tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59063302024-03-13T07:44:04.262-04:00It all goes hereElectricity's for light bulbs!Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.comBlogger1087125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-74235037260986981012011-01-03T11:58:00.001-05:002011-01-03T11:59:14.918-05:00No Tasers, No Rise in Police Injuries<div><span class="Apple-style-span" >Some not so shocking reality:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" ><br /></span></div><a href="http://www.rrstar.com/carousel/x2135340536/No-Tasers-no-rise-in-Rockford-police-injuries"><span class="Apple-style-span" >No Tasers, no rise in Rockford police injuries - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star</span></a>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-34947477216684127102010-07-08T17:58:00.004-04:002010-07-08T18:03:26.585-04:00Ouch!<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:verdana;"><blockquote></blockquote>Yowza! That's <a href="http://www.mysmartrend.com/news-briefs/technical-analysis/traders-abandon-ship-shares-taser-international-shares-down-21-tasr">gotta smart</a> if you're a Taser Inc. shareholder going long:</span></div><blockquote><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:verdana;"></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">T</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">aser International (</span></span></span><a href="http://www.mysmartrend.com/tickers/TASR"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">NASDAQ:TASR</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">) is one of today's worst performing low-priced stocks, down 2.1% to $3.71 on 0.2x average daily volume. Approximately 321,000 shares have traded hands today vs. 30-day average volume of 1.3 million shares.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">High volume often signals a change in trends. Shares of Taser International are currently trading below their 50-day moving average (MA) of $4.36 and below their 200-day MA of $5.05. ...</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">SmarTrend is bearish on shares of Taser International and our subscribers were alerted to sell on March 29, 2010 at $5.99. The stock has fallen 38.1% since the alert was issued.</span></span></span></div></blockquote><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF6600;"></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-5367640754477066892010-05-14T14:01:00.006-04:002010-05-14T14:13:12.420-04:00$2e6 in Fort Worth<div style="text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Fort Worth is settling, for $2-million, a case in which a mentally ill man died after being tased for over 50 seconds. Per the standard operating procedure for most investigations of police activity in the US, the officer involved was cleared of wrongdoing and the city has not admitted liability. From the <a href="http://www.the33tv.com/news/kdaf-fort-worth-offers-2-million-in-taser-case-death-story,0,7907202.story">story</a>:<blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">FORT WORTH, TEXAS - The city of Fort Worth is offering $2 million to the family of a mentally ill man who died after being shocked by a Taser, even though the police officer involved has been cleared of wrongdoing.<br /><br />Michael Patrick Jacobs, 24, died last year after being shocked for 54 seconds. The Tarrant County medical examiner's office ruled his death a homicide due to "application of conducted energy device."</span> <span style="font-size:85%;">...</span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />In an effort to gain control, Cpl. Stephanie A. Phillips then shocked Jacobs twice with a city-issued Taser X26 Electronic Control Device, officials said. The first shock last for 49 seconds.</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />The second time for five seconds.</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />"The entire time I was yelling, 'You're killing my son; you're killing my son,'" his mother Charlotte Jacobs said.</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />The police officer who tased Jacobs, Stephanie Phillips, did not receive any discipline from the Fort Worth Police Department.</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />Fort Worth Police Chief Jeffery Halstead has defended Taser use, saying police shootings have dropped 30 percent in the eight years the city has used Tasers.</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />"The use of these devices provided a safer environment for officers dealing with possible violent situations," Halstead said last year.</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />The Jacobs family said this situation wasn't a violent one, and officers did not need to resort to using a Taser.</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br />The $2 million offer could open up flood gates for other police tasing incidents. But the city of Fort Worth has not admitted liability in the case.</span><br /></blockquote>That's some expensive police work.<br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-78659907646880210752010-04-19T07:37:00.005-04:002010-04-19T07:48:09.724-04:00Firing Tasers At Kids On Bikes<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">More <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/15/MNK81CVF03.DTL">BART cop action</a>:</span><br /><p style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"></p><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><p style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Sources familiar with the matter, however, told The Chronicle that a veteran sergeant in a moving patrol car fired his Taser several days ago at the 13-year-old boy, who was fleeing from an altercation at BART's Richmond Station on a bicycle.</span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;">The darts missed the boy, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. They said the sergeant, who has taught defensive tactics at BART, remained at work but had been removed from street duty.</span></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: verdana; text-align: justify;"></p><div id="TixyyLink" style="overflow: hidden; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; border: medium none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">This would be great police work if we lived in Grand Theft Auto.</span><br /></div></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-1015068057971162332010-04-01T14:47:00.003-04:002010-04-01T14:53:58.768-04:00Still Crazy<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I might be taking a break from writing about them, but law enforcement officials are still <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2010/04/01/2010-04-01_indiana_cops_taser_10yearold_at_day_care.html">crazy with the tasers</a>:</span><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Indiana police say two officers have been placed on administrative suspension after they used a stun gun on an unruly child at a home day care.<br /><br />A news release from the mayor's office and the Martinsville Police Department said the officers responded to reports of a 10-year-old who was out of control at Tender Teddies Day Care Tuesday night, reports WRTV in Indianapolis. ...</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">The department says that when the officers arrived the boy was out of control, hitting and kicking and refusing to listen to them.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">The department says the officers used a stun gun and slapped the boy to subdue him.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">The chief said the boy cried after being shocked on Tuesday but is now fine, WRTV reports.</span></p></blockquote><p></p><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Martinsville Police Chief Jon Davis said Thursday that he believes two of his officers could have avoided using the stun gun on the 94-pound boy.