Taser fails; gun works

A Canadian Press story today speaks of a man who was unsuccessfully tasered
(have you noticed the police phrasing for when someone is shot with a taser: 'the directed energy device was deployed'? It sounds like a Space Shuttle launching a satellite. But to this story).

Police say the man was brandishing a knife outside of a home when they responded to a call shortly after 5 a.m. this morning.

Constable Jacqueline Chaput says the suspect was first tasered unsuccessfully, and then shot with a gun by an officer.

Const. Chaput says she's doesn't know why the taser did not subdue the man.

The man later died of his injuries. The death is a sadness for the man who died, and his family, but also for the police officer who tried to avoid killing anyone and thought (hoped?) the taser would work.

I have a client, who admitted was at the time using a variety of drugs, legal and illegal, who was repeated tasered without apparent effect. Another client assures me that a heavy leather jacket will stop a taser cold.

The point here is not to provide 'internet tips on getting around a taser' but rather to note that a taser is not a perfect weapon.

Sometimes it kills the person shot; other times it does little or nothing. That doesn't mean it should be put away (the alternative of shooting someone is also problematic) but rather that the taser's risks and limits should be remembered.


James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4