Originally Posted by
jmur5074
The tasers uses are limitless in use of force encounters.
Example:
I'm familiar with an incident where a subj. was suicidal, in his apt., and armed with a knife. Phone contact was made and he was eventually coerced into coming outside. He was told, obviously, to be unarmed. Well, he came outside, knife in hand. One office had armed himself with a taser, behind the entry way to the apt. building (10 ft. behind the suspect when he exited). Other officers were on the sidewalk in front of the entryway, armed with firearms. The suspect refused to drop the knife at the commands of the officers armed with firearms. Before anyone had to make a decision to shoot him, the officer armed with the taser tased him in the back, he was disarmed, and taken into custody. Problem solved with no one dying. Had he refused to drop the knife, and was shot, his likelihood of dying would have been astronomically higher than being tased.
Moving on to intermediate weapons. Chemical sprays and gases can cause burns to fair skinned people, and cause breathing problems in almost everybody. A person with COPD, asthma, etc, can quickly die after being sprayed. If there are young children in the vicinity, spray cannot be deployed because it can affect them differently than adults. Some sprays can't be deployed near an open flame or ignition source. Not everyone is affected by sprays either. Also, spray may affect everyone in the room, including police officers.
Batons can cause extreme pain and injuries. Whether it be lacerations or broken bones, batons can injure people. If they strike a person in the wrong spot (head, neck, spine, throat, chest) they can quickly kill a person.
Hands on is probably my least favorite level of force because it brings you so close to your adversary. When your that close to a suspect, your gun belongs to the person who gets it out of the holster first. They can easily gouge your eyes, grab your throat, knock you out with a well placed punch or kick, go for a gun grab, or any other weapon you carry.
Tasers can be used at a distance. They can be used in confined areas, and only affect the person they make contact with. It doesn't stop your heart, breathing, and really is relativel painless (i think of it more as being incredibly uncomfortable than painful). Tasers work on EVERYONE as long as the connection is made correctly. Even hitting a person with the taser in a "sensitive" area (head,neck), although painful, is unlikely to kill or even permanently injure them.
In summary, until you have a verified LEO tag and real world experience, trust me when I speak, sit down, and shut up.