</span><div id="TixyyLink" style="overflow: hidden; background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; border: medium none;"></div></blockquote><div id="TixyyLink" style="overflow: hidden; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; border: medium none;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;">That's so brave.</span><br /> </div></div></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-92123095404370490802009-12-10T07:19:00.002-05:002009-12-10T07:24:16.720-05:00Tasing An 82-Year-Old<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >I can understand why the driver called the cops, but can't figure why the cops <a href="http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/12/man-in-his-80s-hit-with-taser-arrested-after-punching-bus-driver.html">couldn't handle an 82-year-old man</a>:</span><br /><div class="asset-body"> <p></p></div><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><div class="asset-body"><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Authorities have charged an 82-year-old man for punching a Chicago Transit Authority bus driver in a confrontation allegedly over a fare dispute that led to him being tasered by police.</span></p> </div> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">Junming Kuang, of the 3000 block of South Wentworth Avenue, was charged with felony counts of resisting or obstructing a peace officer, aggravated battery of a government employee and a misdemeanor count of aggravated assault to a police officer, said Officer John Mirabelli, a Police News Affairs spokesman.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">He is expected to appear at a bond hearing Wednesday.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">Police say that Kuang tried to get on a CTA bus in the 2300 block of South Wentworth Avenue about 9:15 a.m. Monday and got into a dispute with the driver after his bus pass failed to register, police said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">Kuang began to punch the bus driver, and when police arrived on the scene, the man began to fight with them too, leading to officers Tasering him.</span></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: verdana;"></p></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">So, is it braver to tase a 10-year-old or an 82-year-old? Just askin.</span></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-85843268391412346672009-12-10T06:43:00.004-05:002009-12-10T07:14:51.095-05:00Fire Up The Lawyers<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >I'll admit that I don't know how these things go in Canada, but I know that here in the states, a statement like the following from a government sanctioned anything would have lawyers salivating. The RCMP have been slammed for their role in the death of Robert Dziekanski. From the inquiry's <a href="http://www.cpc-cpp.gc.ca/prr/rep/rev/chair-pre/dziekanski/finR-eng.aspx">official report</a>:</span><br /><strong></strong><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><strong>Finding</strong><br /> Prior to deploying the <acronym title="Conducted Energy Weapon ">CEW</acronym>, Constable Millington should have issued the required warning/challenge to Mr. Dziekanski as required by <acronym title="Royal Canadian Mounted Police">RCMP</acronym><br /><strong>Finding</strong><br /> Because no significant attempts were made by the <acronym title="Royal Canadian Mounted Police">RCMP</acronym> members present to communicate with Mr. Dziekanski, to obtain clarification of information pertaining to Mr. Dziekanski's situation, or to communicate among themselves, deployment of the <acronym title="Conducted Energy Weapon ">CEW</acronym> by Constable Millington was premature and was not appropriate in the circumstances.<br /><strong>Finding</strong><br /> Constable Millington cycled the <acronym title="Conducted Energy Weapon ">CEW</acronym> multiple times against Mr. Dziekanski when those subsequent cycles were not known by him to be necessary for the control of Mr. Dziekanski.<br /><strong>Finding</strong><br /> The multiple cycles of the <acronym title="Conducted Energy Weapon ">CEW</acronym> against Mr. Dziekanski when no significant effort was made to determine the effect of the <acronym title="Conducted Energy Weapon ">CEW</acronym> on Mr. Dziekanski was an inappropriate use of the <acronym title="Conducted Energy Weapon ">CEW</acronym>.<br /><strong>Finding </strong><br /> Corporal Robinson did not adequately monitor Mr. Dziekanski's breathing and heart rate.</span> policy, <span style="font-size:85%;">notwithstanding the fact that Mr. Dziekanski appeared not to understand the English language.</span></blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >Not a lawyer here, and feel free to correct me, but the executive summary of the report linked above seems to clear the officers involved from prosecution. But, if this had happened in the States and we had been lucky enough to have a public inquiry (we would never be that lucky), I'd be willing to bet we'd see headlines in line with the following:</span><br /><h2 style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2009/dec/10/man-gets-100000-in-lawsuit/">Man gets $100,000 in lawsuit</a></span></h2><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >From that link:</span><br /><p style="font-family:verdana;"></p><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">WILKESBORO - A Wilkesboro police officer was dropped from a federal civil-rights lawsuit after a $100,000 settlement was reached with the plaintiff last month, town officials said yesterday.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Wilkesboro's insurance carrier will pay most of the money, with the town paying a $10,000 deductible.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">The lawsuit alleges that Wilkes County law-enforcement officers had beaten Paul Douglas Absher of Boomer in 2007. Absher -- who was hospitalized for two weeks after his arrest on charges of assault on a law-enforcement officer and resisting an officer -- is seeking $20 million.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Wilkesboro Police Lt. Rocky Moore was dismissed from the lawsuit after mediation last month. In a response to the lawsuit, Moore said he used his Taser once on Absher, but did not beat him. The town's statement said that the settlement its insurance carrier made the settlement, and the council was not consulted.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">"The Mayor and Town Council unanimously believe that Lieutenant Rocky L. Moore did nothing wrong in his actions on the occasion that resulted in this lawsuit," the statement said. It added that if the case had gone to trial "Lieutenant Rocky L. Moore would not have been found liable for any of his actions, in that all of his actions on this occasion were entirely proper and in accordance with good police procedure."</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">State law requires such settlements to be made public after a reasonable time period. The town council was told about it Monday in closed session; then it was announced in open session.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Three Wilkes County sheriff's deputies --Harper Hartley, Harold Martin and Gene Wyatt -- as well as Sheriff Dane Mastin and the Wilkes County Sheriff's Office remain as defendants in the lawsuit.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">The suit contends that Absher was standing by a road waiting for his girlfriend when he was approached by a deputy, kicked, shocked at least 10 times with a Taser, and beaten with flashlights and batons -- an assault that continued after his hands were cuffed behind his back.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">His skull was fractured, and he was hospitalized at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center for 14 days, five of them in a medically induced coma, the suit says.</span></p> <p face="verdana"><span style="font-size:85%;">A judge dismissed criminal charges against Absher this past summer after testimony that the county had lost part of a video at the jail intake. Absher claims that he was beaten there, too. The prosecutor has appealed the dismissal of the criminal charges to the N.C. Court of Appeals.