Court to cops: Stop tasing people into compliance

it's about time the courts started enforcing taser regulation, the only question is now how will anyone enforce it? it's up to citizens to start demanding regulation, and additional training of any officer that will be carrying a taser. do tasers have their uses, sure, in situations that absolutely call for them.

but in the past year it seems they were mis-used more often than not. It seems the police officers who use them so freely should first and foremost undergo the punishment THEMSELVES that they all too willingly inflict upon civilians. maybe then we'll finally stop hearing stories about tasings of 72 year old women during a routine traffic stop, young hispanic men while they stand against a wall compliant, or kids trying to save people from a burning building.

Wasn't there a time when the night stick was considered a non lethal weapon for subduing people?

The term "non-lethal" is a term that is used to lend credibility to a sadistic device used by sadistic people for fundamentally sadistic purposes. A taser is a weapon, pure and simple. The fact it doesn't kill it's victim most of the time is a crappy (and lazy) justification for it's continued used by the police. It should be outlawed as a cruel and unusual form of punishment.

while police might be people too, they swear an oath, just like doctors, and if you can't control your anger, then it's time to find another line of work. Some people are NOT cut out to be officers of the law. Some people are NOT cut out to be teachers (and we all probably experienced a few of those). If the police force cannot provide adequate training to prevent abuse, then they need to begin to police themselves and get rid of the bad apples. They are, unfortunately, notorious for covering up for each other, and therein lies a huge portion of the problem.

Sooo.......could this be applied to Pepper Spray/Mace as well? It probably should.

finally

The taser should be used just before force. If the police are about to shoot/beat down a perp or old lady use the taser. Problem is police are people and get angry so sometimes they are quick on the draw with the taser. If you have never been hit by a taser the feeling is like violent muscle contractions all over your body. Some people poop/pee themselves. Have had the displeasure of knowing the feeling so i can comment.

So if not the taser do they shoot or whip out the nightstick aka Rodney King style. These are choices made everyday. So PLEASE TASE ME BRO!

Ive been a CHP officer for 1 yr now, never have had to used my taser or gun. I know some guys are quick to use and you only see the bad videos online which represent less than 1% of officers. Its stupid to judge all LEO is such a stereotype.

How is there not "rules of when you can use tasers" already?

word. Know your rights, and fuck the police

I couldn't agree me. How about something less demeaning, like a night stick hand raising? To be frank, cops are babies when they can simply TASE someone into compliance.

A pity that common sense had to come from a bench . What this says to me , is that , there are too many good people in the military and not much is left over for service at home .

ROTFL, like the stupid cops care what the kangaroo courts say! What a joke.

Jess
www.total-anonymity.at.tc

and this pig got shot in the market.

Great post
shortk8!!

I think the easiest way to make the cops stop tasering people is to make the current go both ways, that way a cop wont taser someone unless ABSOLUTELY necessary

bout time somebody did something, although now comes the hard part, actually enforcing.

I remain convinced that the rise in police brutality is directly related to the 8 horrible years of Bush/Cheny policies...the trickle down effect.

I am glad to hear this. American Law Enforcement seem really overly aggressive!

Finally some court justice with the sense to say NO to tasers. The whole taser for compliance thing has been completely getting out of hand. I hope that the tased can now file lawsuits against tase happy cops and police departments.

why, and by what logic or procedures, are 'tasers' even issued to police officers. i understand the term 'lethal', and 'non-lethal', but i don't understand what they mean by 'less-than-lethal'? tasers have been proven to produce cardiac arrest, in a person we should expect our thoroughly trained officers to be able to 'talk someone down', or at least wait for sufficient numbers to defuse the situation. there are easier ways to control a person who may not want to, but is that not why we pay for training? being 'verbally insulted' is never a justified reason for this....that is simply ego.

the best thing a cop ever did for me was to give me back my bag of weed on my 18th birthday after asking me how much i paid for it, and finding out is was a gift. i'm just glad i lived in a rich neighborhood (west valley, LA/CA).

they never helped me when i needed them unless i had to prove to them on the phone that i was aware of my rights and that they had an obligation to respond due to "my statements on the phone"

one simple example; the manager at best buy in Lancaster CA refused to give me a refund on a washing machine that never got delivered or ever picked up. the cop knew they were fucking with me by telling me that i had to come back the next day to get my money back. if i had not asked to speak to the dispatchers supervisor no one would have been called to the business location to address the dispute.

my mother has a friend whose daughter was raped and murdered by the security guard in her apartment building (he was a convicted felon before he ever got hired). the case went unsolved by the police (NYPD) for years. only until the Private Investigator, the family hired for $300 an hour, made a discovery years later at the murder scene in a storage area in the building did they ever prosecute and convict the murderer. it ultimately cost them $200,000 in PI FEES. if you are invisible to society, the police don't care about you.

you are as important as you are recognized by those in authority.

kissing ass is a terrible way to make a living!

It's about time!

Too many police think they're in a video game.

Fuck the police

wow... the ourt inacted a law that should be COMMON SENSE. i would like to see real legislation on these leathal weapons.

so what are stun guns for if they are not meant for the purpose of bending to and officer's will?
it is obvious that more training of the police force is needed.
It should be common sense to not taser a 72 year old woman or a 10 year old girl.
is it a crime,..is it legalized torture?

"In particular, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Tasers can’t be used simply to force a non-violent person to bend to an officer’s will."

Oh well, I thought to a certain extent they already used those standards, silly me giving the benefit of the doubt. But at least now its explicit.