Transaction Search Form: please type in any of the fields below.
Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
Time: 10:37 pm
Time: 10:37 pm
Results for tasers
29 results foundAuthor: Queensland Police Service Title: Review of the Queensland Police Service Taser Trial. Summary: This review describes the Queensland Police Tasers Trial and provides an overview of issues related to the use of tasers. Details: Brisbane: Queensland Police Service and the Crime and Misconduct Commission, 2009 Source: Year: 2009 Country: Australia URL: Shelf Number: 116479 Keywords: Police Use of ForceTasers |
Author: Mesloh, Charlie Title: Less Lethal Weapon Effectiveness, Use of Force, and Suspect & Officer Injuries: A Five-Year Analysis Summary: Law enforcement officers are legally justified to utilize force in many situations to bring suspects to justice, protect others, and for personal defense. However, police training on the use of force has no single consistent method in the United States to demonstrate the best response to subject resistance levels, even though many states and individual agencies have adopted very creative use-of-force matrices and continuums. For researchers, additional problems abound in the compilation and interpretation of the data available on police use of force. Criminal justice research has persistently demonstrated that a small percentage of police encounters with the public involve use of force. While extreme uses of force often garners media attention, lesser levels of force are used regularly by police without public notice. Research in the areas of use of force, and subsequent suspect injuries, has focused on the level of force used by the police officer and the suspect, excessive force, and officer misconduct. The literature on suspect injuries, police officer injuries, and the environmental and situational factors leading to police uses of force, is limited. This study examines use of force levels by the police and subject resistance levels in two agencies in Central Florida; the Orange County Sheriff's Office (OCSO), and the Orlando Police Department (OPD). Both agencies provided copies of force documentation pursuant to public records requests as stipulated in Florida law. While previous research on police force has focused on the rate of police force, this study examined situations that required force and the actions taken by the police and citizens during the encounter. Details: Fort Meyers, FL: Florida Gulf Coast University, Weapons & Equipment Research Institute, 2008. 104p. Source: Accesssed September 26, 2018 at: https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/224081.pdf Year: 2008 Country: United States URL: https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/224081.pdf Shelf Number: 113387 Keywords: Less than Lethal WeaponsPolice BehaviorPolice InjuriesTasersUse of Force |
Author: Smith, Michael R. Title: A Multi-Method Evaluation of Police Use of Force Outcomes: Final Report to the National Institute of Justice Summary: This exploratory study was primarily concerned with the investigation of factors related to injuries that may occur to police officers and citizens during use of force events. The report is divided into the following eight chapters: 1) introduction; 2) an overview of the extant literature and what is currently known about how injuries occur in violence encounters betweeen police and citizens; 3) discusses how the survey was conducted and what was learned about less lethal technologies, policies, training and use of force data collection mechanisms in U.S. law enforcement agencies; 4) presents the results from the three agency-level datasets that were analyzed (Seattle, Miami-Dade, Richland County) and what incident-level variables influenced injury outcomes in those jurisdictions; 5) discusses the multiagency analysis that brought together more than 25,000 use of force records from 12 agencies and examined both policy-related and incident-level predictors of injuries; 6) presents the results from the longitudinal analysis of injury data in Orlando and Austin and discusses the effect that the decision to adopt the Taser had on officer and suspect injuries in the two cities; 7) reports on the findings from interviews with officers and suspects involved in actual use of force encounters and what factors may have contributed to their injuries; and 8) discusses the implications of the findings for policy, training, and future research. Details: Unpublished report. 2009. v.p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 118770 Keywords: Police Use of ForcePolice-Citizens EncountersTasers |
Author: Canada. Commission for Public Complaints Against the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Title: RCMP Use of the Conducted Energy Weapon (CEW): Final Report, Including Recommendations for Immediate Implementation Summary: The increasing reliance by the RCMP upon the conducted energy weapon has generated significant expressions of public concern. This report presents a systematic review of RCMP policies and practices following its adoption of the conducted energy weapon. Details: Ottawa: Commission for Public Complaints Against the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, 2008. 78p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2008 Country: Canada URL: Shelf Number: 115540 Keywords: Complaints Against the PolicePolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Morton, Sarah Title: Public Attitudes Towards Tasers - Results from an Opinion Poll Summary: This paper outlines findings from a survey of public attitudes towards Tasers in the U.K. The survey explored public awareness of Tasers; support for the trust in the police to use Tasers; and situation in which it is deemed acceptable to use a Taser. Details: London: Home Office, 2010. 5p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2010 Country: United Kingdom URL: Shelf Number: 119227 Keywords: Police Use of ForcePublic OpinionTasers |
Author: Queensland Police Service Title: Review of Taser Policy, Training, and Monitoring and Review Practices Summary: This report presents a review of taser training and operational policy in Queensland. The review found that the current policy addressed most of the risks identifed during the review. The review presents a number of recommendations to designed to improve the policy and procedures that are already in place, as well as officer training in the use of tasers, and the monitoring process of such use. Details: Brisbane: Queensland Police and the Queensland Crime and Misconduct Commission, 2009. 66p. Source: Internet Resource; Accessed August 10, 2010 at the following website: http://www.police.qld.gov.au Year: 2009 Country: Australia URL: http://www.police.qld.gov.au Shelf Number: 116526 Keywords: Policing (Queensland)Stun GunsTasersWeapons, Police Use of |
Author: Collins, Nicole Title: Operational Evaluation of the New Zealand Taser Trial Summary: The NZ Police Taser trial was conducted from 1 September 2006 to 31 August 2007 in the Police Districts of Auckland, Waitematā, Counties Manukau and Wellington. This arose from a review initiated by the NZ Commissioner of Police following the fatal shooting of Stephen Wallace in 2000. This review examined less lethal weapons options for managing violent individuals to ensure tactics and equipment are the most effective, and least likely to endanger the safety of police, the public and offenders. A conducted energy weapon, or electro muscular incapacitation device was identified as a potentially relevant option. Prior to the start of the trial police undertook a literature review about the use of electro muscular incapacitation devices by police agencies, and the scientific and medical research about the impact of these devices. Standard Operating Procedures were developed to guide the trial and the use of Tasers, and a comprehensive staff training package was developed based on international good practice. District Device Coordinators were appointed in each of the trial areas to oversee the implementation of the trial and to conduct audits of Taser use. An external Medical Advisory Group was established to review the medical records of those who were exposed to a Taser discharge and to provide expert medical advice on areas of risk. Police also engaged with various organisations and individuals about the trial. New Zealand Police evaluated the Taser trial, with the overall aim of assessing the use of Tasers in an operational environment in order to identify key issues about use and effectiveness of the device, the potential benefits and risks to staff and public safety and public opinion on police Taser use. The evaluation, conducted by a combined internal and external evaluation team, used a wide range of qualitative and quantitative data including: international literature; incident and injury data from the Tactical Options Report database; incident data from police Taser discharge files, offence information from the National Intelligence Application database, a survey and in-depth interviews with officers; a national survey of 1200 people; media coverage; and the external report provided by the Medical Advisory Group. This evaluation report provides detailed analysis of each of these data sources. Details: Wellington, NZ: New Zealand Police, 2008. 