</span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Absher's attorney, John Vermitsky of Winston-Salem, said yesterday that he expects the civil case against the remaining defendants to go to trial. "We think our client has a very strong case at trial," Vermitsky said.</span></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: verdana;"></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >I'm betting that Canadian tasers prove to be nearly as expensive as their American counterparts.</span><br /></p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" ></span></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-3556068602538952502009-12-05T10:51:00.003-05:002009-12-05T11:10:04.669-05:00Another 10-Year-Old Tased<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;">In this week's cowardly police work corner, <a href="http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/21794500/detail.html">cops tase a 10-year-old boy</a>, and their sheriff says it was justified:</span><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><b class="Dateline">PUEBLO, Colo. -- </b>Sheriff's deputies who stunned with a Taser a 10-year-old child they said was "out of control" were justified in their use of force, the sheriff said Thursday.<br /><br />The boy was Tasered by sheriff's deputies in Pueblo West on Monday, after officers were called to the boy's foster home on a report that he was destroying property and threatening a foster parent with a pipe and a stick. He had already thrown a landscaping timber at the foster father, the sheriff's office said.<br /><br />The sheriff said Thursday that the deputies involved in the arrest did what they had to do. ...<br /><br />"They followed all policies and procedures. This was appropriate use of the Taser device," said Capt. Jeff Teschner.<br /><br />He said that the juvenile was not hurt when deputies took action.<br /><br />The boy refused to throw down a 2-foot pipe he was holding when deputies cornered him outside, Teschner said.<br /><br />The boy was booked into Pueblo Youth Center on suspicion of menacing with a deadly weapon. The foster parent said he intends to press charges against the boy.<br /><br />The boy has a history of violence.<br /><br />Teschner said his department's policy on the use of Tasers is not age specific."<br /></span></blockquote><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">More details, including the names of the officers involved come from <a href="http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2009/12/03/news/local/doc4b1753ad92eca454367982.txt">this article</a>:</span><blockquote style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:85%;" >Capt. Jeff Teschner, head of patrol at the Pueblo County Sheriff's Department, said Wednesday that the deputies involved were justified in their use of force.<br /><br />"They followed all policies and procedures. This was appropriate use of the Taser device," Teschner said.<br /><br />The boy did not sustain injuries in the 3:30 p.m. incident in the 300 block of West Morning Glory Drive, Teschner said.<br /><br />Deputies Mark Myers and Randy Mondragon were sent to foster parent Daniel Biby's home to help with an "out of control juvenile" who was reportedly destroying property. Mondragon said the boy had threatened Biby with a pipe and a stick, and had thrown a landscape timber at Biby.<br /><br />Mondragon said that when deputies arrived, the boy ran away from them holding a 2-foot-long pipe.<br /><br />"This lad, we have a long history of (him) running away. I don't know what his entire psychological profile is, but obviously he has emotional distress," Teschner said.<br /><br />The boy ran to a neighbor's yard where he cornered himself between a camper trailer, pontoon boat and a fence, Mondragon<br /><br />said.<br /><br />The boy ignored a deputy's commands to drop the pipe. "I'm not going to drop the pipe," the boy is quoted as saying in a report. ...<br /><br />Teschner said that because of the tight quarters the boy was in, stunning the child with a Taser was a more effective way of arresting the youth rather than using pepper spray.<br /><br />"They couldn't get close enough to deploy pepper spray without putting themselves in danger," Teschner said.<br /><br />Myers deployed the Taser at the boy, who then dropped the pipe, and Mondragon arrested the boy.</span></blockquote></div></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-8135909412547435862009-12-04T08:31:00.007-05:002009-12-04T08:44:34.659-05:00Stop Taser Torture Today!<div style="text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://stoptasertorture.blogspot.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_slrv79_M_ig/SwSoKjOfyQI/AAAAAAAAAqs/9QXTRne1-jc/s200/Blogging+For+Justice+Logo+-+Stop+Taser+Torture+-+Join+The+Movement+Red.png" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Enough is enough is enough.</span><br /><br />They're not less than lethal. They're less than or equal to lethal, at best. They're not gun replacements. They're replacements for good police practices. They're not reliable devices. They fail in the field regularly. In short, they are 'teh' suck.<br /><br />For details, click on the big red button and explore the site's links.<br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-14483589720806883642009-12-02T10:12:00.003-05:002009-12-02T10:20:37.200-05:00Witness To A Tasing<div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;">Daniel Buckner is <a href="http://www.newschannel9.com/news/buckner-986766-erlanger-says.html">dead after being tased 3-times</a>:<blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">Police say while they were trying to put Buckner in the van, he got combative with Erlanger and Hamilton County corrections officers. They wound up shocking him with a Taser. Once they subdued him, officers then loaded the 53-year-old into the van.</span> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">But when they got to Moccasin Bend, Buckner was unresponsive. Officers drove him back to Erlanger. He was pronounced dead.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">"Y'all have to show me a camera, show my husband standing up there fighting with them before I believe them," Buckner says, fighting back tears.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">His wife and children say at the time of the incident, Buckner was in a wheelchair, weak from weight loss and dehydration. They say they were told by Erlanger staff he'd fallen out of the wheelchair and onto the ground. And they say Erlanger administrators told them officers shocked him with the Taser three times, all while he was still on the ground. ...<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Chattanooga police are now questioning the Erlanger and Hamilton County corrections officers involved in the incident. A department spokesperson says they'll be looking into how many times Buckner was shocked with the Taser and if it caused his death.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The investigation hinges on the medical examiner's autopsy which, as of Monday evening, was not yet complete.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">Alice Buckner is hoping that report will give her family the answers they need.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">"There was no cause for three Tasers," Buckner cries. "I wanna know why you had to do that three times to my husband. And him already sick and weak and coming out of that hospital like that?"</span></p></blockquote><p></p>An <a href="http://www.newschannel9.com/news/says-986801-witness-buckner.html">account from an eyewitness</a>, of course, differs from police claims that Buckner was combative:<p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"></p><blockquote><p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">A witness has come forward in the case of the man who died after Erlanger officers shocked him with a Taser. ...