Red Dot still the most frequent Taser use

Commander Basu said:

“Officers who are selected to carry Taser have a proven track record of policing. Taser is not a panacea to all occasions when police officers need to use force and will only be used in situations where officers face violence or the threat of violence. All Taser use is quite rightly subject to a high degree of oversight and scrutiny. Every instance of Taser use is recorded and logged with the Home Office.

“Once again, the most frequent use of the device (52 per cent) is the use of the red-dot laser sight used to aim the Taser at a subject, while non-discharge uses (where the device is not fired), account for around three quarters of uses between 2009 and 2012 and 81 per cent of uses in the last six months. This speaks volumes about the extensive and consistent training received by those officers selected as having the competencies necessary to carry a Taser – training which is recognised as being among the most stringent in the world and which comes with rigorous individual accountability.

“Taser has been utilised to resolve situations where a person has been intent on life threatening self-harm as well as where a subject has posed a risk to other members of the public or police. Officers are trained to factor in the potential vulnerability of the person and such factors as age and stature when assessing each situation.

“Analysing the figures released today, it has remained the case that Taser use by officers is actually very infrequent. Taser is used on less than one per cent of those arrested over a similar period. When Taser-carrying officers attend an incident, it may be drawn, it may even be aimed or the red dot activated but on 81 per cent of occasions the device is not fired. Its mere presence continues to act as a very effective deterrent.

“The Home Secretary gave additional funding to support an extension to the roll-out of Taser just over five years ago, which resulted in the procurement of around 5500 more Tasers for distribution to forces. A concomitant push on training at the same time also saw a significant rise in the number of officers trained to carry and use the device.

“The increases in device numbers and officer training is the core factor in the increases which we have seen in today’s figures. All increases are subject to the local forces strategic threat and risk assessment

“I welcome the continuing scrutiny of Taser use and would like to take this opportunity to further reassure the public that while this is a vital weapon for police to have at their disposal for incidents which pose a risk to the public, police or the alleged perpetrator, it is not something that we use lightly and the incidence of a full discharge remains very low.”

Notes to Editors

Home Office stats published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-use-of-taser-statistics-england-and-wales-january-to-june-2014

A Taser works not by power, but by the way it sends the current into the body and how the muscles respond.

It has been wrongly reported in the past that those who are Tasered are struck with 50,000 volts. This is NOT the case. The Taser itself is powered by 50,000 volts but the energy expended in a single shot is very low amperage

When officers use force there is no such thing as a 100 per cent risk-free option – this is acknowledged by the service. All options carry some form of risk. Taser is classed as a less-lethal weapon, which poses significantly less risk than other tactical options used by the police such as a metal baton, police dog or incapacitant spray.

The medical implications associated with Taser are closely monitored by an independent panel of medical advisers who also look at learning from across the world. Such monitoring shows that risks associated with Taser are largely secondary, as a result of falling, rather than the energy conducted through the device.

The use of Taser on those aged 18 or under represents only a tiny percentage of overall use. Whilst use on under 18s is extremely low, as with all instances, it is based on the threat posed by that individual at the time and officers must justify their use of force.

The expression ‘Taser use’ can be subdivided into seven categories. These are:

Drawn - Drawing of Taser in circumstances where any person could reasonably perceive the action to be a use of force.

Aiming - Deliberate aiming of the Taser at a targeted subject.

Arcing - Sparking of the Taser without aiming it or firing it.

Red-dotted/dotting - The weapon is not fired. Instead, the Taser is deliberately aimed and then partially activated so that a laser red dot is placed onto the subject

Fired - The Taser is fired with a live cartridge installed. When the trigger is pulled, the probes are fired towards the subject with the intention of creating an electrical circuit and delivering an incapacitating effect.

Drive stun - The Taser is held against the subject’s body and the trigger is pulled with no probes being fired. Contact with the subject completes the electrical circuit which causes pain and discomfort but does not deliver an incapacitating effect. Use of drive stun is taught as a self-defence method for Taser-trained officers but not recommended for common use during Taser deployments.

Angled Drive Stun - The officer fires the weapon with a live cartridge installed. One or both probes may attach to the subject. The officer then holds the taser against the subject’s body in a different area to the probe(s), in order to complete the electrical circuit and deliver an incapacitating effect.

For more information contact

Paddy Cooper
e: paddy.cooper@acpo.pnn.police.uk

The ACPO Press Office can be contacted via 020 7084 8946/47/48 (office hours) or via 07803 903686 (out of office hours).

The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) is an independent, professionally led strategic body. In the public interest and, in equal and active partnership with Government and partner agencies, ACPO leads and co-ordinates the direction and development of the police service in the United Kingdom. In times of national need ACPO, on behalf of all chief officers, co-ordinates the strategic policing response.

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