Probe finds one-third of people shot by Tasers need medical attention

While the last Taser study we came across found that the devices were safe and caused only a few trips to the hospital, a joint investigation by CBC News and the Canadian Press has now turned up some decidedly different findings, with about one-third of people shot by Tasers reportedly requiring some form of medical attention. Those numbers were drawn from the Taser-use forms that RCMP officers are required to fill out whenever they draw the device, which revealed that 910 of the 3,226 people shot between 2002 and 2007 had to go to a medical facility, and that "many more" people had minor injuries but never saw a doctor. Needless to say, we somehow suspect this won't be the last such investigation or study on the matter, especially with the lawsuits flying fast and furiously these days.

[Via Digg]

[Spyvie @ Jun 19th 2008 2:43PM]

I haven't done the research, but I'm willing to bet close to 100% (3/3rds) of people shot by firearms require medical attention.

[Bucky @ Jun 19th 2008 2:53PM]

I wouldn't require medical attention if I was dead. There goes the 100% theory.

[Kamokazi @ Jun 19th 2008 2:55PM]

Exactly. If there was a perfect solution, we'd use it. This is a better solution than guns (or nightsticks even), and should be used until something better comes along.

[Bucky @ Jun 19th 2008 2:56PM]

Damnit. I didn't read the close to part. -1 for me.

[bolezhinkov @ Jun 19th 2008 2:56PM]

but even if you die someone with medical skillz has to come and pronounce you dead.

[The Dude @ Jun 19th 2008 2:57PM]

Your powers of deduction astound even Captain Obvious.

I say there should be a serious probe into the brown noise. An officer threatening to make you crap yourself is sure to make you less belligerent.

[bohsocks @ Jun 19th 2008 3:02PM]

Tasers find two-thirds of people probed need medical attention.

[Darkroom @ Jun 19th 2008 3:09PM]

the problem is that a number of the RCMP are taser-happy... lazy... indifferent (perhaps because of their low pay)... RCMP in training have to be healthy, and to be able to use a taser, they have to be tasered themselves to know exactly it's effect - but since they're healthy and fit, they don't realize that tasering some overweight, stressed out, recently ex-smoker, newly landed immigrant at the vancouver airport would kill him.

[Kurian @ Jun 19th 2008 3:09PM]

Criminals should be shot in the head, not tasered.

[Brandon @ Jun 19th 2008 3:44PM]

Guys, it is departmental policy in many areas to require Taser 'victims' to go to the hospital or at least get checked out. And since most of them are meth’d out, drunk, or causing a disturbance in the vicinity of a secret service agent it can be assumed they warrant some sort of monitoring or treatment. If you are acting foolish enough to get Tased, you probably need some help.
Don't Tase me bro!

[WS @ Jun 19th 2008 3:51PM]

The problem is that tasers are used to render someone who may easily be tackled and poses very little threat incapacitated. Toted as being completely safe to use, officers are more readily willing to pull them out and zap people. Thus, they are more likely to use them in any situation were the offender is acting against the orders of the police officer, and not ones were the offender may be a serious danger to their safety ("don't tase me bro" boy epitomizes that).

And that is the danger here. Guns kill, flat out; 100% lethal. Tasers are marketed as 100% non-lethal. That's the problem. Officers are willing to use them without thinking of the consequences. And that is no fault of theirs as they have been marketed as not having any...

[Jim @ Jun 19th 2008 4:07PM]

Yeah, if only these were used as alternatives to guns instead of alternatives to non-lethal force.

When they are used for crowd control purposes as is often the case, they are abused - always. Let's see the cops pull out their GUNS for crowd control. Yeah, I thought so.

[DumpsterJ @ Jun 19th 2008 4:45PM]

i wanna know why the hell this country spends so much time worrying about criminals rights than those of the regular person. Hell they are pardoning death row inmates nowadays , wtf ? I agree that if your so mentally messed up that you become enough of a problem to tase that they should just beat the crap outta ya rodney king style.

[Golferal @ Jun 19th 2008 5:26PM]

@ws

Guns are NOT 100% lethal. Their mortality rate is certainly higher than a taser, but it is certainly not 100%.

You are full or crapola, sir.

[Andy TGD @ Jun 19th 2008 5:47PM]

Awww, poor criminals. Did the bad old policeman put some voltage though you? They were probably only beating an old lady to death on the sidewalk - where's the harm in that? Quick, get your human rights lawyer!

[MEAT! @ Jun 19th 2008 5:56PM]

@DumpsterJ
"i wanna know why the hell this country spends so much time worrying about criminals rights than those of the regular person."

Ah, I see your logic now. Criminals get tazed. If you are tazed, you are a criminal. QED.

[teej @ Jun 19th 2008 6:25PM]

we only need some Precogs and we'll be fine.

[phanbouy @ Jun 19th 2008 6:28PM]

@i wanna know why the hell this country spends so much time worrying about criminals rights than those of the regular person.