<br /></span></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">The witness tells us she was at the hospital that day, waiting on family member who was receiving treatment, when she saw a man being escorted out of the west wing door by a man and a woman.</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">The witness says she saw Buckner fall to his knees and the woman holding him began asking him, why are you doing this? The witness says Buckner appeared weak, as though he was having trouble standing.</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">While Buckner was on the ground, staff brought out a wheelchair, but the witness says they couldn't lift Buckner into the chair. That's when Erlanger Police came out.</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">The witness took a picture showing what happened next. You can see a man on the ground, surrounded by hospital staff and uniformed officers.</span></p><p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">The witness says one of those officers put her fist into Buckner's chest, and he began screaming in pain. Then she says the officer grabbed Buckner by the back of the head and told him to get up. The woman says Buckner rolled over, onto his stomach and when he didn't get off the ground, the witness says, that's when another officer pulled out his Taser. She says the male officer shocked him three times with the Taser. She says he was on the ground the entire time.</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Erlanger officers told detectives handling the case that Buckner he got combative. The witness, who says she was there when the van originally pulled up and also says she stayed for the entire incident responds: "I never saw that. Never. At no point." She says she also never saw him struggle, fight or even yell at anyone at anytime.</span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">"The only thing I heard him say was 'Aaaah' when she was putting her fist in his chest," the witness says.</span></p></blockquote><p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"></p>When do we stop paying law enforcement to tase us into submission and then lie about it?<br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-62136678373944883542009-11-25T10:57:00.003-05:002009-11-25T11:08:27.043-05:00Tasers Come To NJ<div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;">Last year <a href="http://nateo.blogspot.com/2008/06/tasers-closer-in-nj.html">I wrote</a> about the possibility of tasers making their way in police hands in NJ, the only state keeping them from police. The NJ Attorney General has <a href="http://www.trentonian.com/articles/2009/11/24/news/doc4b0b5fd97fe93941567183.txt">given the green light</a> to tasers in the state:<blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">TRENTON — For the first time, New Jersey police have been given the right to use stun guns in certain situations by Attorney General Anne Milgram — for example, on armed, emotionally disturbed persons who refuse to surrender.<br /><br />Ewing Police Chief Robert Coulton, president of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, called Milgram’s decision “a good first step, since we’ve advocated use of them.”<br /><br />How could it be a good first step? he was asked.<br /><br />“Because anything that we can do to save lives is good.”<br /><br />New Jersey is the last state to authorize stun-gun usage, and this comes only after approval by a blue ribbon advisory committee that included retired Superior Court Appellate Judge Dennis J. Braithwaite and the executive director of the chiefs’ association, Mitchell Sklar.</span></blockquote>The following paragraph from the <a href="http://www.trentonian.com/articles/2009/11/24/news/doc4b0b5fd97fe93941567183.txt">same article</a> demonstrates why I'm confidant that tasers will be abused in the Garden State, just like they've been everywhere they've been deployed:<blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">Asked about nightmare videos depicting rogue police use of the stun guns, Coulton said, “Any level of force can be lethal in dealing with combative people, individuals who sometimes resist arrest, any level of force can be lethal, from firearms, to hand-to-hand altercations.<br /><br />“So with anything, when you’re dealing with controlling violent and aggressive individuals, sometimes those worst-case scenarios that are unfortunate do occur. And they will continue to occur in a profession when you deal with people that are combative and resisting arrest and are dangerous.”<br /><br />Coulton said it’s important that the appropriate reprecussions happen, “whether it be departmental discipline, or criminal charges and dismissal from police service. It’s a reality. They do happen from time to time, they do occur.</span></blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">With an attitude like that, there's little hope for restrained use of any randomly death-dispensing implement.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Welcome to our united torture states, NJ.</span><br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-70888502169509927742009-11-20T09:12:00.003-05:002009-11-20T09:41:43.078-05:00Surrendered And Tased<div style="text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">I'll write this once. It doesn't matter what was going on before <a href="http://rawstory.com/2009/11/cops-taser-man-in-neck/">this tasing to the neck</a>. The suspect had his hands on the hood of the car. He was not even in the infamous "aggressive stance" that people get tased for. He had surrendered.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">T</span>he video:<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyldFkm9kjPEqv5S8pBaVR05bDFC3qSq0_WcZ2FUUck1CHJi55jaRAtMSpr0YKZYa6JcCuLyqBz1WA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><br />As <a href="http://rawstory.com/2009/11/cops-taser-man-in-neck/">RawStory notes</a>, Minneapolis is quite the town for tasing. They've removed guidelines for avoiding tasing of the head, neck, and genitals:<blockquote><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">"They removed restrictions on more than one officer Tasering a person at a time, or intentionally using the Taser on the head, neck, face, or genitalia," </span><a href="http://forums.e-democracy.org/groups/mpls/messages/topic/3gi12dR6Oz2HEFzBIGSWfJ">wrote</a><span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">civil liberties advocate Dave Bicking. "They did this without consulting, or even notifying, the City Council or the [civilian review authority]. They said that they had just moved the policy to their training manuals. When we finally were able to look at a training manual, it was clear that almost all of the important provisions were gone, and officers were given much greater discretion."</span></span></span></blockquote><span><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Have we become such cowards in America - afraid of news-generated bogeymen around every corner - that we're willing to pay our taxes and happily surrender our liberties to agents of the law?</span><br /></span></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-69031649997904791582009-11-19T17:09:00.002-05:002009-11-19T17:15:03.391-05:00As If<div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As if there is any reasonable justification under the sky for tasing a <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i80oBAw3-yV38wncpM-2brLdJ0AgD9C2M41G0">TEN YEAR-OLD</a>:</span><p></p><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-family: verdana;"><p><span style="font-size:85%;">OZARK, Ark. — A police officer who used a stun gun on an unruly 10-year-old girl after he said her mother gave him permission has been suspended — not for using the Taser but for not having a video camera attached when he used it.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Mayor Vernon McDaniel said officer Dustin Bradshaw was suspended Wednesday for seven days with pay. McDaniel said the suspension is for not following department procedures because he didn't have the camera on.