192p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 1, 2010 at: https://admin.police.govt.nz/resources/2008/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial-2008.pdf Year: 2008 Country: New Zealand URL: https://admin.police.govt.nz/resources/2008/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial-2008.pdf Shelf Number: 119713 Keywords: Less Lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Bobb, Merrick Title: A Bad Night at Powell Library: The Events of November 14, 2006 Summary: At the behest of UCLA Acting Chancellor Norman Abrams, PARC was engaged to investigate a November 2006 incident in which the UCLA campus police repeatedly tasered a UCLA student who refused to produce his student identification after hours in the main campus library. PARC conducted a seven-month investigation of the facts, including exhaustive research on the Taser itself, on the policies and practices of other universities and police departments regarding use of the Taser, and on the best and recommended practices regarding the Taser formulated by the leading authorities and experts on the question, including model policies drafted by police organizations such as the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF). Details: Los Angeles, CA: Police Assessment Resource Center, 2007. 117p. Source: Iinternet Resource: Accessed October 13, 2010 at: http://www.parc.info/client_files/UCLA/UCLA%20Taser%20Report%20August%20Final.pdf Year: 2007 Country: United States URL: http://www.parc.info/client_files/UCLA/UCLA%20Taser%20Report%20August%20Final.pdf Shelf Number: 119940 Keywords: Campus PoliceColleges and UniversitiesPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: 2011 Electronic Control Weapon Guidelines Summary: One of the defining characteristics of police organizations is that they have been given legal authority to use physical force, and one of the most critical challenges for police departments is the constant struggle to ensure that their use of force is legitimate. Over the last few decades, there has been a growing awareness that police must strive not only to prevent unnecessary or excessive uses of force but also to ensure that communities perceive their police to be acting properly when they use force. As a result of this greater attention to use-of-force issues, there have been substantial improvements in policies, practices, and results. These include significant reductions in officer-involved shootings, creation of early intervention systems to detect possible excesses in individual officers’ use of force, greater mechanisms for accountability and transparency regarding use-of-force issues, and training of officers to de-escalate situations when possible using verbal techniques and other nonlethal methods of controlling an incident. Another advancement has been the development of new less-lethal weapons, which give police a wider range of options to choose from in dealing with persons who resist police authority in various situations—in some cases because they have a mental illness or are under the influence of drugs. Each new less-lethal weapon brings its own set of advantages and limitations that must be managed if officers are to choose the best options in a given situation. In 2005, the COPS Office and PERF came together to produce a set of policy guidelines regarding the use of what were then called Conducted Energy Devices and now are called Electronic Control Weapons (ECWs). Police practitioners and other experts met in Houston and were able to hammer out a strong set of guidelines on ECW use. The guidelines offered practical guidance on the situations in which ECWs are useful and those in which they are not the best option, as well as advice about best practices for training, supervision of officers’ ECW activations, and other issues. The COPS/PERF guidelines of 2005 were adopted by many departments, and they helped those agencies to ensure that ECWs were used properly. Since 2005, researchers have continued to conduct studies of ECWs, and thousands of police departments have gained real-world experience with them. As a result, the COPS Office asked PERF to update the 2005 guidelines, reflecting these developments. PERF conducted background research, including a survey of nearly 200 law enforcement agencies regarding ECW deployments, as well as interviews of police chiefs and other experts. PERF and the COPS Office then convened a conference in Philadelphia in August 2010 where 150 police executives, researchers, doctors, attorneys, and others discussed the use of ECWs in light of five years’ worth of experience in the field. This publication is the result of those efforts, providing an updated and improved version of the initial guidelines to reflect the state of the field regarding ECWs. The 2011 guidelines also reflect a general consensus in policing that ECWs play an invaluable role in providing officers with another type of less-lethal weapon that can be effective in many situations, but they should not be seen as an all-purpose weapon that takes the place of de-escalation techniques and other options. In addition, ECWs have limitations, so officers must be prepared to switch to other strategies if an ECW is not producing the desired result. Details: Washington, DC: Police Executive Research Forum and the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, 2011. 60p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 19, 2011 at: http://www.policeforum.org/library/use-of-force/ECWguidelines2011.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/library/use-of-force/ECWguidelines2011.pdf Shelf Number: 123412 Keywords: Non-Lethal ForcePolice Use of ForceStun Guns (U.S.)Tasers |
Author: Whitfield, Emily Title: A Force to be Reckoned With: Taser Use and Policies in 20 Arizona Law Enforcement Agencies Summary: This special report represents the most comprehensive survey of Taser use by law enforcement agencies in Arizona to date. To our knowledge, it is also the first independent examination of the relationship between Taser use and the frequency of deployment of lethal force by police in Arizona. Police use of Tasers has been controversial since the release of TASER International’s first highpowered Electronic Control Weapons (ECWs) to agencies in the early 2000s. While billed as an alternative to lethal force including firearms, according to Amnesty International at least 330 people have lost their lives after being exposed to police Tasers between 2001 and 2008. In addition, a 2011 report by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) – a branch within the U.S. Department of Justice – found that Tasers have indirect or secondary effects, such as injury from falling, that can result in death. The NIJ cautioned that the effects of Tasers on certain vulnerable populations, such as small children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with heart conditions, are not well understood. As more incidents involving Tasers have come to light in the age of YouTube and the 24-hour news cycle – from the 2007 University of Florida episode that coined the phrase “Don’t Tase Me, Bro,” to ongoing reports of tragic deaths and serious injuries inflicted by Tasers – criticism of police use of the weapon has mounted around the country. Arizona has not escaped this controversy. Many U.S. law enforcement and correctional agencies in the United States are using Tasers today. In Arizona, where TASER International has its corporate headquarters, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Arizona asked large police departments and sheriff’s offices about the number and percentage of officers armed with a Taser; virtually every sworn officer is provided with one. The ACLU of Arizona supports the responsible use of less-lethal weapons such as Tasers. We recognize that there are times when police officers must use such force to protect their lives and the lives of others. However, all too often, Tasers are used “preemptively” against citizens that do not present an imminent safety threat, and even offensively as a pain compliance tool. What’s more, both TASER International training materials and agency policies anticipate that officers will use the weapon as a pain compliance tool. The purpose of this report is to illuminate specific facts about Taser use by Arizona law enforcement officers and to use those facts as a starting point for a conversation about the need for meaningful reform. Details: Phoenix: American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, 2011. 41p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 19, 2011 at: http://www.acluaz.org/taserreport Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.acluaz.org/taserreport Shelf Number: 123410 Keywords: Non-Lethal ForcePolice Use of ForceStun Guns (Arizona)Tasers |
