Saskatchewan Police Commission to review research on Tasers

October 31, 2009
Regina Leader-Post

REGINA — The Saskatchewan Police Commission is expected to meet in December to review its research on Tasers as a use-of-force option for front-line police.

“The work that we are doing by way of research — pulling materials together — will be taken to the commission in December. They will then review that and make some decisions on how they will move forward on approval or not approval of the usage of Tasers,’’ said commission executive director Murray Sawatsky.

In July of 2008, the commission, which oversees and regulates the province’s 14 municipal and First Nation police forces, placed a moratorium on the general use of CEDs by front-line officers in response to the controversies surrounding several high-profile Taser-related deaths and the lack of technical and medical information tied to their usage.

The commission, which has been tasked with developing policy and protocol on the usage of the conducted energy devices (CEDs), is expected to make its decision by the end of the year or early 2010.

Currently, under existing rules Tasers can only be utilized by special weapons and tactics team (SWAT) members in Saskatchewan.

As part of its research, the commission will be examining the recommendations in the Braidwood Report, which was released in July and setting up stringent standards for the use of CEDs by British Columbia police, and will be looking at independent medical information and submissions by interested parties.

Decision regarding Taser use by Saskatchewan police to come around end of 2009

August 18, 2009
By Anne Kyle, Leader-Post

REGINA — Saskatchewan front-line police should know by year's end or early 2010 whether they will be equipped with Tasers as a use-of-force option and when they can use these devices.

The Saskatchewan Police Commission, which is developing policy and protocol on the usage of conducted energy devices (CEDs), is gathering submissions from interested parties and undertaking its own research, and will be examining the recommendations in the Braidwood Report — which was released last month setting out stringent standards for the use of CEDs by British Columbia police — before making its decision, said acting chairman Paul Korpan.

"We are right now defining the scope of our own research. We have a budget for it and a time line for it. We are really at the stage of exercising our diligence in determining the scope of what research we are undertaking, independent of what the Braidwood Inquiry did,'' Korpan said.

"However, we are going to give considerable weight to the Braidwood Report, I think in my opinion — I can't speak for the other commission members — as a great deal of work and resources went into that report.

"In fact, the researchers we have retained are going to be in communication with the research team that were used in that report. Some of the medical information in that report is out of date now, by a year, so we are going to bring that information current and look at this afresh.''

In July of 2008, the commission, which oversees and regulates the province's 14 municipal and First Nations police forces, placed a moratorium on the general use of CEDs by front-line officers in response to the controversies surrounding several high-profile Taser-related deaths and the lack of technical and medial information tied to their usage.

Currently, Tasers can only be utilized by SWAT members in Saskatchewan in tactical situations.

"I think it is pretty safe to say we are going to be looking at the Braidwood recommendations around special training for officers in identifying persons who may have mental health issues,'' Korpan said, noting B.C. does not have an independent civilian commission with police oversight so government there has to establish regulations regarding the use of force.

"We will be setting rules around the use of Tasers and a protocol for training in the use of those weapons.''

Korpan added the commission will likely render its decision late this year or early in 2010.

Taser standards sought in Saskatchewan

July 28, 2009
James Wood, The StarPhoenix

The Saskatchewan Police Commission wants a provincewide protocol on what situations Tasers can be used in by police officers, whether or not front-line officers end up equipped with the weapons at the end of an ongoing review.

The government-appointed independent commission is currently studying the Taser issue and issued a statement Monday saying that last week's Braidwood report -- which set much more stringent standards for use of the conducted energy devices by British Columbia police -- would be relevant but not decisive to its work.

Under police commission rules for Saskatchewan's municipal police services, Tasers currently can only be utilized by members of special weapons and tactical teams.

However, the three services with SWAT teams -- Saskatoon, Regina and Prince Albert -- set their own protocol for Taser use by SWAT team members.

Murray Sawatsky, executive director for the provincial police commission, said Monday that the commission wants to see provincewide standards for use of the devices by police.

"There is no specific policy right now. The individual police services have developed their own. And I think that's what the commission wants to do . . . make a policy that applies to all use of them, by tactical teams as well," he said in an interview.

RCMP in Saskatchewan are not regulated by the police commission and front-line officers do carry Tasers. The B.C. government and retired judge Thomas Braidwood want the RCMP to follow his report's recommendations but the force is non-committal at this point.

Among the recommendations of the first of two reports by Braidwood, who oversaw the inquiry into the 2007 death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski after he was Tasered by RCMP at the Vancouver airport, were changes to the protocol around Taser use.

Instead of being allowed to use them when a suspect shows "active resistance," there will have to be a threat of the suspect inflicting "bodily harm."

Chief Clive Weighill said that is in line with the Saskatoon Police Service's current protocol on using the devices and would continue to be so even if front-line officers are ultimately equipped with Tasers, as he advocates.

"Conducted energy devices (are) right under . . . the use of a firearm. That's how restricted we see the use of this weapon," he said in an interview Monday.

"Some police forces have put this weapon lower on their continuum (of force). So they've been using it at what I would say is a lower level. Maybe sometimes other tactics could be used."

Tasers can be used to both subdue suspects or to force compliance. But Weighill said police should never use the weapons for the latter purpose.

Weighill said he would support a province-wide protocol on Taser use for municipal police services, noting that policies between the services are already similar.