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">McDaniel wants Arkansas State Police or the FBI to look into whether the use of the Taser was proper. The girl, who hasn't been identified, wasn't injured and is now at the Western Arkansas Youth Shelter in Cecil.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Police were called to the home Nov. 11 after the girl's mother couldn't get her to take a shower.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Bradshaw's report says the girl was "violently kicking and verbally combative" when Bradshaw tried to take her into custody, and she kicked him in the groin. He said he delivered "a very brief drive stun to her back."</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">"Her mother told me to tase her if I needed to," Bradshaw wrote.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Kim Brunell, a spokeswoman with the FBI in Little Rock, said her office neither confirms nor denies when it's involved an investigation and declined to comment Wednesday. State police have declined McDaniel's request to investigate.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Police Chief Jim Noggle said Wednesday that Tasers are a safe way to subdue people who are a danger to themselves or others.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">"We didn't use the Taser to punish the child — just to bring the child under control so she wouldn't hurt herself or somebody else," Noggle said.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">If the officer tried to forcefully put the girl in handcuffs, he could have accidentally broken her arm or leg, Noggle said.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">He said a touch of the stun gun — "less than a second" — stopped the girl from being unruly, and she was handcuffed.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">"She got up immediately and they put her in the patrol car," McDaniel said.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Noggle said the girl will face disorderly conduct charges as a juvenile in the incident.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">The girl's father, Anthony Medlock, told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that his daughter has emotional problems, but that she didn't have a weapon and shouldn't have been Tasered.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">"My daughter does not deserve to be tased and be treated like an animal," said Medlock, who is divorced from the girl's mother and does not have custody.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Steve Tuttle, a spokesman for Taser International, said it's up to individual law enforcement agencies to decide when Taser use is appropriate.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">In some cases, a Taser "presents the safer response to resistance compared with the alternatives such as fists, kicks, baton strikes, bean bag guns, chemical agents, or canine response," Tuttle said in a statement.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">The police chief, who has been Tasered twice himself during training sessions, said his department has never had to use a stun gun on a child or elderly person before, but that in some instances, that could be necessary to ensure safety.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">"We don't want to do things like this," Noggle said. "<span style="font-weight: bold;">This is something we have to do. We're required to maintain order and keep the peace."</span></span></p></blockquote><p></p><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"Have to do"? "To keep the peace"? Really? Really? Is the world a scary place because of unruly ten year-olds? Really? WTF?</span><br /><br />Please taser fanboys, come to the defense of these morons.</span><br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-17067742636759719672009-11-19T17:03:00.002-05:002009-11-19T17:09:53.623-05:00Taser Linked To Death<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Not that we didn't know that already, but it's always affirming to <a href="http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_13824651">see it in print</a>:</span></div><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"><p style="text-align: justify;"> </p></span></span><blockquote style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"><p style="text-align: justify;">A Taser that twice shocked Brian Cardall contributed to or caused heart irregularities in the 32-year-old man that led to his death on the side of southern Utah highway in June, the Utah Medical Examiner's Office has ruled. </p></span></span></span><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"><p style="text-align: justify;"> Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Erik Christensen cited "ventricular fibrillation following conducted energy weapon deployment during a manic episode with psychotic features" as Cardall's cause of death. </p></span></span></span><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"><p style="text-align: justify;"> <i> The Salt Lake Tribune </i> obtained a copy of the autopsy report Thursday from an attorney representing the Cardalls. The family chose to release the autopsy after Washington County Attorney Brock Belnap announced he will not prosecute the officer who deployed a Taser on Cardall.<br /></p></span></span></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article">Belnap said Hurricane police Officer Ken Thompson was justified in using a Taser on Cardall as the man suffered a manic episode June 9. <p> The Cardall family disagrees with Belnap's decision, said Karra Porter, who is advising the Cardalls on their legal options in the wake of Belnap's decision. </p> <p> Christensen's report states that prongs from a Taser deployed by a Hurricane police officer struck Cardall over his heart. While Christensen acknowledged other factors could have contributed to Cardall's death, he pointed out several factors that indicate a Taser electrocuted a naked, unarmed Cardall. </p> <p> "While it is generally acknowledged that [Taser] use is safe and represents an extremely low risk due to the electrical activity of the weapon, the circumstances in this case represent a combination of the factors that are believed to increase the risk of a potential electrical death," Christensen's report reads. </p> <p> "These include the <span style="font-weight: bold;">placement of the barbs over the cardiac axis, the penetration of the barbs deeply into a thin chest wall directly over the heart, absence of intervening clothing and more than one cycle of electrical stimulation. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold;"> "Additionally, the initial cardiac rhythm of ventricular fibrillation is consistent with findings seen in cases of electrocution,"</span> Christensen wrote. </p> <p> The conclusion that the X-26 Taser, manufactured by Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Taser International, played a significant role in Cardall's death is a bold finding by Christensen. </p> <p> While Taser International has claimed its products are not risk free, the company has publicly stated its products do not cause cardiac arrest. It has filed numerous lawsuits against medical examiners across the country who have cited Tasers as a cause of death. </p></span></span></span></div></blockquote><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"><p><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Get that bolded bit? Note "placement of the barbs" and "consistent with findings seen in cases of electrocution.</span></p></span></span></p></span></span><br /><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"><p><span id="slt_site"><span id="slt_article"></span></span></p></span></span></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-32645695731533122492009-10-18T09:35:00.006-04:002009-10-18T09:54:50.983-04:00More Post-Tasing Death<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Another <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/10/17/state/n204552D31.DTL&tsp=1">death following tasing in CA</a>:</span><blockquote style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">San Bernardino police say a 19-year-old man has died after officers used a Taser to subdue him at a board-and-care facility.