Um.... innocent until proven guilty for one thing? hey.. are you that guy who always posts BUILD MOAR GULAGS!!!1 on usenet?

[Lars @ Jun 19th 2008 7:52PM]

Arg, beat me to it, Spyvie.

Forget tasers and firearms, just get one of those net-shooting guns. That'd be cool AND humane. Or heck, why not tranquilizers? Blow guns in movies seem to drop people instantly, with no ill effects... so that must be the same in reality.

[Jerod @ Jun 20th 2008 11:16AM]

It may be possible that the sudden drop to a hard surface could be what causes the need for medical attention. If it was so dangerous there wouldn't be a requirement that every officer carrying a taser be shot with one before they are allowed to use it.

[RC @ Jun 19th 2008 2:43PM]

You mean like a bandaid for the probe punctures?

[OnlyShawn @ Jun 19th 2008 3:23PM]

yeah...first i get tased, then i get probed? sheesh...i'd need psychiatric help more than medical attention.

[BrokenMonkey @ Jun 19th 2008 4:14PM]

Yeah most of the visits were probably from puncture wounds or bumps on the head from falling down. This probe proves nothing other than falling down can hurt.

[brandonzar @ Jun 19th 2008 2:45PM]

I bet that is still significantly lower than the number of people who need medical treatment, or a cornier, after a gun shot wound. There for I think the taser is doing it's job unless cops are just shooting people with them for fun.

[adancinghobo @ Jun 19th 2008 2:49PM]

Yea I was about to say better than the 100% of people who need medical attention after being shot.

[superpotential @ Jun 19th 2008 3:17PM]

yes but the problem we are facing these days is overuse of tasers.
tasers are designed to be usually-non-lethal replacements for gun use when a person is physically threatening a cop or another individual.

in cases where the person is no physical threat at all -- for example, passively resisting arrest, simply sitting there and not obeying orders, shouting but not fighting, or simply not responsive -- tasers should not be used. unfortunately, far too many cops feel the need to use them in such non-violent scenarios where it is much more humane to simply just pick them up and transport them.

bottom line is that tasers are NOT a compliance tool, they are a defence tool.

[Matt @ Jun 19th 2008 3:26PM]

How di you passively resist arrest?

[Dan @ Jun 19th 2008 2:45PM]

95% of the people who are shot require medical attention

[Reader @ Jun 19th 2008 3:16PM]

I also bet that a lot more than a third get medical attention when subdued with a baton and the effects of that last much longer than those of a taser. I don't understand why people expect a perfect solution to a problem, any solution that gives better results is, well, better. Even if it's not perfect.

[Brian B. @ Jun 19th 2008 2:47PM]

What does "had to go to a medical facility" really mean? Why wife is a nut and wants to go to a doctor at the slightest sniffle. I know if I got zapped full of electricity I'd want to get checked up whether I was injured or not. Bro.

[Peter F @ Jun 20th 2008 3:36PM]

Subtle yet fantastic, Bro.

[Mycroft @ Jun 19th 2008 2:51PM]

Probe.

I guess the cops will have to resort to harsh lamguage.

[Mickey Blue Eyes @ Jun 23rd 2008 2:38PM]

Reminds me of 1) "Monty Python and the Holy Grail", 2) "Demolition Man" (police procedures in the future when apprehending Wesley Snipes), and 3) bad/permissive parents.

[neoikon4 @ Jun 19th 2008 2:52PM]

I agree with Spyvie. I don't understand the problem. The alternative is to use bullets in which 100% of the people require SERIOUS medical attention.

This study seems to justify Tasers and tell me that they are doing their job.

Hey, here's a suggestion... don't do something that would require someone to Taser you.

[01 @ Jun 19th 2008 2:57PM]

Yeah, like protest...or be a color other than white. Serious crimes people, watch out.

[bolezhinkov @ Jun 19th 2008 2:59PM]

the problem is they use it on unarmed people all the time when they don't need to. these cops should have training that lets them take control of the situation without having to electrocute people.

[kjb434 @ Jun 19th 2008 3:07PM]

Race War! Race War!

No, seriously, that is the stupidest excuse.

Que in Al Sharpton and Jess Jackass and there we go.

The reality is exactly:

DON'T PUT YOURSELF IN A SITUATION WHERE THE THOUGH OF USING A GUN OR TASER BY COP IS NECESSARY!

[Engadgetluvsappl @ Jun 19th 2008 3:08PM]

01, you are a shithead.

:)

[z0phi3l @ Jun 19th 2008 3:09PM]

@bolezhinkov

I'd rather be tazed than whupped with a Baton or shot, so what do you suggest the cop do, use harsh language?

[MBS @ Jun 19th 2008 3:13PM]

@01, everyone I know who is non white gets tasered at least once a day just for the heck of it. Cops are constantly just tasering my friends when we're walking down the street.

Luckily for me I'm white so the cops don't care when I take all my friends money or rob little old ladies. In fact if my victims are non white the cops will even help me with their tasers.