Author: British Columbia. Canada. Braidwood Commission on Conducted Energy Weapon Use Title: Restoring Public Confidence: Restricting the Use of Conducted Energy Weapons in British Columbia Summary: Conducted energy weapons, for the past decade, have been used widely by law enforcement agencies in British Columbia, across Canada, and internationally. They are designed to achieve control over a subject through pain compliance (when used in push-stun mode) or through neuromuscular incapacitation (when used in probe mode). In October 2007, at the Vancouver International Airport, an officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police used a conducted energy weapon (CEW) against Mr. Robert Dziekanski, who died within minutes. Public reaction to this incident was immediate and intense and, at a more general level, concern was expressed about the deployment and use of conducted energy weapons by policing bodies in British Columbia. In response to this public concern, the provincial government appointed me to conduct two separate inquiries under the new Public Inquiry Act. I was appointed as sole Commissioner on February 15, 2008, under the Public Inquiry Act to conduct a study commission to inquire into and report on the use of conducted energy weapons by provincially regulated law enforcement agencies, the Sheriff Services Division and the Corrections Branch. My terms of reference (set out in Appendix A) were to: Review the current rules, policies and procedures applicable to constables, sheriffs and correctional officers respecting their use of conducted energy weapons, including their training and re-training; Review research, studies, reports and evaluations respecting the safety and effectiveness of conducted energy weapons when used in policing and law enforcement; and Make recommendations respecting the appropriate use of conducted energy weapons, including appropriate training and re-training. The Commission convened for 15 days of informal, non-adversarial public forums in May and June 2008, at which 61 people made presentations. They represented a wide range of commercial, engineering, medical, mental health, law enforcement, civilian oversight, political, non-governmental, and personal interests. Contemporaneously, Commission researchers explored a variety of medical, scientific, legal, and policy issues, and conducted a detailed empirical analysis of every BC law enforcement agency’s use of conducted energy weapons. Details: British Columbia, Canada: Braidwood Commission on Conducted Energy Weapon Use, 2009. 556p. Source: Braidwood Commission on Conducted Energy Weapon Use Report: Internet Resource: Accessed February 12, 2012 at http://www.braidwoodinquiry.ca/report/P1_pdf/BraidwoodInquiry-Phase1Report-2009-06-18.zip Year: 2009 Country: Canada URL: http://www.braidwoodinquiry.ca/report/P1_pdf/BraidwoodInquiry-Phase1Report-2009-06-18.zip Shelf Number: 124005 Keywords: Conducted Energy WeaponsPolice Use of Force (Canada)Stun GunsTasers |
Author: British Columbia. Canada. Braidwood Commission on the Death of Robert Dziekanski. Title: Why? The Robert Dziekanski Tragedy Summary: In October 2007, at the Vancouver International Airport, an officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (“RCMP”) used a conducted energy weapon against Mr. Robert Dziekanski, who, after being subdued and handcuffed, died within minutes. Public reaction to this incident was immediate and intense, and at a more general level, concern was expressed about the deployment and use of conducted energy weapons by policing bodies in British Columbia. In response to this public concern, the provincial government appointed me in February 2008 to conduct two separate inquiries under the Public Inquiry Act. The first inquiry report, entitled Restoring Public Confidence: Restricting the Use of Conducted Energy Weapons in British Columbia, included recommendations respecting the appropriate use of conducted energy weapons, including appropriate training and re-training. It was released on July 23, 2009. This second inquiry report deals with the death of Mr. Dziekanski. My Terms of Reference (set out in Appendix A) were: to conduct hearings, in or near the City of Vancouver, into the circumstances of and relating to Mr. Dziekanski’s death; to make a complete report of the events and circumstances of and relating to Mr. Dziekanski’s death, not limited to the actual cause of death; to make recommendations the commissioner considers necessary and appropriate; and to submit a report to the Attorney General on or before a date to be determined by the Attorney General in consultation with the Commissioner. The Commission convened 61 days of evidentiary hearings at which 91 witnesses testified under oath or affirmation, followed by five days of closing oral submissions. Official participant status was granted to 16 individuals and organizations, all of whom were represented by counsel. Three of the 91 witnesses were senior employees of the Canada Border Services Agency and the Vancouver Airport Authority, who explained their policies, practices, and procedures respecting the handling of, and services provided to, arriving international passengers, especially those who do not speak English, and what changes have been made since October 2007. This report offers recommendations the use of conducted energy weapon use by police services in British Columbia. Details: British Columbia, Canada: Braidwood Commission on the Death of Robery Dziekanski, 2009. 556p. Source: Braidwood Commission on the Death of Robert Dziekanski: Internet Resource: Accessed February 12, 2012 at http://www.braidwoodinquiry.ca/report/P2_pdf/BraidwoodInquiry-Phase2Report-2010-06-17.zip Year: 2009 Country: Canada URL: http://www.braidwoodinquiry.ca/report/P2_pdf/BraidwoodInquiry-Phase2Report-2010-06-17.zip Shelf Number: 124006 Keywords: Conducted Energy WeaponsPolice Use of Force (Canada)Stun GunsTasers |
Author: Scott, Kenneth B. Title: Research Report: Evaluation of the Strathclyde Extended Deployment of Taser Pilot Summary: In June 2009 the Chief Constable of Strathclyde Police approved the establishment of a pilot project to extend the use of Taser to specially trained officers attending operational incidents involving violence or threats of violence. The aim of the Extended Deployment of Taser (EDT) Pilot was to assess the effectiveness of deploying Specially Trained Officers (STOs), who are not authorised firearms officers, on the front-line with Taser X26 devices as an additional tactical option in operational policing situations requiring the use of force. The Pilot ran from 20 April to 20 October 2010 and thirty response officers from two sub-divisions were selected for specialist training as STOs for the purpose of carrying Taser during their regular periods of duty.This evaluation sought to determine compliance of Specially Trained Officers with the Standard Operating Procedures for the deployment of Taser and reviewed in detail both the small number of incidents in which Taser was deployed within the Pilot (see 1 below), and a number of identified incidents in which STOs decided not to deploy Taser (see 2 below). It concluded that Specially Trained Officers complied with the Procedures and adhered to the requirement to use Taser in ways which were measured, justifiable and proportionate. Details: Dundee, Scotland: The Scottish Institute for Policing Research, 2012. 5p. Source: SIPR Research Summary No. 12: Internet Resource: Accessed November 3, 2012 at http://www.sipr.ac.uk/downloads/Research_Summaries/Research_Summary_12.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.sipr.ac.uk/downloads/Research_Summaries/Research_Summary_12.pdf Shelf Number: 126866 Keywords: Conducted Energy WeaponsNonlethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForcePolice WeaponsStun GunsTaser GunsTasers |
Author: Victoria Police Title: Evaluation of Victoria Police Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project Summary: The Taser X26 is a brand of conducted energy device (CED); a 'less lethal' device that is used to cause temporary incapacitation to a person. Emitting electricity via wires and probes, they are employed as a resolution option by national and international law enforcement agencies against persons causing or threatening serious harm to themselves or others. CEDs have been in use by specialist areas within Victoria Police since 2004 (Special Operations Group [SOG], 2004, and the Critical Incident Response Teams [CIRT], 2005). With these specialist areas responding from their bases in Melbourne, a service delivery gap exists in regional and rural areas of Victoria. In February, 2010, Victoria Police commenced a pilot project to trial CEDs in the Bendigo and Morwell response zones. Analysis of Use of Force data identified these response zones as having a higher number of incidents involving the use of force, persons with a mental illness, sieges and instances where offenders have used weapons against police. Even though police effectively resolve a high volume of these incidents on a daily basis without recourse to the use of force, the aim of the project was to introduce CEDs to general duties and Highway Patrol police from these pilot sites and provide them with an enhanced less lethal capability to minimise the likelihood of recourse to lethal force when responding to incidents of this nature. The trial commenced on the 4th of July, 2010, and initially ran for a twelve month period before being extended pending the outcome of a formal evaluation process. In August 2011, Victoria Police's Deputy Commissioner for Regional and Road Policing, Mr Kieran Walshe APM, instigated an evaluation of the Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project. This evaluation examined and assessed the project that saw the equipping of front line police at the pilot sites with the Taser X26 CED. In order to ensure the evaluation was robust and objective, Victoria Police approached New South Wales Police seeking the assistance of an appropriately experienced senior officer. Assistant Commissioner Alan Clarke APM, the Chairperson of the NSW Police Force Taser Executive Committee, was subsequently engaged to lead the evaluation with assistance provided by staff from the Victoria Police Inspectorate. This final evaluation of the Victoria Police Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project builds upon the Interim Evaluation completed by the Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project team. The Evaluation Team, where appropriate, identified opportunities for improvement and made recommendations. The range of material examined during the evaluation supports the assertion that the CED is an effective weapon in assisting in the resolution of some incidents; this was further supported by the feedback supplied by the police attending the incidents where CED was used. Details: Melbourne: Victoria Police, 2011. 