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Teisha Nelson

Dr. Crenshaw

ENGL 1010

27 March 2013

50,000 Volts of Electricity- Lethal or Non- Lethal?

On a warm afternoon, June 9, 2009, a frantic call was made to dispatch requesting help for a

mentally unstable man running naked down a busy highway. Police were on the scene within minutes.

Verbal commands were made to try to subdue the man and gain control of the scene to no avail. Cars

were rushing by, and the unstable person proceeded to try to direct traffic. The police officer pulled out

his taser gun, tried again to subdue the man with a verbal command, and finally deployed his taser gun

when it became obvious the man was not going to cooperate. The man was tased twice, because after

being tased the first time, he failed to obey the officer’s command and tried to get up. Paramedics were

on the scene. They soon discovered the man was dead. Why we ask? Taser guns are the police officers

most used non-lethal weapon. So, how safe are taser guns, and should police officers continue to carry

them? My father has carried a taser gun for the past ten years. Several incidents when my father would

have been justified in using lethal force, he used his taser gun instead and was able to safely subdue the

person.

According to Rebecca Baker, a Scottsdale Arizona company states that there are “16,000 law

enforcement and military agencies in 107 countries that are equipped with taser guns as of this year”

(1). This statistic shows that even though the use of taser guns is still under research, there are a lot of

agencies equipped with them and using them. In a New Scientist Article, studies showed that using a

taser to subdue a person was safer than fists and batons. It also showed that taser use reduced the risk

of injury by sixty-five-percent (Taser Beats Baton).

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The taser gun was invented around the 1960’s by Jack Cover, who was an aerospace engineer

and a NASA researcher. His endeavor was to have it be a substitute for a handgun. (Worley 74) The

name ‘taser’ came from Jack Cover’s favorite sci-fi superhero Tom Swift, who nicknamed his electric rifle

‘taser’. (New Internationalist 29) Tasers are like a flashlight built with copper wires inside that release

an electric shock of 50,000 volts of electricity when fired. They have a range up to 35 feet, depending on

which cartridge is used. The shock from the taser causes a person to then be immobilized for roughly 5

seconds by interrupting the central nervous system. (Tasers a Fantastic)

Tasers are still favored by law enforcement as a non-lethal use of force in subduing a violent

subject. In fact over 10,000 law enforcement agencies use the taser, and Taser International stands by

the use of taser guns and its safety. (Porges 17) The vice president of communications with Taser

International, Steve Tuttle says, “Electrical shocks have tremendous research behind them, and we are

nowhere near the outputs that are considered dangerous. (Porges 18)” According to an article by Seth

Porges, he states that “some cardiologists and neuroscientists, however, are less confident of the

weapon’s safety” (17). In an article in the PC magazine, the Arizona Republic stated, “that at least 167

people have died after being shocked with the taser” ( Porges 18). The article goes on to discuss how the

University of Toronto conducted an experiment to test the effects of taser shocks on pigs. In the end,

some pigs that were shocked ended up dying of irregular heart rhythms. (Porges 18) In an article by

Rebecca Baker, The safety of the taser gun is discussed further and how it is a worldwide concern. Some

critics believe the weapons have been misused by officers using them on subjects that were not resisting

arrest. An autopsy ruled the death of a 39 year old man who died of a heart attack, was caused by a

charge from the taser that struck him in the chest. (After 6 Years Still No Stun Guns 2)

In an article titled “Taser ECD Safety Theory Disputed” by John G. Peters, Jr, he talks about how

the taser device probe contact stimulation can cause cardiac electrical capture of the human heart when

the taser probes are shot into the chest area. This could result in ventricular fibrillation and could cause
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the heart to develop a flat line causing the death of the subject. The safety of taser guns has been

questioned by people and organizations alike. In a study done by Dr. Douglas P. Zipes, he focused on 8

cases where subjects between the ages of 17 to 48 were shot with a taser gun near or over the heart.

Out of the 8 subjects, several lost consciousness and 7 of them died. According to Dr. Zipes, he states

“an ECD shock in probe mode to the human chest area can produce cardiac electrical capture at rapid

rates in animals and humans.” The conclusions of Dr. Zipes findings have significant implications for law

enforcement, both economically and tactically. Law enforcement officers that choose to deploy the

taser must follow Taser Internationals training guidelines that recommend targeting a subject’s back

area. They also warn against using the taser gun on at-risk suspects, this would include frail, elderly,

pregnant, small children, and individuals with low body mass. (53)

One of the new terms that is being used to explain why some people react strongly to the taser

or sometimes die after being tased, is a reaction called excited delirium. (New Internationalist) Excited

delirium primarily affects people with mental illness or drug use. The person gets excessively hyper,

hallucinates, has incoherent speech, and an irregular, rapid heartbeat. Many doctors and neurologists

are opposed to the use of the taser gun. They are behind the new research that shows that taser use

can affect people’s cardiac and cause a person’s heartbeat to become irregular. (Porges) It can also

cause death in people with medical conditions.