<br /></span><div id="TixyyLink" style="border: medium none ; overflow: hidden; background-color: transparent; text-decoration: none;"><div id="bodytext_bottom" class="bodytext bodytext_bottom"><div id="fontprefs_bottom" class="georgia md"><p><span style="font-size:85%;">The department says in a news release the man died at a hospital early Saturday.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The release says the officers had been summoned to the facility to investigate a fight involving three people late Friday night.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The release says officers separated the trio but "one of the subjects became combative and a Taser was depolyed to control him."</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The man was having trouble breathing, and police called paramedics. He was pronounced dead at a hospital about an hour later.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The man's name and cause of death have not been released.</span></p> </div></div></div><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></blockquote><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">And note that three news sources list the location where this occurred as a mental health facility.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pe.com/localnews/sbcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_W_cops18.45ec1df.html">One</a>:</span><blockquote style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="vitstorybody"><span class="vitstorybody"> <p>A 19-year-old man died late Friday after San Bernardino city police used a Taser on him at a <span style="font-weight: bold;">residential mental health facility</span>, authorities said.</p> <p>Police were called to Orchid Court, 307 S. Arrowhead Ave. around 11:30 p.m. regarding a fight involving three subjects, according to a police statement.</p> <p>Officers separated the three, but one of them became combative and a Taser was used, police said.</p> <p>Officers called paramedics to treat the unidentified man. Paramedics started to examine the man, who had stopped breathing, police said.</p> <p>The man was taken to a St. Bernardine Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, according to the San Bernardino County coroner's office.</p></span></span></span></blockquote><span class="vitstorybody"><span class="vitstorybody"><p></p></span></span><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> <a href="http://www.inlandnewstoday.com/story.php?s=11175">Two</a>:</span><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">A 19-year-old youth collapsed after being hit with an electric jolt. The incident occurred at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Orchid Court, a half-way house for mentally-challenged men</span>.<br /><br />Police said the youth was wearing a gas mask and appeared agitated at the scene of a reported stabbing. Officers tried to subdue him with the Taser weapon. He became unresponsive and could not be revived at St. Bernardine’s Medical Center.</span> </blockquote><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_S_sbtaser18.4235d06.html">Three</a>:</span><blockquote style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="vitstorybody"><span class="vitstorybody"><p> A 19-year-old man died late Friday after San Bernardino city police used a Taser on him at a residential mental health facility, authorities said. </p> <p> Police were called to Orchid Court, 307 S. Arrowhead Ave., around 11:30 p.m. regarding a fight involving three people, according to a news release. </p> <p> Officers separated the three, but one of them became combative and was "tased," police said. </p> <p> Following standard procedure, officers called paramedics to treat the unidentified man. Paramedics started to examine the man, who stopped breathing, police said. </p> <p> The man was taken to a St. Bernardine Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, according to the San Bernardino County coroner's office. An autopsy is pending to determine the cause of death. </p> <p> Friday's fatality occurred at a residential mental health center listed as one of the partners of the county's Office of Behavioral Health. Orchid Court is a state-licensed assisted living facility. ...</p><p><span class="vitstorybody"><span class="vitstorybody">San Bernardino officers are not instructed to use Tasers any differently on people suspected of mental illness or drug use, Lt. Gwendolyn Waters said. </span></span></p></span></span></span></blockquote><span class="vitstorybody"><span class="vitstorybody"><p><span class="vitstorybody"><span class="vitstorybody"></span></span></p></span></span><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">It looks as if police have implemented another post-tasing death of a mentally ill person.</span><br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-10096846537245269282009-10-15T22:05:00.015-04:002009-10-17T18:56:00.025-04:00This Is How It Will Go<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >The author at <a href="http://excited-delirium.blogspot.com/">Excited-Delirium</a></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >, affectionately referred to here as Mr. E-D,</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> notes that American media is widely ignoring</span></span> <a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://excited-delirium.blogspot.com/2009/10/taser-international-blinks-defacto.html">Taser International's recommendation</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" > (or <a href="http://nateo.blogspot.com/2009/10/dont-tase-my-heart-bro.html">here</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">) that people not aim Tasers at other peoples' chests.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Mr. E-D is, of course, correct. Even as taser horror stories pick up in Canada, Australia, and Europe, American PDs continue to add Tasers to their arsenals (see</span></span><a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;" href="http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/Chevy-Chase-looks-to-use-speed-camera-money-on-Tasers-8366004-63897617.html"></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> <a href="http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/Chevy-Chase-looks-to-use-speed-camera-money-on-Tasers-8366004-63897617.html">here</a> for a fitting example), seemingly oblivious to problems with taser overuse, the manufacturer's chest recommendation, and the mounting number of successful large settlements against cities in cases involving tasers.</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><br />The sad short of the long is that while the rest of the world may become outraged over taser abuse, don't expect most of America to blink.<br /><br />Part of the reason for this lies with our media. Reporting on police activity is widely absent from our news. It's sometimes there in the back pages, or occasionally on the front pages when a huge incident like the Sean Bell shooting happens. But, to the largest extent, here in America, the police always receive the benefit of the doubt starting with </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">a lack of critical examination from the press. After that, we have a large contingent of police apologists ready to attack anyone wanting to exam law enforcement implementation. Our police are kept in a protected hero class.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Another aspect of America that makes any resistance to taser, and police brutality in general, difficult, is that we love to see minorities suffer. We have a long tradition of enjoying that. We are the home of Bull Connor and the show Cops.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">So, to my international friends who find the lack of American attention to taser abuse shocking, I have sad little to offer. We're a nation of fat savages and don't change unless we're forced to.