63p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 24, 2014 at: http://www.police.vic.gov.au/content.asp?Document_ID=31234 Year: 2011 Country: Australia URL: http://www.police.vic.gov.au/content.asp?Document_ID=31234 Shelf Number: 132175 Keywords: Non-Lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Amnesty International Title: The Human Rights Impact of Less Lethal Weapons and Other Law Enforcement Equipment Summary: Law enforcement agencies around the world regularly misuse so-called "less-lethal" weapons and equipment for torture and their use can also have deadly consequences, Amnesty International and the Omega Research Foundation said as they launched a new briefing at the United Nations Crime Congress in Doha, Qatar. The Human Rights Impact of Less Lethal Weapons and Other Law Enforcement Equipment details the medical and other risks associated with a wide range of weaponry and equipment used in policing, including crowd control during demonstrations, as well as in prisons. And it recommends stricter controls or, in some cases, bans to stem future abuses. Amnesty International and Omega acknowledge the importance of developing less-lethal weapons, equipment and technologies, to reduce the risk of death or injury inherent in police use of firearms and other existing weapons. When used responsibly by well-trained and fully accountable law enforcement officials, less-lethal weapons can prevent and minimize deaths and injuries to assailants, suspects and detainees, as well as protect the police and prison officers themselves. But such equipment can have damaging and even deadly effects if it is not used in compliance with international human rights law and standards. It can also have a particularly harmful impact on some people, including the elderly, children, and pregnant women, or those with compromised health. Amnesty International has documented how law enforcement officials commit a wide range of human rights violations using such equipment - including torture and other ill-treatment in custody, as well as excessive, arbitrary and unnecessary use of force against demonstrators. The briefing covers five categories of equipment: Restraints: thumb cuffs, fixed cuffs, leg irons and restraint chairs; Kinetic impact devices: police batons and other striking weapons, spiked batons and kinetic impact projectiles including plastic bullets, rubber bullets, baton rounds and bean bag projectiles; Riot control agents: chemical irritants such as tear gas and pepper spray, including those dispensed from fixed installation dispensers; Electric shock devices: Tasers and other projectile electric shock devices, stun batons, stun shields and body-worn electric shock equipment such as stun belts; Acoustic devices and other technologies used to disperse crowds: audible sound wave technology that emits a deterrent noise, as well as water cannon. In cases where the items have a legitimate use, the organizations recommend controls to prevent their misuse. In the case of new technology which is not yet adequately tested, suspension pending further research by independent experts is recommended. Lastly, the organizations call for prohibitions on equipment which has no legitimate purpose which cannot be achieved by safer alternatives. Less-lethal weapons and restraints have developed considerably since the adoption of some international human rights standards relevant to law enforcement. For example, since the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms were adopted in 1990, a range of ever more advanced weaponry and other technologies have come into use by law enforcement agencies around the world. With the exception of the USA and the European Union, the trade in security and law enforcement equipment is either unregulated or subject to laxer restrictions than the trade in conventional weapons. Amnesty International and Omega are calling for stricter controls, including a licensing system for transfers of law enforcement equipment to safeguard against its potential abuse by the end user. Details: London: AI, 2015. 30p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 23, 2015 at: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/human_rights_impact_less_lethal_weapons_doha_paper.pdf Year: 2015 Country: International URL: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/human_rights_impact_less_lethal_weapons_doha_paper.pdf Shelf Number: 135374 Keywords: Crowd ControlPolice Use of ForcePolice WeaponsTasers |
Author: Neuscheler, Jena Title: Report on Electronic Control Weapons (ECWs) Submitted to the City of Berkeley Summary: The SCJC report aims to help the City Council evaluate the potential benefits and consequences of equipping city police with ECWs. The Council's primary concern was the impact of ECW adoption on the safety of police officers and the citizens they protect. The Council also sought information on the acute health effects of ECWs, the legal framework that governs ECW use, and how adoption might impact the city's budget. To answer those questions, we have read and analyzed approximately 150 studies on the public safety impacts of ECW adoption, the physical effects of ECWs on the human body, and the legal ramifications of ECW adoption. We have attempted to rigorously assess each of these studies, critiquing their methodologies and assumptions, as well as considering possible critiques of those critiques. Our goal has been to help identify what is and what is not known about ECW as a law enforcement tool, and to separate well founded claims from those with a weak foundation. The City Council and the SCJC originally planned to survey several nearby jurisdictions in order to examine outcomes following ECW adoption. The goal was to extrapolate from the results of nearby cities, whose demographics and characteristics might be similar to those of Berkeley. As the Center's research continued, however, it became clear that a survey of nearby jurisdictions would not provide meaningful or accurate answers to the most important questions. Many of those questions had been addressed by a vast body of empirical research conducted by teams of medical and social scientists, often with the support of grants from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ). The best studies take years to gather, code, and analyze data, which are subject to statistical controls to help account for the characteristics that make each jurisdiction or subject unique. On the question of whether ECWs help reduce injuries to suspect and police officers, for instance, just one of the two leading datasets includes 24,000 use-of-force records from 12 cities, which were chosen from a nationally representative survey of 1,000 municipal, county, and state law enforcement agencies. In short, attempting to reproduce those inquiries by simply surveying nearby cities would risk capturing information irrelevant to the demographics and dynamics of Berkeley. At the same time, the very familiarity of those nearby cities would make it even easier to draw misleading conclusions. Moreover, for some of the most important questions, even the most sophisticated research had yielded conflicting results. Ultimately, we determined that the best way to help the Berkeley City Council answer these questions was to effectively synthesize this vast literature into an overview of what is known, while setting aside specious or poorly supported claims. Throughout the course of this research, we have learned that some of the most important questions do not have an answer-in some cases, because research is still ongoing; in other cases, because the answers depend on underlying values and beliefs. We believe that identifying and explaining those questions that do not have clear answers is one of the more useful functions of this report. Details: Stanford, CA: Stanford Criminal Justice Center, Stanford law School, 2015. 73p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 26, 2015 at: https://2pe0o743k0s82lo5l6trs9j1-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ECW-Final-Draft-2.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://2pe0o743k0s82lo5l6trs9j1-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ECW-Final-Draft-2.pdf Shelf Number: 137058 Keywords: Electronic Control WeaponsNon-Lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Williams, Howard E. Title: Physiological Attributes of Arrest-Related Sudden Deaths Proximate to the Appllication of Taser Electronic Control Devices: An Evidence Based Study of the Theory of High-Risk Groups Summary: TASER electronic control devices (ECDs), manufactured by TASER International, Inc. in Scottsdale, Arizona, have become a popular tool for law enforcement. TASER International has sold more than 710,000 devices to 16,880 agencies in 107 countries. Although other manufacturers produce comparable types of electro-shock weapons, TASER products are the most commonly used in the United States and worldwide. Unfortunately, more than 870 people worldwide have died unexpectedly following law enforcement officers' uses of TASER ECDs. Currently, there is no research definitively establishing a causal relationship between the use of an ECD and the death of a person exposed to it. However, some recent studies suggest that application of TASER technology is responsible for sudden unexpected deaths. The ever increasing number of deaths following application of TASER ECDs and the growing number of cases wherein a coroner or medical examiner attribute the use of an ECD as a cause of death or as a significant contributing factor to the death raise legitimate concerns about the safety threshold of the devices. Researchers have proposed and tested many theories of why people die following the application of ECDs, including direct electro-stimulation of cardiac muscle, interference with breathing, and