So why there are several articles stating the cons of taser use in law enforcement, there are also

many articles that describe how a taser gun would have saved the subject from death with a lethal

weapon. In an article in the Journal of Police Crisis Negotiations, the case of Carswell v. Borough of

Homestead, “a municipality was sued for not providing officers with nonlethal weapons to avert crisis

situations. The plaintiff’s husband was shot and killed by a police officer who was not issued any

nonlethal weapons by the department in order to subdue subjects” (Worley 73). Also, in the article by

Rebecca Baker it talks about several cases where the officers did not have taser guns and the suspects
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were shot and killed. The first case, a man had a knife and charged at the officers. They sprayed him

with pepper spray but he continued to come towards them. The second case, a man came at the officers

with a hammer and claw bar. Both cases could have had a different outcome if the officers would have

had taser guns. (1) I think it is critical that law enforcement have non-lethal weapons as well as lethal. I

believe that until another non-lethal weapon is made available, then the taser gun is still a relatively safe

weapon that can be used to subdue subjects with the least amount of harm or injury. Just a thought,

but if I ever have the choice of being shot or tased, then I would take my chances with the taser gun any

day.

I interviewed my father about the pros of taser use and how effective it is in subduing violent

subjects. Officer Brent Nelson states that he has had success with the taser gun in his 23 year law

enforcement career. When he originally started out in law enforcement, the only nonlethal weapon

available to use was a baton. He felt that this posed a greater risk to the officer and the subject, because

the officer would have to be close enough to the subject to actually strike with the baton. The taser gun

gives officers the ability to apprehend the subject from a safe distance. Even though there have been

cases where the taser gun harmed or was fatal to a subject, Officer Nelson still feels confident in the

ability of taser guns to safely apprehend subjects. He disagrees that the taser is fatal, and feels that

there has not been enough research done to prove the cause of death in subjects that have been tased.

Officer Nelson states that he believes there is no nonlethal weapon that is 100% safe at this time. One

downside of taser use is making sure both probes make contact with the subject. Taser International has

required training that officers should go through before carrying the taser. Officer Nelson initially

received 8 hours of training to become certified to use the taser gun. In addition to the initial training he

is required to undergo 4 hours of additional training each year on the taser gun to recertify. He feels that

training is critical for any law enforcement agency that is going to use the taser gun, because law

enforcement officers need to know when and how to effectively use the taser gun in certain situations.
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Officer Nelson has even been tased himself during training so that he will know and understand the

effects of the taser gun. He states “that it hurts like hell but it is over in a matter of seconds, unlike being

hit with a baton or sprayed with pepper spray that has longer lasting effects. (Nelson)”

In the article, Tasers a fantastic option, the officers with the Haringey’s Police Department think

the taser gun is a fantastic option when it comes with dealing with violent situations when compared

with the baton or tear gas. Tear gas or pepper spray can only be sprayed when there is no wind, and the

baton can cause serious injury. There is also the risk that the subject can get a hold of the baton and use

it against the officer. Sgt Andy Harding, with the department says, “Officers drew tasers 628 times in

2012 and discharged them just 56 times. That means just over 90 percent of the time we would get to

the situation, and the mere presence of the taser was enough to bring the situation to a successful

conclusion without anybody getting hurt” (1).

In reading several articles regarding the use of taser guns in law enforcement, there have been

many more cases where lives were saved because of the taser gun. Several cases the officers elected to

use the taser gun versus a firearm when lethal force would have been justified. While there are cases

where the taser gun would not be the best option to subdue a violent subject, it seems that there are

more positive outcomes than negative. I feel that more research needs to be done, especially on the

excited delirium theory. There have been cases where people died from excited delirium without being

tased, simply because of mental issues, drug use, or other medical issues. There are other factors that

contribute to people’s death after being tased. In my research I could find no proof or fact directly

linking the use of a taser gun as the “direct cause” of death. In conclusion, law enforcement officers

need to be armed with different resources, as they never know what kind of situation they will come

upon. Until something better is developed, I feel that the taser gun will continue to be used by law

enforcement and even citizens that want a non lethal option in a weapon. So, does 50,000 volts of

electricity kill? Everybody has their own opinions.

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Works Cited

Baker, Rebecca. "After 6 Years, Still no Stun Guns on Cops." The Record. Jan 05 2013. 1-3. ProQuest

Newsstand. Web. 7 Mar. 2013 .

Nelson, Brent. Personal Interview. 26 March 2013.

“New Internationalist.” Taser International Inc. March 2010. 430. 29-29. Academic Search Premier.

Web. 7 Mar. 2013.

Peters, John G. Jr. “Taser X26 ECDSafety Theory Disputed.” The Utah Peace Officer Winter 2012-2013:

53. Print.

Porges, Seth. "A Shock To The System." PC Magazine. 26.6 (2007): 17-18. Academic Search Premier.

Web. 7 Mar. 2013.

“Taser Beats Baton.” New Scientist. 204. 2735 (2009): 6-7. Academic Search Premier. Web. 8 Mar.

2013.

“Tasers a ‘Fantastic’ Option to Deal with Violent Situations.” Ham & High. 7 March 2013. ProQuest

Newsstand. Web. 8 Mar. 2013.

Worley Vidisha Barua, Robert M Worley. “Shocking Policy: Municipal Liability for the Use

of Tasers and Stun Guns by the Police.” Journal of Police Crisis Negotiations. 11.1 (2011): 72-89.

Web. Academic Search Premier. 7 Mar. 2013.