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Oh, and to my fellow Americans. I'll complain as much as I like, you can stick your "love it or leave it" up your arse.</span><br /></span></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-39881280568294157332009-10-09T07:43:00.004-04:002009-10-09T07:50:55.624-04:00The Suits Keep Paying<div style="text-align: justify; font-family: verdana;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Another <a href="http://www.tdn.com/articles/2009/10/08/breaking_news/doc4ace247871aac382076474.txt">$100k+ settlement</a> awarded for tasing:</span><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">A Spokane County reserve fund will pay some $112,000 to a man who was shocked three times with a Taser by a deputy during a traffic stop in 2005.<br /><br />County commissioners approved a settlement this week with Spirit Creager, a painter who had sued the county for $5 million in 2006, saying he couldn't work or sleep for weeks after being jolted by sheriff's Deputy Chad Ruff.<br /><br />The county's risk management reserve fund will also pay $25,000 to Creager's teenage son, who was in the truck shortly after midnight on Aug. 30, 2004, when it was stopped on Dartford Road. The son witnessed the altercation between Creager and deputies, causing emotional distress, according to the family's claim.</span></blockquote><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-44775596511714778392009-10-08T14:10:00.003-04:002009-10-08T14:47:00.917-04:00Don't Tase My Heart Bro<a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20091007/160_CGY_Taser_Target_091007.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 160px; height: 120px;" src="http://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20091007/160_CGY_Taser_Target_091007.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;" >So </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20091007/CGY_Taser_Target_091007/20091007/?hub=CalgaryHome">says the manufacturer</a><span style="font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;" >:</span><div style="text-align: justify; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><p><span style="font-size:85%;">A company that makes Tasers has issued new guidelines to police who use their product. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">Taser International maintains its devices are safe but is telling police to avoid aiming the weapon at a suspect's chest. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">On Wednesday those new rules were passed onto Calgary police. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">"We have released a new directive, relative to Taser targeting, to our members and this follows a training bulletin that Taser International released," says SSgt. Chris Butler from the Calgary Police Service. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The bulletin, which is posted on Taser International's website, includes a diagram showing the new target areas on a suspect's body. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The bulletin instructs police: "when possible, avoiding chest shots with ECDS avoids the controversy about whether ECD's do, or do not, affect the human heart." </span></p></blockquote><p></p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:85%;" >(h/t <a href="http://truthnottasers.blogspot.com/2009/10/taser-maker-issues-new-guidelines.html">Truth Not Tasers</a> via <a href="http://excited-delirium.blogspot.com/">Excited-delirium</a>)</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Given Taser International's diagram (the one above), let's hope that the cops using tasers are good shots.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Make no mistake, this is enormous news. So much for tasers being "<a href="http://excited-delirium.blogspot.com/search?q=tylenol">safer than Tylenol</a>". </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Imagine having been a fly on the wall in the room when Taser International's lawyers and executives discussed this one!</span> </div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-66247527503498769362009-09-28T15:57:00.002-04:002009-09-28T16:03:00.130-04:00Dead For Running<div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;">A 38 year-old man <a href="http://www.bradenton.com/news/breaking_news/story/1736069.html">is dead, post-tasing</a>:<div id="story_text_top"> <p> </p></div><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><div id="story_text_top"><p><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">BRADENTON — A Bradenton man died at Manatee Memorial Hospital early today after he fled police and an officer used a Taser on him, according to a report by the Bradenton Police Department issued this morning.</span></span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Derrick Humbert, 38, refused to make a traffic stop at 12:18 a.m. when directed to do so by officers in the area of the 700 block of 27th Street East, according to the report prepared by Deputy Chief J.J. Lewis.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Humbert then fled on foot, running through several residential yards, the report said. One of the pursuing officers used his Taser, it said. A Taser is an electro-shock weapon that is used to slow or immobilize a suspect. </span></p> </div><!-- CLOSE: #story_body_top --> <p style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;"> Police called emergency medical service workers to take Humbert to the hospital, where he died while being treated, the release said. The police department is conducting an investigation and awaiting autopsy results to determine the cause of death, the report said.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Police said they later determined that Humbert had an outstanding arrest warrant for possession of marijuana, the report said. The name of the officer was not released this morning.</span></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></p>The comments of the article are, per usual, pretty gross. Taser fanboys and police apologists (TFPAs) are fine with death, randomly doled out, being the punishment for being high or running from the cops. I'd be willing to bet that most TFPAs call themselves good Christians too.<br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-619769976888081902009-09-25T14:45:00.005-04:002009-09-25T14:53:21.878-04:00Smelling Blood<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >From a <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/article.cfm/2009/09/28/Golden-Valley-Taser-case-leads-to-significant-payout">legal news source</a>:</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="line-height: 20px;font-size:14;" ><span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;" ></span></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Most recently, Sandra Brown settled a Taser suit against the city of Golden Valley. Police used a Taser on Brown while she was sitting in the passenger seat of her car talking on her cell phone to a 911 operator. Police had ordered her to hang up the phone.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">St. Paul attorney Paul Applebaum represented Brown, who suffered no serious physical injury, but was traumatized by the incident and had to go on anti-anxiety medication. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The case settled last week for $200,000 without any admission of liability.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" >The settlement demonstrates that even when they do not involve death or major physical damages, a good Taser case is worth pursuing.