metabolic changes resulting in acidosis. Thus far, human model experiments have produced no evidence to support these theories. Another theory, which has recently appeared in the literature, has received no empirical testing the theory of high-risk groups. High-risk group theory postulates that elderly people, young children, people with pre-existing cardiovascular disease, people with pacemakers and implantable cardioverter-defibrillators, people under the influence of drugs (amphetamines, cocaine, lysergic acid diethylamide, marijuana, opiates, and/or phencyclidine) or with a history of drug abuse, people intoxicated from alcohol or with a history of chronic alcohol abuse, people under extreme psychological distress or who exhibit signs of excited delirium, people who are mentally ill or taking psychotropic medications, people subjected to repeated or multiple applications, and pregnant women are at a heightened risk of serious injury or death following application of a TASER ECD. What the current literature fails to consider is that the same physiological attributes that are presumed to render members of high-risk groups more vulnerable to serious injury or death following application of a TASER ECD might render these same people more vulnerable to serious injury or death regardless of the tactics or weapons that officers use to subdue them. If that hypothesis is correct, the use of TASER ECDs on people in high-risk groups might be irrelevant to arrest-related sudden deaths. The potential for fatal adverse effects on high-risk groups when using other less lethal tactics and methods versus the potential for fatal adverse effects on high-risk groups following the use of a TASER ECD is currently unknown. Thus far, research has not directly addressed the question. By examining autopsy and toxicology reports of the deceased and comparing differences in the physiological attributes of arrest-related sudden deaths, one can then estimate whether a difference exists in high-risk group attributes between deaths proximate to the use of a TASER ECD and deaths not involving the use of an ECD. An arrest-related sudden death is a death that occurs following a collapse within 24 hours after the initial arrest or detention. The death must be unexpected, must not be the result of trauma or injury that a layperson could readily discern needs medical attention, and must follow a sudden change in clinical condition or the beginning of symptoms from which the deceased does not recover. It does not include police shootings and suicides. Details: San Marcos: Texas State University, 2013. 305p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed March 2, 2016 at: https://digital.library.txstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10877/4855/WILLIAMS-DISSERTATION-2013.pdf?sequence=1 Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: https://digital.library.txstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10877/4855/WILLIAMS-DISSERTATION-2013.pdf?sequence=1 Shelf Number: 138016 Keywords: Arrest-Related DeathsNon-Lethal WeaponsStun GunsTasers |
Author: Goff, Phillip Atiba Title: The Science of Justice: Race, Arrests, and Police Use of Force Summary: Despite the importance of understanding how race intersects with police use of force, little research has used police administrative data to investigate whether or not disparities exist. Because the dominant narrative around race and law enforcement is that crime rates drive police behavior, we used data from the National Justice Database - the Center for Policing Equity's project to provide national-level data and analyses on police behavior - to investigate racial disparities in use of force benchmarking against demographics of local arrest rates. Even though this is a conservative estimate of bias, the analyses of 12 law enforcement departments from geographically and demographically diverse locations revealed that racial disparities in police use of force persist even when controlling for racial distribution of local arrest rates. Additionally, multiple participating departments still demonstrated racial disparities when force incidents were bench-marked exclusively against Part I violent arrests, such that Black residents were still more likely than Whites to be targeted for force. This method is very likely prone to underestimate racial disparities because African Americans are over-represented in violent crime arrests but Part I violent crimes constitute only 1/24th of all arrests nationally (BJS, 2012), and previous research has found arrests for violent crimes to involve police use of force only 1.3 times as often as arrests for all other crimes (Worden, 1995). These disparities were robust across multiple categories of force (hand weapon, OC spray, and Tasers). In addition to these findings and consistent with previous literature, Taser usage represented a large percentage of departments' use of force. Specifically, residents who were targeted for force were far more likely to be targeted by Tasers than by deadly weapons. While previous research has demonstrated the stark rise of Taser usage (Taylor et al., 2011) and its potential to reduce injuries (Alpert et al., 2011), the relatively high incidence of Taser usage relative to all other categories (it was the second most common category across all departments trailing only hand/body weapons) deserves significantly more public and scholarly attention given that Tasers are also the category closest to use of deadly force in most use of force continuums. It is important to be cautious about overgeneralizing these results because of the relatively small number of departments and because we do not know very much about what residents did during the interactions that turned forceful. However, the narrative that crime is the primary driver of racial disparities is not supported within the context of these departments. This suggests that scholars and practitioners should look at racial disparities in other situational factors (e.g., resistance, drug and alcohol use, and officer perceptions of dangerousness) to determine whether or not they explain racial disparities in force. Details: Los Angeles: Center for Policing Equity, 2016. 29p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 20, 2016 at: http://policingequity.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/CPE_SoJ_Race-Arrests-UoF_2016-07-08-1130.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://policingequity.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/CPE_SoJ_Race-Arrests-UoF_2016-07-08-1130.pdf Shelf Number: 140377 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice Use of ForceRacial DisparitiesStun GunsTasersUse of Non-Lethal Force |
Author: Buchanan, Kim S. Title: Electronic Defense Weapon Analysis and Findings, 2015 Summary: In an effort to increase transparency and better understand taser 1 use, the Connecticut General Assembly passed Public Act 14-149, An Act Concerning the Use of Electronic Defense Weapons by Police Officers, in 2014. PA 14-149 directed the Police Officer Standards and Training Council (POSTC) to draft and distribute a model policy for regulating the use of tasers. This law requires that every police department adopt and maintain a taser policy that meets or exceeds the standards set by the POSTC model policy. The new law also requires police officers to document each incident in which a taser was used and for law enforcement agencies authorizing such use to report all incidents to the Office of Policy and Management (OPM), Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division, by January 15 of the following year. The Institute of Municipal and Regional Policy (IMRP), at Central Connecticut State University, was tasked by the Office of Policy and Managements Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division with compiling and analyzing the reported taser data for 2015. The findings and recommendations in this report are based on analysis of the data submitted by 79 police departments in 2015, including a review of policies governing the use of tasers. This was the first year in which data on taser use has been collected in Connecticut. Based on numerous factors, IMRP researchers believe the data collected is not indicative of the entirety of required incident reporting based on PA 14-149. Therefore, while the descriptive statistics presented in this report raise many questions as to how, when, why, and on whom reported taser usage occurs within law enforcement agencies, they cannot be taken to conclusively establish what is happening with respect to all law enforcement taser use in Connecticut. As such, this first year of taser findings should be interpreted with caution. Details: New Britain, CT: Central Connecticut State University, Institute for Municipal & Regional Policy, 2016. 78p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 7, 2016 at: http://www.ccsu.edu/imrp/projects/files/EDW.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.ccsu.edu/imrp/projects/files/EDW.pdf Shelf Number: 145110 Keywords: Electronic Control Weapons Non-Lethal Weapons Police Use of Force Police Weapons Stun Guns Tasers |
