How many more will it take?

[Kapitan_Phillips]

Would one of those extreme cases include someone who was resisting arrest yet was much bigger in stature than the officer in question? Its not as simple as just pouncing in there and having a scuffle, who knows what anyone could be carrying on them and what might be going through their minds.

Not co-operating with an officer automatically sets off alarm bells in his/her head - why are they so anxious not to leave the vehicle, why do they refuse simple orders, why do they not put their hands on the wheel. Its more complicated than saying "Its killed people, make it hard to access". Its probably saved more lives than its ever taken.

[SUBMAN1]

Here you guys will like this:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/...motorist_N.htm

A Utah trooper who used a Taser to subdue a stubborn motorist who was walking away from him during a traffic stop felt threatened and acted reasonably, state officials said Friday.

So I guess walking away from an officer is now a threat.

-S

[AVGWarhawk]

That is the video I posted a few months back. This guy was out of control with tazer. He conducted this stop totally wrong.

[AVGWarhawk]

KP,

Unfortunate we do not have all the details on this recent tazing but the guy was going to pick up his parents at the airport. Other than speeding that probably got him stopped, what else could he have done to warrant a the tazer? I hope more details come out on this.

[Kapitan_Phillips]

Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk

That is the video I posted a few months back. This guy was out of control with tazer. He conducted this stop totally wrong.

Then its the cop, not the tazer that was at fault. Training should be stricter, yes, and punishments more severe for misuse of the weapon, but it certainly not be less accessable than it is now.

[CCIP]

I'm tired of this "scary situation for an officer" stuff. It's one thing when you're in a situation where someone's gone out and created an exteme situation (say, went in somewhere and started shooting), or the operation where the cop is involved is something like a confrontation with a gang of criminals; but a traffic stop is another thing. Seriously, don't these guys get paid to take a bit of an extra risk for the sake of public safety?

Anyone got a statistic on how many cops actually get shot while conducting routine traffic stops or calls to accident sites? I have a feeling that this doesn't happen an awful lot. Unlike these incidents that I'm constantly hearing about.

Seriously. It disgusts me that people who are supposed to protect the society are so scared they're willing to hurt innocent people just to avoid any possible risk to - who else - themselves!

[AVGWarhawk]

If it looks to be a "scary situation" call for back up. Go to the cruiser and call it in. Other officers will be there in a hot minute. Officers need to be schooled in controlling and being the authority when making traffic stops etc.

[Kapitan_Phillips]

Its easy to say that cops need to learn to be more authoritative during traffic stops, but what can they do? If the perp is uncooperative, simply repeating over and over what you've already said is highly unlikely to work, and could even lead to the person becoming more and more aggressive. Calling for backup and wrenching them out will send them screaming brutality, so there's not alot cops can do.

I dont think its a question of banning the tazer, I think its a question of finding alternative ways of doing things that'll actually work.

[AVGWarhawk]

The good old billy club worked well. Unfortunate I see more and more that the tazer is the easy way out of handling situations that normally escalate because the officer allowed it to escalate. Control is lost. Take a look at the video from the officers video cam in submans post . The stop started out bad because the cop let it start out bad.

You have to undestand something. The tazer shoots electricity through out your body. Your body functions by small electrical charges that jump from neuron to neuron. This includes your heart and brain. What happens to a wire that can handle 120 volts that receives 240 volts? ZAP, SMOKE, FIRE. Same situation here with the tazer. The friggin thing is lethal to the human body.

A broken arm or cracked rib from a billy club certainly is better than having electricity sent through your body that can and will stop your heart. Worked great with the electric chair. Works great with tazers also.

[elite_hunter_sh3]

bean bag shotgun... non lethal unless shot at the gonads region

[Kapitan_Phillips]

Originally Posted by CCIP

Anyone got a statistic on how many cops actually get shot while conducting routine traffic stops or calls to accident sites? I have a feeling that this doesn't happen an awful lot. Unlike these incidents that I'm constantly hearing about.

http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/killed/2006/table19.html

[AVGWarhawk]

Good table KP but do you think better officer training and training that happens every year might reduce the numbers shown? I do. Adding more weapons is not part of training to handle situations IMHO.

[CCIP]

Besides, 64 officers in traffic stops in 10 years... not a terrifying number if you ask me. Perhaps that needs to be in context of the total number of traffic stops made each year.

It's not that I'm dismissing the danger entirely, but does this really justify using such a dangerous weapon in any situation where a stop doesn't go as planned? Also, how is tazer not "brutality"?

I'd rather people get roughed up a bit by police than have their internal organs potentially fried, for one. Likewise, I'm more willing to live with 6.4 officers killed in a country the size of the US each year due to this cause than risk these kinds of outcomes.

[August]

Originally Posted by SUBMAN1

So I guess walking away from an officer is now a threat.

Nice monday morning quarterbacking but what if the guy was going for a gun?

A police officer tells you to put your hands behind your back then you do what he says, you don't argue with him or attempt to run away.

[Kapitan_Phillips]

Originally Posted by August

Nice monday morning quarterbacking but what if the guy was going for a gun?

A police officer tells you to put your hands behind your back then you do what he says, you don't argue with him or attempt to run away.

Damn you, you managed to condense my point into two sentences :rotfl: