on the chest; tasers can cause effects that may endfanger life; use of tasers carries risks including risk of death.

For more information, hit the websites Truth ... Not Tasers and Excited-Delirium.com (with the dash).

OfficialTASER at 3:44 PM May 5, 2011

What "experts" said police should be held responsible besides one plaintiff's attorney? I only saw that medical examiners cleared the TASER ECD for causality.

Check your accuracy regarding Amnesty. They do not state 300 deaths as a "result" of TASER ECDs. In fact their report clearly states, “Amnesty International does not suggest that TASERs necessarily caused or contributed to each of these deaths.”

I also enjoyed the statement that "excited delirium is not recognized by top medical authorities. I wonder if the reporter would like to present that statement to the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) who formally recognize excited delirium as a unique syndrome or the National Association of Medical Examiners. You might want to also check the status of what the ACEP Physicians Task Force that Excited Delirium Syndrome recently stated. Hint: “Syndrome is a real syndrome with uncertain, likely multiple, etiologies.” I guess those aren't top medical authorities? Not exactly.

Have we spent money on sponsoring testing? I would hope people would hope so. But here’s a nugget that often gets missed about TASER studies: TASER ECD are the most studied less-lethal option on an officer's belt today with more than 70% of these studies INDEPENDENT of TASER. People don't like seeing that statistic for some reason, yet it is a fact.

I agree with DaveDavid.

DaveDavid at 11:02 PM May 4, 2011

I have never read a story so full of outright fiction and incomplete facts. Easy to tell that the "personal injury trial lawyers" representing the drugies that died are the ones willing to fill this reporters head with crud. Nine died and yet the Medical Examiner has never blamed a Taser. It is clear that this reporter will not let facts get in the way of a good story, a real fairy tale.

Zuskin, you're an arse.

The latest 'Big Lie'

...unavailability [of tasers] is considered to be an unacceptable risk to the community and Queensland police officers... [via TNT]

Fact: Tasers are typically used about one-hundred times as often as police have historically and generally-acceptably used lethal force. This 100X ratio varies with jurisdiction and varies over time, but 100X is a good and proper description of the ratio of taser (over-) use to use of lethal force.

Fact: Based on everything I've seen, it seems perfectly obvious that for the vast majority of police taser uses, the taser deployment represent an increase in the level of violence in the situation. The taser is most often applied in non-violent situations, making the non-violent situation violent. Tasers are THE OPPOSITE of de-escalation. This makes the use of the taser an increase in the level of risk for all those involved.

Fact: The evidence strongly suggests that use of lethal force DOES NOT DECREASE when tasers are introduced. One large study showed that police shootings INCREASED in the first year after tasers were introduced.

Fact: Even after the 'Taser Use Policies' are eventually dragged out of the ethically-bankrupt, morally-reprehensible, human-rights-violating, electroshock-torture-promoting, Constitution-violating, lawsuit-inducing quagmire as so helpfully suggested by the slimeball stungun salesmen... Even after the policy is updated, it only marginally reduces these abuses. The reduction to achieve basic human morality has to be about -95%!! Even that generously allows 5X taser use over historical use of lethal force. EVEN AFTER policy adjustment, the tasers are STILL being used most often to replace de-escalation techniques.

The true unacceptable risk of tasers to civil society is that the deceptive marketing messages and unethical infiltration of the law enforcement community are permitted to continue.

Three officials in Rockford, IL facing serious charges related to taser & choking incident

Rockford, Illinois — The former mayor and police chief of the northern Illinois community of South Beloit face official misconduct charges for their roles in a woman's 2008 arrest. Charges were announced Friday against former Mayor Randy Kirichkow, former police Chief Tom Fearn and former police Sgt. Brad McCaslin. Winnebago County State's Attorney Joe Bruscato says an arrest video shows Fearn choking the woman after McCaslin applied a Taser to the back of her neck. They also face aggravated battery and obstruction of justice charges, among others. [LINK]

De-Spinning the Spin

See the heading DE-SPINNING THE SPIN near the top of the righthand column?

If you're new to the taser debate (or would like a refresh), then start going through the posts listed under that heading. Within each of those posts, follow the links to the related previous posts that amplify the details. Those listed posts will rapidly bring you up to speed on what's been going on over the past several years.

You'll probably be absolutely amazed at some of the ugly dirt that has been uncovered on these slime-ball stungun salesmen and their merry band of bought-and-paid-for minions.

For those writing a book on the subject, each of those listed posts could be the basis of an entire chapter.

Alaska: punitive taser hits are "...what some might view as torture...”

The Alaska Supreme Court overturned an obviously-incorrect lower court decision and sends the case back.

A lawyer describe the excessive, obviously punitive, repeated taser hits as "...what some might view as torture...” [LINK]

Tasers! Far more convenient than booster cables and damp sponges.