</span></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="line-height: 20px;font-size:14;" ><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;" ></span><br /></span></span></span></blockquote></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana;font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">That's very interesting given the <a href="http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20090923/stun-gun-maker-taser-blogs-to-beat-bad-buzz.htm">vast portions of profits</a> Taser International already devotes to fending off legal threats:</span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" ><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">On average, the Scottsdale, Arizona-based company spends about $4 million a year in litigation-related expenses -- more than its annual net profit in 2008.</span></blockquote>I would be such a grouchy shareholder.</span><br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-54695578051547491652009-09-22T08:31:00.004-04:002009-09-22T08:49:59.486-04:00Shockingly Expensive<div style="text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">More tasers costing Joe taxpayer:<br /><blockquote><a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/60107767.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUUsZ">$200K in Golden Valley, Minnesota</a><br /><a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/09/jury_orders_portland_to_pay_ma.html">$55K in Portland, Oregon</a></blockquote></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-31603967391318684852009-09-21T08:24:00.004-04:002009-09-21T17:04:26.424-04:00So Brave<div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" ><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">PostBlog: <a href="http://taseredwhileblack.blogspot.com/2009/09/police-taser-unarmed-legless-black-man.html">Tasered While Black has much more</a> on this heinous incident including a link to video of the arrest.</span><br /><br /></span></span></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >In Merced, CA, white cops <a href="http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/1645285.html">tase a wheelchair-bound black man</a>:</span><blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;">MERCED -- The Merced Police Department's Internal Affairs Division is investigating a complaint alleging that an officer twice used a Taser against an unarmed man with no legs in a wheelchair.<br /></span><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Gregory Williams, 40, a double-leg amputee, spent six days in jail on suspicion of domestic violence and resisting arrest after the Sept. 11 incident. Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse II said there wasn't enough evidence to file charges, however.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Williams, who was released from jail Friday, said he was violently manhandled and Tasered by police, even though he claims he never was physically aggressive toward the officers or resisted arrest.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Williams says he was publicly humiliated after his pants fell down during the incident. The officers allegedly left him outdoors in daylight, handcuffed on the pavement, nude below the waist. Williams said the arrest also left him with an injured shoulder, limiting his mobility in his wheelchair.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">A handful of residents who live in Williams' apartment complex say they witnessed the incident and support Williams' charges. A short video clip, shot by a neighbor, shows Williams sitting on the pavement with his pants down, his hands cuffed behind his back.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;"> Eddie Blaylock, a 38-year-old resident of the apartment complex, said he took notice after seeing "two cops trying to handcuff a guy in a wheelchair." </span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">After seeing an officer pull out his Taser, Blaylock said he yelled, "Hey, you can't do that!" One of the officers threatened to Taser Blaylock if he "didn't step back," he said. Blaylock said he never saw Williams resist arrest or become violent.<br /></span></p><p></p></blockquote><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;" >And from <a href="http://www.mercedsunstar.com/local/story/1068479.html">another source</a>:</span></p><blockquote><p style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-family: verdana;"> </p><span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;" ><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">And although the two lead arresting officers are white, and Williams is black, it remains unknown whether race was a factor in the incident. Those two officers remain on duty.</span></span></blockquote><span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;" ><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"></span></span></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-68826973727425757402009-09-19T07:34:00.002-04:002009-09-19T07:42:53.487-04:00Lots of Death<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">From <a href="http://www.modbee.com/crime/story/860273.html">Modesto, CA</a>:</span><blockquote><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><div id="story_text_top"><p style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;"> An inmate at the Stanislaus County Jail in downtown Modesto died after jailers used a Taser to subdue him as he was being moved to another cell Wednesday afternoon, sheriff's officials reported Friday.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">This is the third time in five months an inmate has died</span> while in custody after law enforcement officials used Tasers to subdue the men. All three were being held at the sheriff's downtown Modesto jail when they died.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">Authorities are still investigating the previous two deaths.</span></span></p></div></blockquote><div id="story_text_top"><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;font-size:85%;" ></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;">Add this to situations where <a href="http://www.jacksonville.com/news/metro/2009-09-11/story/recent_failures_show_tasers_not_always_reliable_for_jacksonville_police">tasers fail</a> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">and ask yourself what reasonable cop would want to fire a taser.</span></span><br /></p> </div></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-36752578902448936462009-09-18T08:36:00.002-04:002009-09-18T08:39:50.414-04:00Interesting Discussion<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: verdana; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Pam has a <a href="http://pamshouseblend.com/diary/13040/school-guards-to-be-armed-with-50kvolt-tasers-for-the-tots">post up</a> about tasers in schools. There are some interesting discussions going on in the comments... lots of splitting hairs trying to defend tasers.</span><br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5906330.post-37501103687371959782009-09-07T09:49:00.003-04:002009-09-07T10:05:33.979-04:00More Death<div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: verdana;">This time from <a href="http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=122798&catid=339">Aurora, CO</a>:<blockquote style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:85%;">AURORA - The fugitive arrested by police officers on Sept. 3 after a struggle that included two shots from a taser, has died.<br /></span><p><span style="font-size:85%;">Aurora Police say Shane Ledbetter had run from officers last Thursday after providing false information about his identity. Police say Ledbetter violently resisted when they caught up with him and attempted to arrest him. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">Police say that is when one officer used his taser to subdue and handcuff him near Mission Viejo Park. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">Officers say Ledbetter then became unresponsive and they began CPR. Ledbetter was taken to a local hospital where he died on Sunday. </span></p></blockquote><p></p>Do running from the cops and resisting arrest justify a randomly dispensed death sentence? That's the question that post-tasing deaths offer us.<br /></div>Natehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14947801680935531794noreply@blogger.com0