ARMED police officers in the West Midlands drew their Taser stun guns almost 800 times in the past year, according to new figures.
And officers opened fire with the weapons – which shoot needle-tipped darts to deliver a crippling 50,000-volt shock – 140 times between April last year and the end of March.
The increase came after the controversial weapons were handed to specially-trained frontline officers across the force last summer. A total of 485 officers are now trained to use them.
Senior officers predicted the use of Tasers would be “minimal” following the roll-out but the figures showed they were drawn by officers 780 times – an average of more than twice a day.
Human rights experts described the increase as “worrying” but West Midlands Police said the weapon was effective in the right setting.
Amnesty International’s UK campaigns director Tim Hancock said: “Tasers are dangerous weapons.
“They are potentially lethal and should only be used in a very limited set of circumstances where there’s a real threat to life.”
But a police spokesman said officers had to go through vigorous training before being armed with the stun guns.
“Taser is considered an effective way of restraining individuals that are violent and/or present a threat to members of the public and police,” he said.
“Officers have to justify using Taser, in the same way as they judge the use of CS spray or batons.
“It’s recognised that Tasers, compared with conventional firearms, are safer for the police and public, particularly in situations where there is a possibility of someone being seriously injured or killed.
“In many cases, Tasers have contributed to resolving incidents without injury.
“In a significant proportion of cases they have not even needed to be fired.”
No comments:
Post a Comment