[Dave @ Jun 19th 2008 3:14PM]

@01

This isn't the 1960's...when you protest in a nonviolent way cops are not going to hit you with a firehose or taze you for no reason (besides that dumbass from the Univ. of Florida that kept yelling - campus police at any major public institution are not friendly towards troublemakers).

Stop making a big deal out of tasers, it's better than getting shot with a rubber bullet or beanbag from a shotgun!

[thatrotierkid @ Jun 19th 2008 3:19PM]

i would rather a taser than that thing from the jackass movie

[01 @ Jun 19th 2008 3:59PM]

@ Dave

You're right, I'm sure that this not being the 1960's the FBI wouldn't be inflitrating non-violent anti-war protestor groups, or have major telecoms monitor and record phone conversations of US citizens, or torture prisoners, or suspend civil liberties or...well, you see where I'm going with this. (shrugs) you can call me a liberal, hippie loving cop hater, but when the FBI tracks you and your friends at your college in Indiana for simply attending a WTO protests in DC, and having cops tell you they wish they could shoot you in the face for smoking a joint...well, then we'll talk.

[bolezhinkov @ Jun 19th 2008 5:06PM]

z0phi3l:

cops can do more than use a baton, taser or gun. they are trained to take down people without weapons. if they werent they would just be fools with a gun (which they are as well).

I would and have taken the baton and its better than being tasered - I've had that too.

you think falling to the ground and twitching without control while in excruciating pain throughout your whole body is better than being put in a chokehold or getting a baton on the leg? that is/you are retarted.

[MadMike @ Jun 19th 2008 6:16PM]

01,
I am not a police officer. I didn't even handle any sort of law enforcement when I was in the military. However, I am a firefighter, and I am friends with a lot of police officers.

Every time they have had to use a taser it was when they normally would have used a gun.

I don't care if you are a hippy liberal pot smoker. If you want to live your life like that, it's your own choice. But, you have already admitted to being a criminal. Marijuana is illegal.

You most likely also have a major contempt for government and authority and are very vocal, sometimes angry in demeanor. Then you are a WTO meeting in DC. Well, your behavior and attitude plus the drug abuse at a international event, made you a target for the FBI. That's your fault. Not the governments. 93% of all our terrorist incidents are caused by homegrown terrorist. Little pot-headed trust-fund sucking shits who soak up some liberal causes from a fuckhead teacher and you spend mommy and daddies money to go and protest. Guess what! You match the description of all the members of the ELF. I'm glad they followed you. It means they are doing their jobs.

As for the cops wanting to shoot you in the face, well my wife's neice was hit by one of you pot-smoking shit-for-brains that got behind the wheel of a car and now lives her life in a wheelchair. So, I'm actually kind of pissed that they DIDN'T shoot you in the face.

Go smoke your drugs, maybe we will al be lucky and you will OD and DIE.

[phanbouy @ Jun 19th 2008 6:40PM]

@MadMax/Mike

dude... are you really a walking after school special? "Marijuana is illegal." um yeah.. personal pot use has been decriminalized in most of CA. federal drug laws are unconstitutional (but there's too much money to be made by the black market and corrupt pols and cops on the take for any kind of amnesty). and "liberal pot head"? go ahead, throw around more labels at people.

don't know about where you live, but in San Francisco and Oakland the police are notorious for doing largely jack squat on their ILLEGALLY loud motorcycles and getting double overtime while violent crime statistics continue to get worse. if you were at all logical, you wouldn't be railing on a harmless drug while advocating wanton repression by police.

looks like you fancy yourself a libertarian. might wanna look at how many billions in tax dollars we piss away each year incarcerating nonviolent drug users.

[phanbouy @ Jun 19th 2008 6:46PM]

p.s. do you have any family member who drives while taking prescription medication? so, i'm sure you're ok with them taking a shotgun blast to the face, too.

[(01) @ Jun 19th 2008 8:51PM]

@ MadMike -->

Paid my own way through college
Don't really respect laws that are based in racism and monetary oppression of other people/races/cultures
"Terrorist" is a fun word to use to describe people that aren't really doing anything different that the founding fathers did...although I didn't toss any tea overboard at my protests.
I wasn't aware that exercising my constitutional right to free speech and assembly warranted interest from the FBI. I stand corrected.
I don't even really want to think about how much pot I'd have to smoke to OD. Want to watch?

[FTY @ Jun 20th 2008 6:59AM]

As if there's only one alternative, it's either tazer or a gun right? There's no middle ground, like non-lethal rubber bullets, tear gas, tear gas bullets, or anything else that's 10 times less harmful.

You know, it's not only murderers, robbers and what not being tazerd, in fact it's mostly people like you and me, who don't look up to cops as gods and sometimes question some of their methods, the next second we're on the ground shaking.

If i only type in "tazer" on youtube i get 1000 videos of cops tazering people for broken tail lights.

[Bucky @ Jun 19th 2008 2:55PM]

I wouldn't require medical attention if I was dead. There goes your 100% theory.