Regina deputy chief Bob Morin said he was reluctant to talk about the SWAT team policy on Taser use, but said Taser use must be approved ahead of time by a superior officer.

"I can probably say this much. . . . We believe (Tasers) to be a less-than-lethal device and that it may be applicable to control violent offenders without putting officers or the community at risk," he said.

Weighill said he also had no problem with any of the 19 recommendations in retired judge Thomas Braidwood's report and that they are broadly similar to existing policies in Saskatoon.

Among Braidwood's recommendations:

- That Tasers only be deployed to enforce federal criminal offences;

- That Taser use on the emotionally disturbed be used as a last resort; and

- That provincial standards be adopted for rigorous and regular training of officers, testing of devices and reporting on use.

Still No TASERs in Moose Jaw (Saskatchewan)

June 25, 2009

Discover Moose Jaw

Its a controversial tool that most police departments around the world use to try and prevent death and injury. But in Moose Jaw and across the province, its affect on the human body are still being investigated.

Some officers swear by it, others refuse to carry it.

Its been 35 years since the first TASER was developed and 15 years since its modern counterpart hit the market and yet the affects of the "non-lethal" weapon have not yet been fully verified.

More investigation needs to be done before local police begin using TAZSERs. The Saskatchewan Police Commission has been reviewing the issue over the last few years and is now looking for input from stakeholders.

The commission wants to make sure all safety and public policy implications have been evaluated and that the technology is fully understood before coming to a conclusion according to Chair Mitchell Holash.

"We're committed to making a quality decision here with the best information available. We won't compromise the quality of the decision with some artificial time line. Its my hope that we can work through this process in this calendar year but we'll know better after we see these submissions."

Here in Moose Jaw, the TASER has been sitting on the shelf for a number of years as the local police service has been waiting for an official decision from the commission before bringing the device into active service.

Saskatchewan Police Commission Looks for Input on Taser Use

June 24, 2009
Saskatoonhomepage.ca

Right now, Chiefs of Police in Saskatchewan can authorize the use of CEDs - or tasers - only for emergency response teams.

But the Saskatchewan Police Commission is reviewing the devices to determine whether there should be widespread use throughout the province's municipal police forces.

And the Commission is looking for input. Chair Mitch Holash says they've approached a number of organizations like - Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police, Saskatchewan Federation Amnesty International, the Provincial Ombudsmen, the Saskatchewan Health Association and the Mental Health Association - to make written submissions.

Holash says they are consulting with groups the Commission feels have a mandate that touches on public interest. He says they hope to make a determination this year but points out there are large amounts of information to sift through so the information will dictate the process.

RCMP taking 200 Tasers out of service in Saskatchewan

June 3, 2009
By Joe Couture, Regina Leader-Post

REGINA — The RCMP is taking almost 200 Tasers out of its arsenal in Saskatchewan.

Earlier this week, the RCMP announced that it would pull more than 1,500 older-model Tasers — also known as conducted-energy devices or conducted-energy weapons — from service in detachments across the country on the grounds that they might not generate a powerful enough electrical charge.

In Saskatchewan, the move will take out of service 193 of the older Tasers, according to a spokesman for the RCMP.

The decision to take the M26 Taser out of service came after B.C. government tests showed the majority of the units tested were "underperforming."

Results of the tests showed that 80 per cent of the devices failed to operate within the manufacturer specifications.

Ninety per cent of the units produced less electrical output than would be expected, "potentially presenting both public and officer safety risks," according to a news release from the RCMP.

The RCMP will test all M26 units in its inventory across the country, and only those confirmed to be functioning properly will be returned to active service.

In a statement provided to the Leader-Post on Wednesday, the company that makes Tasers defended its products.

"Taser International stands behind the quality and safety of its electronic control devices," said spokesman Peter Holran, noting that it is "not unusual for some high-tech electrical devices to experience a slight degradation in the electrical components over time."

Holran said his understanding is that the M26 units tested in B.C. fell below the specifications for energy output.

"A lower energy output equates to a higher safety margin, and, therefore, the medical safety of these devices is not in question," Holran continued. "Since there has been confusion over proper testing protocol and specification . . . under no circumstance should any of these devices be destroyed so as to preclude further analysis by other labs."

The RCMP's inventory also includes more than 1,500 Tasers of the X26 model, which is smaller and produces less output, while "achieving the same operational result," stated the RCMP.

The intention is to eventually replace all of the M26 models with X26 models.

The RCMP has 109 X26 model Tasers currently in service in Saskatchewan.

In the first six months of 2008 — the most recent period for which statistics are available on the RCMP's website — members in Saskatchewan activated Tasers 41 times. In addition, officers presented or threatened to use Tasers — but did not activate them — 61 times.

The total of 102 deployments is higher than that in any other province or territory, except Alberta and B.C., where Tasers were used 131 and 227 times, respectively. In Manitoba, Tasers were deployed 51 times in the first half of 2008.

The RCMP's responsibilities differ in every province. There weren't any statistics for Ontario or Quebec, where the force has a limited policing presence.

In B.C., where the RCMP is responsible for many highly populated urban areas, its 9,500 employees make up almost one-third of the entire national force.

In Saskatchewan there are about 1,200 members, not including those connected to Depot Division. In Alberta, there are about 2,200 members and in Manitoba, there are about 1,150 RCMP employees.

