Detroit Police and Tasers

Did you know that the Detroit Police department does not have and has never had Taser’s.

I must admit I did not know that the Detroit Police were never issued Tasers, did you?

The Detroit News is reporting on the discussion that is happening in Detroit between the police department, the citizens and the Detroit Coalition Against Police Brutality.

The Detroit Police Chief James Craig has been an advocate for the use of Tasers by the police for quite a while. He was quoted in the article stating:

“We’re still in the test phase for body cams, so we wanted to get through that before making a decision on Tasers. But I’m fully supportive of their use. Tasers work it's another tool an officer can use to stop a threat without having to use deadly force”

Why wouldn’t the police have the option of using a mostly “non-lethal” weapon while attempting to subdue people who they believe they do not necessarily need to use a gun to do so?

There are proponents that believe the device give police an option in situations that they would otherwise have to require the use of deadly force. The critics say Tasers actually can be deadly and point to some situations in which the police used stun guns which killed citizens.

Police forces around the country have been using Tasers since the late 1990s. The Tasers fires two wire-guided probes that puncture a person’s clothing and skin, shooting him with 50,000 volts of electricity, temporarily incapacitating him.

Kenneth Reed, the spokesmen for the Detroit Coalition Against Police Brutality was quoted in the article stating that his organization

“Absolutely opposes them. The Miami area police in less than eight years used Tasers over 3,000 times, and 11 men have died, including five in the past 16 months. When you talk about shooting 50k volts into someone’s body without knowing if they have a medical condition, that’s a dangerous and potentially deadly situation. They could die from heart failure, or fall and hit their head.”

When I read his quote I thought to myself is this guy for real, does he not understand what he just said? When he said shooting 50,000 volts “into someone’s body without knowing if they have a medical condition, that’s a dangerous and potentially deadly situation. They could die from heart failure, or fall and hit their head" I thought to myself Does he not realize that shooting someone with a bullet would be more deadly than the Taser?

Does he not expect police officers to protect themselves, their colleagues or the public when faced with a non-compliant person which puts all of them in dangerous situation? What is a police officer supposed to do?

I real do not see what the issue is here. Why would we not want to equip our police with a "non-lethal" weapon, unless you do not want the police to have the ability to protect themselves, their colleagues or the public with anything other then a gun.

Let’s talk about this today on The Live with Renk Show which airs Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to noon. To let me know your thoughts during the show please call (269) 441-9595.