Author: Omega Research Foundation Title: Manufacturing torture? South Africa's trade in electric shock equipment Summary: In South Africa, the trade in certain kinds of firearms and military equipment is controlled for reasons of safety and security. However, there is a gap in legislation when it comes to the control of law enforcement equipment that can facilitate torture and ill treatment. This brief examines electric shock devices as an example of security equipment that needs stronger trade-control measures. The brief outlines concerns over the use of electric shock equipment, and discusses the manufacture of these items in South Africa and their trade with other countries. It also looks at trade controls currently used elsewhere, and provides recommendations for changes in the control measures surrounding these products in South Africa. Recommendations 1 The trade in law-enforcement equipment that has no practical purpose other than for the purpose of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment should be prohibited. 2 Body-worn electric shock devices (e.g. stun belts) have no legitimate law enforcement purpose and should be banned for import and export. 3 Hand-held direct contact electric shock devices designed for law enforcement (e.g. stun shields and stun batons) are prone to abuse and should be banned for import and export. 4 Wired projectile electric shock weapons should be regulated in the same way as firearms. 5 A targeted end-use control mechanism for policing and security equipment would help prevent the transfer of weapons that could contribute to internal repression. Details: Pretoria, South Africa: Institute for Security Studies, 2016. 8p. Source: Internet Resource: Policy Brief 84: Accessed November 10, 2016 at: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PolicyBrief84.pdf Year: 2016 Country: South Africa URL: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PolicyBrief84.pdf Shelf Number: 141093 Keywords: Electric Shock Police Use of Force Stun Guns TasersTorture |
Author: Queensland. Crime and Misconduct Commission Title: Multiple and prolonged Taser deployments Summary: The Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) has been conducting research into Taser use by the QPS since Tasers were first trialled in Queensland in 2007. Our research has shown that a substantial proportion of Taser deployments involve a multiple or prolonged cycle. At present, very little is known about multiple or prolonged Taser deployments. It is important that we improve our knowledge of these types of deployments for two reasons. First, research suggests that multiple and prolonged Taser deployments may be associated with an increased risk of harm and even death. It is important that we know more about these types of deployments in an effort to balance the risk of harm to the subject person with the risk of harm to the police or others. Second, QPS policy and public expectation dictate that police use the minimum amount of force to resolve a situation. When police use a Taser, and particularly when they deploy the Taser for a multiple or prolonged cycle, they are using the upper limits of their use of force options. Although the proportion of Taser deployments that involve a multiple or prolonged cycle has decreased over time, our 2012 paper showed that these types of deployments constitute about 30 per cent of all Taser deployments. It is within this context that the CMC sought to develop a more comprehensive understanding of multiple and prolonged deployments, to ensure that they are justified according to policy and are being used in the appropriate types of situations. Scope of this review This review examined incidents involving a multiple or prolonged Taser deployment to better understand why they occur, whether they are appropriate and justified according to policy, and whether they are a good use of force option. Details: Brisbane: The Commission, 2013. 80p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 12, 2016 at: www.ccc.qld.gov.au Year: 2013 Country: Australia URL: www.ccc.qld.gov.au Shelf Number: 131148 Keywords: Electronic Control Weapons Non-Lethal Weapons Police Use of Force Stun Guns Tasers |
Author: British Columbia. Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner Title: Taser Technology Review: Final Report Summary: Since the production of our Interim Report, the focus of the investigative team has been to provide suggested Course Training Standards in the areas of Conducted Energy Devices (CED) (i.e.: TASER), Excited Delirium (ED) and Restraint Protocols (RP). These are not intended to be endpoints; rather they reflect best practices based on research available at this time. This Course Training Standards package will be made available upon its completion and is intended to support several of our recommendations in the Interim Report. Since the Interim Report was released in September, 2004, several new studies relevant to this area have been published. The Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology Study (PACE), although criticized because of the participation of TASER medical and technical personnel, appears to demonstrate that adequate margins of safety exist with respect to the issue of ventricular fibrillation (VF). The Human Effects Centre of Excellence (HECOE) Study, produced by the U.S. Military, also confirmed that VF was unlikely to be a risk, although it identified the potential for serious unintended consequences, "albeit with estimated low probabilities of occurrence." Research done by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) confirmed several of the hypotheses present in our Interim Report, as it demonstrated that very lengthy TASER exposures (three minutes of five second on - five second off cycling) had significant impacts on blood levels of carbon dioxide, lactate, pH, and other markers. We believe this study provides support for the proposition that police should, where possible, be minimizing multiple TASER applications. The effect that TASER application has on respiration remains an area of concern. Muscular tetany that impairs respiration may be an operative factor that has been previously unrecognized. This concern also relates to the issue of multiple usages. Life preservation and retrieval in situations where an individual is at high risk of death proximal to restraint requires changes not just to police protocols and procedures but also the methods used by ambulance personnel and emergency room physicians. These changes require extensive research to ensure they are based on the best available information. There are now two international research initiatives that may provide definitive answers to many of the ongoing TASER debates. In the U.K, the Defence Sciences Technology Laboratory (DSTL) has carried out experiments designed to study the effects of stimulant drugs and electrical current on cardiac tissue, potentially providing some insight as to why stimulant drug abusers make up the overwhelming majority of people who die in police restraint. In the U.S., the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) is funding a three year study at the University of Wisconsin to map TASER current in the body and to monitor changes to blood chemistry and respiration. In Canada, the Canadian Police Research Centre (CPRC) is proposing a cross-Canada epidemiological study that will focus on ED and gathering data from emergency room admissions. We believe this Canadian initiative, chosen to coordinate with other international studies, will provide previously unavailable insight into this condition and its medical management. The Amnesty International (AI) report on the TASER makes a number of recommendations we have considered in our Final Report. Although we feel some of those recommendations have merit, we believe that blanket prohibitions do not always obtain the desired outcome. The reasonableness of any use of force will always be determined by the situational factors. Our responsibility as a police community is to give officers the information to make the best possible decision. Details: Victoria, BC: Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner, 2015. 43p. Source: Internet Resource: OPCC File No. 2474: Accessed November 17, 2016 at: http://www.llbc.leg.bc.ca/public/pubdocs/bcdocs/376654/taser_finalrpt.pdf Year: 2005 Country: Canada URL: http://www.llbc.leg.bc.ca/public/pubdocs/bcdocs/376654/taser_finalrpt.pdf Shelf Number: 140205 Keywords: Non-lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Colucci, Anthony L. Title: Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences: Houston Texas Police Department Project on Officer-Involved Shooting Summary: The overall goal of this research was to investigate Officer-Involved Shooting (OIS) incidents relevant to the Houston Police Department, and the relationships between its likelihood and pre-scene and on-scene factors, as well as relationships amongst the factors. The primary goal of the study was to mine data and identify significant pre-scene and on-scene factors that substantially affected the likelihood of Officer-Involved Shooting incidents. The secondary goal of this study was to identify factors that meaningfully impacted the significant on-scene factors, in particular ones related to officer’s behavior prior to gun use, that were highly correlated with likelihood of Officer-Involved Shooting. The study’s third goal was to focus on investigating specific relationships amongst selected pre-scene and on-scene factors, as well as between these factors and likelihood of Officer-Involved Shooting incidents. For example, the team found that junior officers were more likely to find themselves in use-of-force situations, but were also seemingly more likely to use the CED instead. This might be a result of junior officers assimilating better with CED, which is a relatively newer technology. The treatment group included 195 incidents that escalated into Officer-Involved Shooting incidents, while the control group included 108 incidents where firearm use was also permitted, but did not escalate into Officer-Involved Shooting incidents. Specifically, in these incidents within the control group, officers chose to use Conducted Energy Devices (CEDs) or Tasers instead. Over the course of six months, the team performed extensive data mining and collating, leading to a data set with 303 observations, and 269 variables. In the primary analysis, the team was able to identify several meaningful relationships between pre-scene and on-scene variables and likelihood of Officer-Involved Shooting incidents. To achieve the secondary goal, the team isolated significant on-scene factors and analyzed their relationships with pre-scene and preceding on-scene factors. Last but not least, the team ran focused regressions for selected pre-scene and on-scene factors and data points and learnt about specific relationships of interest. The key takeaways are as follows: Primary Analysis ● Officers responding to Critical Incident Training (CIT)-designated situations were 82 percent less likely to use their guns as compare to non-CIT situations ● Officers approaching with gun drawn were 37.0 percent more likely to use their guns than when approaching without gun drawn ● When officers knew that the suspect had a weapon, they were 19.6 percent more likely to use a gun than when they did not know that suspect had a weapon. However, if these officers also knew that the suspect’s weapon was a knife, they were 46.6 percent less likely to use a gun than when they knew the suspect had a weapon, but did not know it was a knife. ● Cases with one officer unit, including cases where backup was expected, were 23.9 percent more likely than two or more officer units to result in Officer-Involved Shooting ● Giving verbal commands resulted in a 10.1 percent decrease in likelihood of Officer-Involved Shooting as compared to not giving verbal command, except in cases where officers communicated with suspects, in which case it had no effect ● Incidents involving vehicles were 17.9 percent more likely to result in Officer-Involved Shooting than incidents not involving vehicles ● Suspects displaying aggressive stance (including pointing weapon at officers or others), and using weapon increased the likelihood of Officer-Involved Shooting by 35.1 percent and 22.4 percent, as compared to when suspect did not display aggressive stance and did not use weapon respectively ● Incidents in the Spring and Summer were 12.8 percent and 12.0 percent more likely respectively to escalate into Officer-Involved Shooting incidents respectively, as compared to Fall incidents; Winter incidents were not significantly different from Fall incidents Secondary Analysis ● Cases where officers knew beforehand about a vehicle pursuit were 49.3 percent more likely to involve officer approaching with gun drawn as compared to cases where officers did not know beforehand about a vehicle pursuit ● Cases involving traffic stops were 46.7 percent more likely to involve officer approaching with gun drawn as compared to those not involving traffic stops ● Cases where officers knew the suspect had a weapon were 24.8 percent more likely to involve officer approaching with gun drawn as compared to those where officers did not know suspect had a weapon ● Burglary and disturbance crimes were 34.7 percent and 32.8 percent more likely to involve officer approaching with gun drawn respectively, while evade and resist arrest crimes were 44.0 percent less likely to involve officer approaching with gun drawn, in comparison to other types of crimes, i.e. assist officer, barricaded suspect, and warrants, that were not significant ● Initial encounters with officer issuing tickets, interviewing suspects, and suspect initiating encounter were 57.7 percent, 49.7 percent, 49.2 percent less likely to involve officers approaching with gun drawn, in comparison to other insignificant miscellaneous initial encounters ● Assault crimes were 55.5 percent less likely to involve officers giving verbal commands as compared to other insignificant types of crime, such as barricaded suspect, and stolen vehicle. ● Self-initiated incidents were 44.0 percent less likely to involve officers giving verbal commands as compared to dispatch incidents ● For each extra year of service in the force, officers would be 0.5 percent more likely to give verbal commands ● When cover was possible for suspects, officers were 14.9 percent more likely to give verbal commands than when cover was not possible ● Incidents with building searches were 7.2 percent more likely to involve officers giving verbal commands as compared to insignificant miscellaneous initial encounters Focus Analysis ● More senior officers, specifically with seniority of more than five years, were 22.7 percent more likely than junior officers (seniority of less than five years) to shoot when they approach with gun drawn ● "Get out of the vehicle" resulted in 38.5 percent increase in OIS as compared to not giving command "Get out of the vehicle" in likelihood of suspect attacking officer ● "Drop the weapon" resulted in 20.1 percent decrease in OIS as compared to not giving command “Drop the weapon” in likelihood of suspect attacking officer ● When concealment was possible for officer, the likelihood of suspect attacking officer decreased by 40.5 percent as compared to when concealment was not possible for officer ● An increase in average priority number for previous calls for service decreased the likelihood of OIS by 3.9 percent (per unit increase), when restricting the regression to only officers on duty Details: Evanston, IL: Northwestern University, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences, 2014. 171p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 13, 2016 at: http://www.houstontx.gov/police/department_reports/ois/HPDThesis.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.houstontx.gov/police/department_reports/ois/HPDThesis.pdf Shelf Number: 140438 Keywords: Officer-Involved Shootings Police Accountability Police Misconduct Police Use of Force Tasers |
Author: Shadung, Mothepa Title: Tools of torture? Use of electric shock equipment among African Police Summary: orture is not an act that happens in isolation. It occurs in many contexts, and there are several techniques and means by which pain and suffering are inflicted on suspects, convicted inmates and others deprived of their liberty. This policy brief highlights how African law-enforcement agencies or government security forces potentially misuse electric shock equipment in a way that contravenes international and continental anti-torture frameworks. It then discusses reported cases of such misuse in South Africa. Finally, recommendations are made on how the use of electric shock equipment on the continent could be curbed, along with ways to build on efforts to prohibit and prevent torture. Recommendations 1 All policies and training with respect to the treatment of persons in custody should be compatible with national, regional and international human-rights standards. 2 African states should ratify the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. 3 All incidents of torture, assault and death in police custody should be reported and carefully monitored as a matter of public accountability and transparency, and perpetrators prosecuted. 4 Handheld direct contact electric shock devices and body-worn electric shock devices designed for law enforcement are prone to abuse and should be prohibited. Details: Pretoria: Institute for Security Studies, 2016. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: Policy Brief 85: Accessed December 19, 2016 at: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PolicyBrief85.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Africa URL: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PolicyBrief85.pdf Shelf Number: 140526 Keywords: Electric ShocksPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasersTorture |
Author: Omega Research Foundation Title: Compliance through pain: Electric shock equipment in South African prisons Summary: The authorization of various kinds of electric shock devices for use in South African prisons, are designed to enforce compliance through pain, incapacitation or fear of activation. However, their use has been associated with acts of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. This policy brief produces an overview of electric shock equipment and describes known harmful medical effects associated with its use. It highlights the use and misuse of these types of equipment in correctional institutions in South Africa, and outlines how and why this equipment is in breach of local, regional and international standards. This brief is designed to raise awareness of these concerns and to provide recommendations for change in how electric shock equipment is used in South Africa. Details: Pretoria: Institute for Security Studies, 2016. 10p. Source: Internet Resource: Policy Brief 86: Accessed February 13, 2017 at: http://dspace.africaportal.org/jspui/bitstream/123456789/35856/1/PolicyBrief86.pdf?1 Year: 2016 Country: South Africa URL: http://dspace.africaportal.org/jspui/bitstream/123456789/35856/1/PolicyBrief86.pdf?1 Shelf Number: 147293 Keywords: Electric ShockPunishmentStun GunsTasersTorture |