Taser problems affect Saskatchewan RCMP arsenal

June 2, 2009
CBC News

Issues about the reliability of a model of Taser are affecting more than half of the units currently on hand in detachments of the RCMP in Saskatchewan.

The M26 model, which has been identified as not performing to specifications, has been taken out of service by RCMP officials while they examine the issue further.

In Saskatchewan, an RCMP spokesperson told CBC News that the move affects 193 Tasers in different locations across the province.

Another model, the X26, can still be used. Saskatchewan RCMP has 109 of those.

The X26 is a new model of Taser. An RCMP spokesperson told CBC News that senior officers were examining their options, which could include buying new Tasers to replace the ones taken out of service.

The RCMP also plans to test each Taser, to see if it performs to specifications.

Meanwhile, the company that makes the device said the older model Tasers are actually safer, not more dangerous.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the company said the M26 delivers a lower energy output, making it safer to use.

Taser International also questioned tests that found some of the Tasers were flawed.

Multiple-jolt Taser use by Sask. RCMP spiked in 2007, analysis shows

April 8, 2009
CBC News

RCMP in Saskatchewan delivered multiple jolts from their Taser devices in 23 separate cases in 2007, the highest annual tally of such deployments in the province within the period of 2004 to 2008, a joint CBC News and Canadian Press analysis shows.

In other years, the number of incidents in which multiple discharges (three jolts or more) were used was as low as six in 2008 and between 14 and 17 for the years 2004 to 2006, inclusive.

The figures come from a database of RCMP Taser reports created by CBC News and the Canadian Press. According to the database, 2007 also saw two remarkable Taser incidents in which a stun gun was discharged 15 times on unco-operative subjects.

One of the Taser incidents recorded that year involved Jake Sopkow, a Saskatchewan man from Kamsack. Sopkow, now 21, had a run-in with RCMP following a rodeo dance one Saturday night in late September 2007. Sopkow estimated he had drunk nine or 10 beers on that occasion. He admits that it was not wise of him to struggle with police when they tried to arrest him for allegedly causing a disturbance but feels the officers had the upper hand.

"I'm only 150 pounds," Sopkow said. "I had four officers on me, which were damn near 200 pounds each. So, they're taking the wind right out of me, [and] I was struggling to get out of their grip so I can get some breath back into my lungs."

Sopkow said that it was during that struggle that one of the officers applied the Taser. "Then ... out of nowhere I got a Taser," Sopkow said. "And … they kept on Tasering me." Sopkow said he was surprised that officers reached for the device so quickly. "I thought Tasers … [were used] to deal with people with weapons or someone fighting back or something." Sopkow said. "All I did, basically, was pull my arm away from [an officer's] grip because he was being pretty physical."

Sopkow said he was placed in a jail cell and then shocked again. When he was released the next day, he did not feel right, he said.

"Two hours after release, my heart felt like it was racing like no tomorrow," Sopkow said. "So, I took myself to the hospital, and … they kept me in overnight. They had me on monitors. My heart [rate] was probably double the rate it should have been."

Medical reports indicated that his pulse rate was 134 beats per minute at around 3:30 p.m. CT. The doctor who saw Sopkow also noted 10 burn marks, concentrated on his back near the shoulder and on his left thigh.

Ultimately, RCMP charged Sopkow with two counts of assault and with causing a disturbance. He was convicted of one count of assault.

While many details of the incidents recorded in the RCMP Taser reports were masked, the documents do include a reference to a Kamsack subject who was, according to the report "causing a disturbance" and "became combative and assaulted a police officer" in 2007.

The report says a Taser was deployed three times as an alternative to the use of lethal force to avoid a threat of injury. It also notes that four officers were present.

RCMP reach for Tasers most in Saskatchewan's north

April 2, 2009
CBC News

RCMP in La Loche, Sask., have used Tasers on 37 occasions over six years to shock subjects into submission, information obtained by CBC News shows.

La Loche is a Saskatchewan community of 2,400 people, located about 650 kilometres north of Saskatoon.

The frequency of Taser use by members of the La Loche detachment was described as the highest rate in all of Saskatchewan, according to documents received by CBC News under federal Access to Information laws. The data covered the years 2002 to 2008.

The figures, contained in RCMP reports, show that La Loche officers used a Taser to deal with violent, often intoxicated individuals in the remote village.

RCMP Staff Sgt. Herb Perpelitz, who has spent 20 of his 24 years of police work patrolling northern Saskatchewan, told CBC News that officers in northern areas face unique circumstances.

"Our people are dealing with violence, for the most part," Perpelitz said. "Most of them do stem from the alcohol and drug abuse that has really been inherent in the north because of social conditions."

As for the frequency of Taser use in La Loche, Perpelitz said each situation is different. However, he believes the device can be an effective policing tool.

"The Taser still is an acceptable police practice," Perpelitz noted, adding two provisos: "that the situation would warrant it, and members have to be fully trained in the use of it."

The Taser reports from La Loche had officers facing intoxicated individuals armed with knives, screwdrivers and clubs. In some cases, suspects were high on amphetamines and heroin.

A vice-chief for the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, in reviewing the Taser figures, observed that getting an electric shock from police would be preferable to being shot.

Morley Watson, a vice-chief with responsibilities for justice issues, told CBC News that, nevertheless, the frequency of Taser use is a concern to the FSIN.

Watson said he is concerned any time force is used by police.

However, he added that he has spoken to families of people shot by RCMP, and believes Tasers can play a role in policing.

