Taser
 Taser  (Less lethal weapon)   | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | technology |
| A "less lethal" weapon that has reportedly killed over 1,000 people since its introduction in US. | |
A Taser is a weapon used to deliver an electric shock. They were legalised amid claims of their use to temporarily immobilise suspects who might otherwise have been shot and killed by more fatal weapons. They are also used to torture people - a word used by lawyers[1] and the UN although it is avoided by commercially-controlled media and the police.[2]
Concerns
| A December 2017 video by RT about US police use of tasers, which claims that at least 1000 people have been killed by US police with tasers, and that police use the taser as a means of torture |
| Tasers can set people on fire. |
Police officers who carry both tasers and guns can confuse the two an, in the heat of the moment, shoot people instead of tasering them.[4]
Deaths
In 2015, The Guardian reported that 47 people died in 2014 in USA as a result of the use of tasers. All but three were unarmed. Taser International, which sells tasers to 17,800 of the United States’ roughly 18,000 law enforcement agencies has claimed that their weapons do not kill.[5]
At least one miscarriage has been reported after US Police repeatedly tasered a pregnant woman.[2]
Countermeasures
Specially produced conductive fabrics can protect against the electroshock of a tasing.
References
- ↑ https://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/watch-video-allegedly-shows-jailer-use-taser-inmate-strapped-chair/YgVvtKG1WRk9V0vpILXrAI/
- ↑ a b http://thefreethoughtproject.com/un-calls-investigation-us-police-video-shows-running-torture-camps/
- ↑ https://edition.cnn.com/2017/05/16/us/boy-handcuffs-dallas-school-trnd/
- ↑ https://www.itv.com/news/2019-03-27/kansas-cop-shooting-lawrence-kansas-police-shooting-officer-shoots-gun-stun-gun-video/
- ↑ http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/nov/05/police-tasers-deaths-the-counted