Author: Ryan, Emma Title: Below the belt: police use of conducted energy weapons in Australia Summary: This thesis represents the first critical examination of the proliferation of sub-lethal weapons in Australian policing. It traces the introduction of such weapons in Australian policing, with an emphasis on Conducted Energy Weapons (CEWs), in particular Tasers. Using a multi-method, phronetic approach it examines whether the rhetoric used to support the introduction of CEWs is reflected in the policies related to the use of such weapons and in evidence about their use in the field. Phronetic methodology aims to explain social phenomena via the piecing together of large and small details that form the context of events; in this case the introduction of CEWs in Australia, the resulting policies established to control the weapon's use (excluding Tasmania and South Australia where access to the policy documents was refused) and also evidence about its use in practice. This comparative analysis of CEW use in each Australian state and territory is directed at three specific sites: the rhetoric used in relation to the introduction and further justification of CEW use by police across Australia, the policies used to guide police in their use and the available evidence about how CEWs are used in practice. The analysis draws on a broad range of sources incorporating document, news media and interview material. The findings draw attention to the phenomenon of 'mission creep' occurring in Australia, where CEWs have come to be used well outside of their original intended purpose. The thesis shows that this pattern has already been observed in relation to Oleoresin Capsicum spray (OC Spray), which is the other type of sub-lethal weapon widely adopted by police in Western democracies. It is now being observed internationally in relation to CEWs. The thesis therefore adds an Australian perspective to a growing body of literature suggesting that sub-lethal weapons' use by police is likely to have a corrosive effect on police/ community relationships and, crucially, on the principle of minimum force. It further argues that the weapons may have a profound impact on the delicate balance of consensual versus coercive policing styles. The analysis is set against the broader history of CEWs, and especially events in North America, where electronic weaponry evolved. Experiences in Britain and New Zealand are also examined briefly. The findings also demonstrate that the reasons for CEW adoption by police across jurisdictions, nationally and internationally, are very similar. It is argued that this is the case because decisions (and policy making) have been based on a series of misconceptions about sublethal weapons' utility. The thesis argues that the problems arising in jurisdictions that use CEWs are so similar as to warrant a set of clear statements about the potential consequences of their inappropriate deployment in Australia. On this basis, this research concludes by making an argument for the importance of establishing strict national guidelines to control the use of CEWs and by offering a range of observations on what such guidelines could look like. Details: Clayton, Victoria, AUS: Monash University, 2012. 255p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed May 5, 2017 at: http://arrow.monash.edu.au/vital/access/manager/Repository/monash:89033;jsessionid=E79AD5DD3381841D4B31D1125437E67C?exact=sm_subject%3A%22Accountablility%22 Year: 2012 Country: Australia URL: http://arrow.monash.edu.au/vital/access/manager/Repository/monash:89033;jsessionid=E79AD5DD3381841D4B31D1125437E67C?exact=sm_subject%3A%22Accountablility%22 Shelf Number: 145322 Keywords: Assault WeaponsNon-lethal WeaponsPolice AccountabilityPolice Use of ForceTasers |
Author: Amnesty International Netherlands Title: A Failed Experiment: The Taser-Pilot of the Dutch Police Summary: It is required by recognized international human rights rules and standards as presented in the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials that police agencies have at their disposition a range of means to respond to difficult situations in a differentiated manner. Thus, Amnesty International is not outright opposed to the use of electro-shock weapons in law enforcement in all cases. However, the current use of electro-shock weapons as well as the governing regulations in The Netherlands raise serious concerns and therefore Amnesty International calls the Dutch police to: - suspend the use of electro-shock weapons by all police units currently using them until a suitable legal and operational framework for their use has been set up that is in line with the obligations of The Netherlands under international human rights law and standards and - until this is done - to withdraw all electro-shock weapons distributed; - refrain from widespread distribution of electro-shock weapons in day-to-day policing; - cease any police interventions in mental health institutions in all situations and circumstances that do not amount to immediate life threatening emergencies (e.g. hostage situations). Amnesty International furthermore urges the Dutch government to create a legislative framework governing the use of force that gives due consideration to the obligations of The Netherlands under international human rights law, in particular to regulate, in formal legislation, the use of force in line with the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms, including the use of firearms and the use of electro-shock weapons, as well the overall conditions and criteria for police interventions in mental health institutions. This briefing sets out the background to the current pilot project conducted by the Dutch police on the general deployment of electro-shock weapons in day-to-day policing (I.). It further provides a summary of the Amnesty International's main findings regarding the human rights concerns of the first pilot phase as well as the overall set up of the project and its interim evaluation (II.). These findings are then more in detail explained and elaborated in section III., followed by a conclusion and some recommendations (IV.). Details: Amsterdam: Amnesty International Netherlands, 2018. 27p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 4, 2018 at: https://www.amnesty.nl/content/uploads/2018/02/A-Failed-Experiment_The-Taser-pilot-of-the-Dutch-Police.pdf?x32866 Year: 2018 Country: Netherlands URL: https://www.amnesty.nl/content/uploads/2018/02/A-Failed-Experiment_The-Taser-pilot-of-the-Dutch-Police.pdf?x32866 Shelf Number: 149679 Keywords: Human Rights AbusesPolice AccountabilityPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: New York City Civilian Complaint Review Board Title: Tasers: An Evaluation of Taser-Related Complaints from January 2014 Through December 2015 Summary: Across the United States, conducted energy devices, commonly known as "Tasers," are increasingly becoming a policing tool. 1 The New York City Police Department ("NYPD") has historically distributed Tasers on a limited basis, but as of early 2016, hundreds of new Tasers have been issued throughout the Department. As a result, the Civilian Complaint Review Board ("CCRB") can now begin to monitor the NYPD's Taser practices, including how officers are trained, the relevant contents of the NYPD Patrol Guide, and the patterns of police Taser conduct drawn from CCRB complaint data. When used properly, the Taser can be an effective weapon. Some reports on past experiences in New York City and across the country suggest that Tasers may pose health concerns and may be vulnerable to overuse. There has been limited discussion of the NYPD's guidance on when to use the weapon. Until 2015, few NYPD officers carried Tasers, and those who did were either senior officers or part of specialized commands. The NYPD has adopted and is implementing practices for Taser use. This issue brief seeks to share two years of CCRB complaint data, current NYPD guidance and practices as a baseline for tracking Taser use as it relates to CCRB complaints. The scope of the Report includes how Tasers are being used by the NYPD in Taser-related CCRB complaints from 2014 through 2015. Part I of the issue brief provides a short overview of the Taser, including its history, gradual adoption by the NYPD, and the NYPD's Taser policies and trainings. 2 Part II summarizes CCRB complaint data on Taser-related complaints from 2014 and 2015. Part III outlines current NYPD Guidance and identifies best practices. Part IV highlights next steps important for tracking and monitoring Taser use among NYPD officers. Details: New York: The Civilian Complaint Board, 2016. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 24, 2018 at: http://www1.nyc.gov/assets/ccrb/downloads/pdf/policy_pdf/issue_based/20161023_taser-report.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www1.nyc.gov/assets/ccrb/downloads/pdf/policy_pdf/issue_based/20161023_taser-report.pdf Shelf Number: 150362 Keywords: Citizen ComplaintsConducted Energy DevicesPolice MisconductPolice-Citizen InteractionsStun GunsTasers |
Author: Annan-Phan, Sebastien Title: Hot Temperatures, Aggression, and Death at the Hands of the Police: Evidence from the U.S. Summary: We study the effect of temperature on police-involved civilian deaths in the U.S. from 2000 to 2016. We show that violent crimes and assaulted or killed officers increase with warmer days (17 Degrees C and more), indicating an increased risk of personal harm on such days. Despite the higher threat level, temperatures have a precise null impact on the number of deaths via firearms, suggesting officers exercise judgment over their use of firearms independently of threat level. However, deaths from Tasers significantly increase during 'extremely warm' days (32 Degrees Celsius and more), indicating a need to reevaluate Taser-use policies to prevent unintended deaths. Details: S.L.: 2019. 35p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 30, 2019 at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/vtokad56yf0uuag/Annan-Phan%20and%20Ba%20%282019%29.pdf?dl=0 Year: 2019 Country: United States URL: https://www.dropbox.com/s/vtokad56yf0uuag/Annan-Phan%20and%20Ba%20%282019%29.pdf?dl=0 Shelf Number: 155251 Keywords: Deaths by FirearmsDeaths by TasersFirearms Related DeathsOfficer Involved FatalitiesOfficer Involved ShootingsTasersViolent CrimesWeather |