"When you talk to the families there, they sometimes say, 'Geez, there should have been another option to gunfire,'" Watson said.

He said the FSIN's special investigative unit looks at complaints brought forward from individuals who feel they've been mistreated by police.

Watson said his organization is aware of five incidents this year where RCMP used Tasers on First Nations individuals.

Saskatchewan man suing RCMP over 2008 Taser incident

April 1, 2009
CBC News

A lawsuit alleging that RCMP in Saskatchewan used a Taser on a man more than a dozen times has generated vastly conflicting versions of what happened.

The matter has not proceeded to trial, but court documents reveal how the two sides — the man and the police — view the episode, which dates back a year.

In his statement of claim, Bruce Janvier, 43, from the northern Saskatchewan community of La Loche, says he continues to suffer from the aftereffects of being hit with a Taser stun gun in April 2008.

Janvier told CBC News that he was plucked off a La Loche street by two RCMP officers for no reason and taken to the local detachment.

Upon arrival, his claim alleges that the RCMP constables "in an attempt to cause further embarrassment to the plaintiff, pulled the plaintiff's pants down and made him enter the detachment building in that manner."

"They just put me in the drunk tank," Janvier told CBC in an interview. "That's when they Tasered me, in there, with those two guys [the RCMP officers] still holding my arms."

Janvier said he was shocked 14 times and suffered burns to his back, thighs and buttocks.

"It's horrible," Janvier said, describing what he felt. "The pain I've never felt in my life."

In his statement of claim, Janvier said he lost consciousness for a time.

According to Janvier's court documents, although the RCMP laid two charges — one of resisting arrest and a second of committing an indecent act — the case was not pursued by prosecutors.

'He told the officers he was Elvis Presley'
— RCMP statement of defenceThe RCMP have a markedly different recollection of the encounter.

In their statement of defence, the police say Janvier was stunned with a Taser three times in their cells and that he was struggling violently and posed a threat to officers and himself.

RCMP say plaintiff mooned them
They also said they had good reason to arrest the man, after noticing him on the town's main street.

They said he had pulled down his pants and was mooning officers.

The RCMP approached the man and determined he was drunk.

"The plaintiff smelled strongly of beverage alcohol, slurred his words and did not make any sense while speaking," the RCMP's court filing said. "He told the officers he was 'Elvis Presley' and asked the constables not to kill him."

According to police, Janvier was arrested at 9:25 p.m.

Their statement of defence also dealt with the allegations about what happened in the cells.

The RCMP version holds that Janvier was kicking and screaming and not following directions.

"The plaintiff was given numerous Taser warnings," the RCMP said. They admit that the officers delivered three Taser jolts and that the device sent a shock to Janvier's back and arms.

The RCMP said the man did not lose consciousness and did not have any difficulty breathing after being shocked.

They say Janvier was released the following afternoon.

The statements from Janvier and the RCMP are part of the beginning stages of a civil lawsuit, and neither is considered factual until determined so by a court.

People in La Loche told CBC News that the use of Tasers by police had become an issue in the community.

Georgina Jolibois, the mayor of La Loche, said other incidents prompted people to raise concerns.

"Individuals did come forward and express their concerns, and some of them have been actual victims of Taser usage," Jolibois said.

She added that the local village council met with senior RCMP to discuss the matter, and that they now have a good relationship.

La Loche is a community of about 2,400 situated roughly 650 kilometres north of Saskatoon.

Saskatchewan panel to review Taser policy

February 8, 2009
By Canwest News Service

REGINA — The board that oversees municipal police forces in Saskatchewan will soon reconsider whether officers on the beat will be able to carry Tasers.

The Saskatchewan Police Commission decided in July 2008 it would not authorize the general use of conducted energy devices by the province’s 14 municipal and First Nation police services until more information is available, reversing an earlier decision.

But with four new members appointed by the Saskatchewan Party government last November, the five-person commission resolved at its first meeting last week to review that decision.

Board chairman Mitch Holash, one of the new appointees, said that as the previous board wished there is now more information — on technical changes in the devices, how they fit into police work and on their health effects — and the commission has asked its staff to assemble it all for review.

“We don’t want to pre-empt the outcome of this . . . there is a number of different (potential) outcomes, from the policy staying as it is to the policy being changed somewhat,” said Holash, a Prince Albert lawyer. “We want to make sure that the decision that is made of whether or not the device is going to be permissible to the rank-and-file police officer . . . is made on the best information possible.”

When the review will take place will be determined during the next few weeks.

Saskatchewan police will alert public to taser use

February 5, 2009
By Canwest News Service

SASKATOON — The Saskatoon Police Service will notify the public every time an officer uses a Taser.

Police Chief Clive Weighill announced the change in a letter to Canwest News Service and a followup interview, responding to a request for police records of all incidents in which Tasers have been used.

“We reviewed how we do business and we thought it would be a good idea to let the public know anytime we use a conducted energy device,” Weighill said in an interview. “It’s a controversial topic and the public should know when they’re used properly and, if they’re deployed and there’s a problem, they should know about that as well.”

The Saskatoon Police Service has two Tasers, which only the emergency response team uses.

The Saskatchewan Police Commission is reviewing the use of Tasers by the province’s 14 municipal and First Nation police services.

Weighill said he would like all front-line officers to carry Tasers. “Any way we can help our officers make a decision where they don’t have to use lethal force is better for all of us,” Weighill said.

In his Jan. 29 letter, Weighill said he won’t release the police records themselves because they contain names of officers and witnesses as well as information about police tactics.

Sask. Police Commission appoints four new members

November 24, 2008
James Wood, TheStarPhoenix.com

REGINA - With almost completely new membership, the Saskatchewan Police Commission will likely soon look again at the use of Tasers by municipal police forces.

The Saskatchewan Party cabinet has appointed four new members to fill expired positions on the five-person commission, which regulates municipal police forces in Saskatchewan.

Among the new appointees is Prince Albert lawyer Mitch Holash, who replaces Regina lawyer Michael Tochor as the chair.

In July, the commission announced it would not authorize the general use of Tasers by members of the province's 14 municipal and First Nation police services until more information is available, reversing an earlier decision to allow the devices.

"It is in the process of being visited as we speak," Holash said in an interview Monday.

"I think the commission was having some research undertaken in that regard and that my understanding generally is that one of the responsibilities on this board's plate when we meet will be to look at some information that has come forward through that process.

"I certainly know it will be on our early agendas as a new board. As to what we do with it and to the status of it, we'll be apprised when we meet."

In an order-in-council, cabinet also appointed Catherine Sloan and Neil Caldwell of Saskatoon and Patricia Crowe of Prince Albert to the commission. Paul Korpan of Regina is the sole holdover from the board and will serve as vice-chair. Holash said the new commission is likely to meet in two or three weeks.

Another item the commission is likely to look at is the recent spate of police shootings in Saskatchewan. Most of those involve the RCMP, which is not under the commission's jurisdiction, but there were also two high-profile shootings by Saskatoon police last December, one that saw a woman wounded by police and another that saw the death of Dwayne Charles Dustyhorn, which is not specifically mentioned in the report.

As well, P.A. police shot and killed Jackie Montgrand in March of this year. In all cases the victims reportedly had weapons they refused to drop.

Holash said as with the Taser issue, the new commissioners will inherit valuable work that has already been commenced by the commission. "Certainly, that particular type of issue falls squarely within what The Police Act mandates us to consider . . . it'll be on our plate," he said.

Among the duties of the commission are setting the standards for municipal police, programming of the Saskatchewan Police College, promoting the preservation of peace and crime prevention, improving relations between the police and public and serving as the final body of appeal in disciplinary and dismissal matters involving officers.

Holash has represented police officers, police services - including Saskatoon's - and the public in police-related matters.

Among the recent cases Holash handled for Saskatoon police was fighting the appeal of two former constables fired following the Neil Stonechild inquiry.

Corrections, Public Safety and Policing Minister Darryl Hickie - a Prince Albert police officer and MLA who describes himself as an acquaintance of Holash - said the lawyer's familiarity with police issues made him the ideal choice for the position.

Hickie said there was no discussion of the Taser issue with the new board members before they were appointed and any decision to revisit the issue will be at the commission's discretion.

Tochor said in July the commission would await the results of the inquest into the Taser-related death in Vancouver of Polish citizen Robert Dziekanski in October 2007 and other reviews.

"Right now, I know everyone's in the holding pattern across Canada waiting to see what those inquests will tell us," said Hickie.

The other departing members of the commission are Edward Henderson, Betty McKenna and Karen Prisciak.

Zapped by The Economist

July 31, 2008
The Economist

Do electronic stun guns take more lives than they save?

WHEN an electronic gun designed to immobilise but not kill emerged from the pages of science fiction and went into manufacture a decade ago, police forces around the world snapped it up. Instead of shooting suspected criminals who posed a threat, they could now zap them with 50,000 volts of electricity and have them safely in handcuffs before they recovered enough to resist or flee.

But are stun guns really non-lethal? Canadians have been wondering since a Polish immigrant died last October at Vancouver airport after police subdued him with a Taser, the most popular brand of the electronic weapon. An amateur video of the incident posted on YouTube sparked a public debate, and several official inquiries. On July 22nd a 17-year old youth in Winnipeg became the 21st person to die in Canada after being fired at with a Taser.

The gun’s American manufacturer, Taser International, has sold 300,000 of them to police forces in 45 countries. It contends that just because someone dies after receiving a jolt, it does not necessarily follow that the Taser was to blame. It says—and some doctors agree—that pre-existing heart conditions, drug and alcohol abuse, and the agitation of having been pursued are all more likely causes of deaths in police custody. Tom Smith, Taser’s chairman, told a committee of Canada’s Parliament earlier this year that although 50,000 volts sounds like a lot, a static charge from a doorknob is almost as high.

Such arguments have proved persuasive with juries. Taser International has won or had dismissed 71 lawsuits for wrongful death or injury. Most of these cases were in the United States, where just over 300 deaths following Taser use have been recorded. (The company suffered a rare courtroom loss earlier this year when a Californian jury ordered it to pay $6.2m to the parents of a man who died after being shocked. It is appealing.) A company spokesman points out that no medical examiner in Canada has pointed to the Taser as a contributing factor in any deaths.

Yet doubts persist. In June the parliamentary committee urged the federal government to commission independent studies. Amnesty International, a human-rights group, wants a temporary ban on Taser use until the research is complete. None of the official reviews backs that, but they call for tighter rules on the use of Tasers and better training for officers who handle them. The Saskatchewan Police Commission has reversed a plan to deploy more Tasers and is restricting their use to specialised teams. By limiting the use of conventional guns by police the stun guns may indeed save lives.

But Canadians do not like their police to be trigger-happy, even with “non-lethal” weaponry.

Sensible decisions on tasers

July 31, 2008
Randy Burton, The StarPhoenix

At last, someone in a position of authority within law enforcement has had the gumption to question conventional wisdom on Tasers. While other jurisdictions continue to argue that there is no conclusive evidence they are dangerous, this province has decided otherwise.

The decision by the Saskatchewan Police Commission that it will not authorize municipal police forces to use Tasers, at least for now, is a bold stand. Its decision is all the more courageous given that it reversed a previous approval of the electronic control devices.

Institutions at any level are generally reluctant to admit they may have made a mistake, but there are good reasons for the police commission to have reconsidered this issue.

At the latest count, there have been 22 people killed by Tasers in Canada, a number that suggests there is something more than just bad luck involved. The best-known case is that of Robert Dziekanski, the Polish visitor who died at the Vancouver International Airport after being hit with Tasers by local RCMP officers. Dziekanski was upset and acting out after being contained in the arrivals area of the airport for eight hours without food. When he started throwing chairs around, the police arrived and let him have it with the Tasers, killing him within minutes.

That incident has been the subject of a number of different reviews, and so far at least, none of them have come back with the conclusion that the Taser was a good idea under the circumstances.

Nor has anyone suggested it was the ideal response to the case of 17-year-old Michael Langan, the Winnipeg boy who was killed by police just last week. Langan was allegedly spotted breaking into a car and flashed a knife when he was confronted by city police. They say he refused to drop the knife after several warnings, so they hit him with one shot of the Taser, which killed him on the spot.

This incident casts a different light on various theories presented in the past as to why Tasers kill people. Clearly, Langan was not an overweight middle-aged man with a chancy heart. He was a young fellow in good physical condition, accustomed to walking at least five miles a day. According to his parents, he had no health history that would suggest he was likely to die from an electric shock.

And this is precisely the problem. No one seems to be able to accurately predict what effect the Taser will have on its victims, or where the line is between subduing a suspect and creating another law enforcement accident.

This is exactly what Saskatchewan ombudsman Kevin Fenwick concluded in recommending Tasers be kept out of provincial jails.

On the face of it, Langan was precisely the kind of person the Taser was designed to deal with. Police were facing an unpredictable and potentially violent subject who clearly represented a threat to the physical safety of the officers. Yet the Taser produced exactly the outcome that it is supposed to have been designed to prevent. Langan wound up just as dead as if he'd been shot through the heart.

Obviously, there has to be a better way.

It's understandable that police would be reluctant to give up any tool that gives them an edge in dangerous situations. So it's no surprise that the Saskatchewan Association of Police Chiefs should be asking for further review of the police commission's decision.

While the police are not exactly arguing that the Taser is safe, they do say they will have to rely on other tactics if the stun gun is not available to them. "If the next step in some circumstances is the firearm, well, we know what often the result of that is," says Prince Albert police Chief Dale McFee, president of the police chief's association.

"We just want to make sure that our officers aren't second-guessing themselves and that they do have every tool readily available to them."

The problem, of course, is that police don't always regard the Taser as a weapon of last resort. Too often it's used just because it's easier than physically restraining someone, or talking someone like Langan out of doing something stupid. For example, the young man who refused to stop heckling presidential candidate John Kerry was Tased just because he was annoying.

More recently, a young man in Missouri who fell off an overpass was Tased while lying on the shoulder of the road below as a means of preventing him from running into traffic. None of these examples inspire confidence in the discretion of police.

This is precisely why we have civilian oversight of policing agencies. It should not be left strictly to the police to decide what policies and procedures are effective. Occasionally police have to be reined in when their infatuation with weaponry begins to overtake common sense.

This is one of those times.

Until it can be proven that Tasers are not resulting in unintended deaths, they should be left on the shelf.

It may take awhile for other jurisdictions to follow suit, but the Saskatchewan Police Commission will eventually be seen as a leader on this question.

Officials slam taser verdict

July 31, 2008
Heather Polischuk, The Regina Leader-Post

Although they will respect a Friday decision by the Saskatchewan Police Commission to limit the use of conducted energy devices (CEDs) within municipal police forces, Regina's mayor and police chief say they are not necessarily pleased.

The topic came up during Wednesday's meeting of the Regina Board of Police Commissioners. Regina Police Service Chief Troy Hagen and Mayor Pat Fiacco said they hope the SPC will continue to educate itself about CEDs -- commonly known as Tasers -- with a view to the possibility of further CED deployment in the future.

"Sometimes Tasering is going to save someone's life as opposed to killing someone ...," Fiacco said following the meeting. "What we don't want to do is put our police in a situation that the only resort that they have is a gun."

Hagen said the RPS, like the Saskatchewan Association of Police Chiefs, supports "any further use of force options that may be available to our police officers, rather than having to use our service revolver. In principle, we support any devices or any training that will enhance and lessen the risks to the suspects that we're confronting.

"So initially, obviously, the (SAPC) would have preferred that we would have had an expanded deployment of Tasers to frontline personnel, insuring that there were appropriate levels of training and reporting and accountability measures built into the policies that may have been contemplated. However, the Saskatchewan Police Commission has concluded that at this time they're not in favour of further deployment of the CEDs ... We certainly respect the commission's decision."

Late last year, the Regina Police Service shelved plans to make CEDs available to all officers by the end of 2008. Instead, the devices are now only available to SWAT members for use in tactical situations.

While Taser use has been linked to deaths in several jurisdictions across Canada -- including Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski -- Regina has not been one of them. According to statistics referred to at the meeting, CEDs were deployed 11 times by the RPS in 2006 and 21 times in 2007 (once Tasers were made more widely available to members). Due to limiting their use, Tasers have not been used by Regina police in 2008.

In coming to its decision, the SPC referred to controversy that ignited over Taser-related deaths as well as a lack of adequate information on the full consequences of CED use.

Fiacco said he hopes the SPC will look into bringing in a medical professional to explain exactly what happens when a person dies after being Tasered. The mayor said he heard such an explanation last year in Calgary, during which a medical expert noted something called excited delirium caused death in some who were Tasered, rather than the Tasering itself.

"In some cases, unfortunately, it was as a result of mental issues with the individual," Fiacco said. "In other cases, it was because they were under the influence of narcotics that put them in this state ... I'm hoping that we can investigate this even further to make sure that the right decision at the end is going to be made."

The commission also looked at June's crime statistics, which showed a significant year-over-year decline in robberies and break-and-enters. Mischief and willful damage increased as did auto theft. Hagen said members of the auto theft strategy committee will meet to look at that issue.

Mayor still behind taser use

I wonder if the "Calgary doctor" Fiacco refers to is well known "excited delirium" advocate and taser promoter Dr. Christine Hall.

July 30, 2008
Newstalk 650, Saskatoon

While respecting the decision of the Saskatchewan Police Commission, the Mayor hopes they will eventually allow tasters for frontline officers. Right now, it's status quo and the devices are just used by SWAT teams.

But Pat Fiacco went to Calgary last year to a presentation by a doctor and he thinks in cases where a suspect has died they're getting a bad rap. He'd like officers and the Commission to hear that presentation also. Fiacco is fearful more deaths will occur if guns continue to be the main tool at the police's disposal.

EDITORIAL: Testing times for tasers

July 30, 2008
Editorial in the Regina Leader-Post

Editorial: The Saskatchewan Police Commission is wisely erring on the side of caution in delaying approval of general use of Tasers by municipal police forces.

It's been touted as an alternative to police guns that will save lives, but the Taser is itself under fire following a series of deaths and controversial incidents.

In particular, a bystander's video of the final moments of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski, who died after being Tasered by RCMP officers at Vancouver airport last fall, prompted a series of reviews and inquiries and persuaded the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary to suspend Taser use for all but its tactics and rescue unit.

Now, the Saskatchewan Police Commission has reversed its earlier decision to allow the province's 14 municipal and First Nations police forces to use Tasers, pending more scientific and medical information that "definitively" concludes whether or not Tasers cause deaths.

The federally regulated RCMP is exempt from the decision and has resisted calls for a moratorium on its use of Tasers. SWAT teams like Regina's will still use Tasers if necessary.

While there are many stories about Tasers being used successfully to defuse dangerous confrontations without lasting harm to the victim, there are too many opposing instances of people -- like Dziekanski -- dying after being Tasered to ignore. Indeed, on the day the Saskatchewan Police Commission made its decision last week, a 17-year-old youth suspected of theft died in Winnipeg after being Tasered.

While there is conflicting expert opinion on the medical implications of the short, intense electric shocks delivered by Tasers, there is general agreement that Tasers have sometimes been used inappropriately. For example:

- An Edmonton constable faces disciplinary charges for allegedly using his Taser on two sleeping men during a robbery investigation in a hotel;

- A Charlotte, North Carolina police officer was suspended for five days following the Taser-related death of a 17-year-old grocery store employee during a confrontation. The officer is said to have Tasered the victim twice in the chest, once for 37 seconds and a second time for five seconds -- far beyond recommended use. An autopsy concluded that the teen died from a heart attack.

- Statistics obtained under the Access to Information Act by Canwest News Service show Taser use by the RCMP growing dramatically -- 1,414 incidents in 2007 and 1,119 in 2006, compared to only 597 in 2005. B.C. led the nation in RCMP Taser use at 11.26 incidents per 100,000 people, followed by P.E.I. (11.18), Manitoba (10.83), New Brunswick (10.78), Saskatchewan (10.76) and Alberta (10.64). Ontario and Quebec have their own provincial police forces.

- "What we see is that the Taser is now being used as a substitute for the good-old traditional talking by police, or the baton or pepper spray," says former B.C. premier Ujjal Dosanjh, a Liberal MP who sits on a parliamentary committee examining stun gun use in Canada.

- Greater Vancouver Transit Authority Police have controversially used Tasers against "non-compliant" fare evaders.

It's clearly impossible to arrive at a "one-size-fits-all" guideline for Taser use, but at a minimum more intensive training -- and far more caution -- needs to be attached to its use.

Police chief disagrees with Taser decision

July 29, 2008
MATTHEW GAUK, The Prince Albert Daily Herald

A provincial police chiefs' association is at odds with the Saskatchewan Police Commission over its recent decision against rolling out Tasers to municipal forces.

The commission announced last week that they were rescinding a motion to expand usage of conducted energy weapons, commonly referred to as Tasers. While many SWAT teams have access to the "non-lethal" weapons, most officers do not.

"Not having the ability to use a Taser ... the next level of deployment to protect a citizen or officer could actually be a firearm," said Dale McFee, City Police Chief and the president of the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police.

McFee said reviews are always done any time an officer uses force, be it with a gun, baton or pepper spray. This means they're accountable for their actions, and a Taser would be no different, he believes.

He said the use of force is "not something we take lightly."

"To my knowledge I do not know of any reports that have come out to say that the Taser was directly the (cause) of death," McFee said. "There are always contributing circumstances."

Police agencies across the province submitted their guidelines on use of force to the commission before its decision.

City Coun. Greg Dionne sits on the Prince Albert police board, which vetted the policy sent by City Police. He would have preferred the commission sit on the issue for a while longer until findings from various investigations into Tasers were published.

"I'm always concerned when we don't give the men and women of the police service the equipment to carry out their jobs," Dionne said. "Unfortunately, violent crime is up in all categories and that's just a sign of the times. The devices are also there to protect citizens and not just police."

Dionne thinks the decision went against the use of Tasers because of the recent high-profile cases of Taser-related deaths, including the Winnipeg teen who died last week.

But he also pointed out that recent shooting deaths by police have occurred in Prince Albert and Saskatoon, both cities without Taser-equipped police forces. Families will be wondering why the officers didn't have the devices, he said.

"If accountability is what they're looking for, it'd be easy to be reach," Dionne said, mentioning camera accessories sold for Tasers that would record each use by an officer.

McFee pointed out that the commission's decision was a tough one to make and that the police chiefs' association and City Police will respect that choice.

"At the end of the day, the provincial police perspective is that we all want the same thing - the safety of the officers and citizens," McFee said.

However, both McFee and Dionne hope to see the commission revisiting the issue in the future.

Dionne, as president of the Canadian Association of Police Boards, also said his organization will strike a committee on Taser use at a conference next month, which will result in a unified national position on the issue.

Saskatchewan ombudsman report on tasers released

July 29, 2008
James Wood, Regina Leader Post

REGINA -- The provincial ombudsman has set a good direction for the government to follow if it ever decides to revisit its shelved plans to introduce Tasers into Saskatchewan jails, says Corrections, Public Safety and Policing Minister Darryl Hickie.

The report by ombudsman Kevin Fenwick released Tuesday said there is not enough reliable information on the health impact of Tasers, echoing comments made last week by the Saskatchewan Police Commission in rescinding its earlier approval of their use by front-line police.

Nor is there adequate information on whether the situation in correctional centres warrants the use of Tasers, despite the contention of Corrections staff that the environments have become more volatile, said the report.

"We hear these stories about the changing nature of corrections and the increased levels of violence etcetera, but it's all anecdotal . . . The reporting system within the correctional centres for acts of violence or acts that require discipline is not very good," said Fenwick in an interview Tuesday.

Fenwick's report does not make an actual recommendation as to whether Tasers should be allowed for jail emergency response teams %96 as was planned last year %96 but said a great deal of work needs to be done before any decision is made.

He recommends that the province should convene a multi-disciplinary panel that includes medical practitioners to review the available research concerning the human effects of Tasers.

Special attention should be paid to vulnerable populations such as those found in the adult correctional system.

He acknowledged that would likely require new research, as most of the research done has been in relation to policing, not corrections, and the testing has been done on healthy subjects.

The ombudsman also recommends a reporting system be established to allow Corrections, Public Safety and Policing to determine the volatility of its correctional centres and the need for Tasers.

The province was in the process of introducing Tasers at the province's three correctional centres last fall, but their use was put on hold after Polish citizen Robert Dziekanski died at the Vancouver International Airport in October after being shot with a Taser by RCMP.

Fenwick's report reveals for the first time that an inmate was Tasered last September during a cell extraction. He said the device was used properly in the situation but that it was not authorized.

It was Hickie that put the Taser implementation plan on hold after the Saskatchewan Party government took office last fall. A former police officer and federal prison guard, Hickie has repeatedly expressed skepticism about the value of Tasers in the controlled environment of a jail.

He said Tuesday he is open to new information -- including input from British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Yukon where Tasers are allowed for use in the corrections system -- but would have to be convinced to reopen the Taser issue.

But he said the ombudsman's report would play a valuable role if that is the case. "Now that he's put forward these recommendations, we would look at these like a road map and keep (the ombudsman) in the loop if we move forward in a very responsible manner, if we even do so," said Hickie.

The Saskatchewan Government and General Employees Union, which represents jail guards, declined to comment Tuesday.

With 21 recommendations in all, Fenwick also addressed policy issues that would come into play if the government decides to adopt Tasers. He suggested they be classified as an "impact weapon" in the government's use of force management model, to be used only where there is "active, overt and violent resistance and immediate control is required." That's a step higher than its classification last year as an intermediate weapon, which is the category that includes pepper spray and batons.

Fenwick said there are valid arguments for the use of Tasers within jails. But his report also raises the issue of Tasers being used in the "stun" setting, where the device is applied directly to induce compliance, as opposed to being used to subdue a violent suspect.

"If there is a use, it's to replace the next-most serious use of force. For police officers for example, it's (use of a Taser) instead of a firearm," he said.

"When it's being used in "stun" mode, it's clearly not being used in place of the next-most serious use of force. It's being used in place of something less serious. That causes us great concern."