U.N.: Tasers Are A Form Of Torture

"Stun Guns" Are Under Fire After Six Deaths This Week; Rallies Held Demanding They Be Banned

(CBS/AP)  A United Nations committee said Friday that use of Taser weapons can be a form of torture, in violation of the U.N. Convention Against Torture.

Use of the electronic stun devices by police has been marked with a sudden rise in deaths - including four men in the United States and two in Canada within the last week.

Canadian authorities are taking a second look at them, and in the United States, there is a wave of demands to BAN them.

The U.N. Committee Against Torture referred Friday to the use of TaserX26 weapons which Portuguese police has acquired. An expert had testified to the committee that use of the weapons had "proven risks of harm or death."

"The use of TaserX26 weapons, provoking extreme pain, constituted a form of torture, and that in certain cases it could also cause death, as shown by several reliable studies and by certain cases that had happened after practical use," the committee said in a statement.

"Well, it means that it's a very serious thing," Amnesty International USA Executive Director Larry Cox told CBS Early Show co-anchor Julie Chen. "These are people that have seen torture around the world, all kinds of torture. So they don't use the word lightly."

Tasers have become increasingly controversial in the United States, particularly after several notorious cases where their use by police to disable suspects was questioned as being excessive. Especially disturbing is the fact that six adults died after being tased by police in the span of a week.

Last Sunday, in Frederick, Md., a sheriff's deputy trying to break up a late-night brawl tased 20-year-old Jarrel Grey. He died on the spot.

"I want to know what he did that was so bad," the victim's mother, Tanya James, said. "Did the deputy think that their life was in danger? Did he have a weapon?"

The death came just weeks after Frederick police used a Taser to subdue a high school student.

Black leaders held a rally Tuesday calling for the department to ban Tasers, at least until there is a clear policy on how they are used. The NAACP says it appears the sheriff's office is using Tasers routinely, rather than as a weapon of last resort.

Also this week, in Jacksonville, Fla., in two separate cases two men died after being stunned.

One suspect, who fled a car crash and tried to break into a nearby home, struggled with a policeman, prompting the officer to tase him three times. The man continued to fight, and tried to bite the officer, while he was being tased. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital.

Another man died Tuesday after a Jacksonville officer pulled over his car. When the officer approached it, the man took off running. When the officer caught up with him, during a struggle, authorities say the officer used his Taser to subdue the suspect.

After being placed in the back of the police car the suspect became unresponsive. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Last Sunday, in New Mexico, 20-year-old Jesse Saenz died after Raton police used a Taser to subdue him. Police say Saenz was struggling and fighting with them as they attempted to take him into custody.

Saenz died after being transported to a county jail.

In Nova Scotia, a 45-year-old man who was jailed on assault charges jumped a counter and ran for the door as he was being booked. He died yesterday, about 30 hours after being shocked.

And in Vancouver, where Royal Candian Mounted Police have been criticized for their use of a Taser against an irate airline passenger at Vancouver Airport last month, 36-year-old Robert Knipstrom died in a hospital four days after police used a Taser, pepper spray and batons to subdue him.

Police earlier said Knipstrom was agitated, aggressive and combative with officers. The cause of death has yet to be determined.

More than a dozen people have died in Canada after being hit by Tasers in the last four years.

The reported incidents this week did not have cameras documenting the use of the Tasers, but in British Columbia, a tourist's video camera recorded the death of a man tased twice while in custody at the Vancouver Airport last month.

That horrifying video shows Robert Dziekanski, a Polish man who spoke no English, become increasingly agitated. He was shocked twice, and then died.

The stun guns were denounced at memorial rallies in Vancouver and Toronto for Dziekanski.

Among the 1,000 people at the Vancouver rally was Paul Pritchard, who shot the video of the confrontation at the city airport.

The crowd gave a hero's welcome to Pritchard, who said he "saw the life drain out of a man's face" and heard "blood-curdling screams."

A rally in front of the Ontario legislature in Toronto drew several hundred people, including Bob Rae, a Liberal candidate in the next federal election.

Rae said the events leading up to Dziekanski's death must "never, ever be allowed to happen again."

The prominent - and sensational - reports of deaths following the use of Tasers has increased attention to their legitimacy, and prompted a bold defense by their manufacturer.

Taser International, based in Scottsdale, Az., released a statement following the Vancouver Airport incident saying no deaths have ever been definitively connected to what the company describes as: "the low-energy electrical discharge of the Taser."

That's 50,000 volts.

"The video of the incident at the Vancouver airport indicates that the subject was continuing to fight well after the TASER application," Taser International said. "This continuing struggle could not be possible if the subject died as a result of the Taser device electrical current causing cardiac arrest. [Dziekanski's] continuing struggle is proof that the Taser device was not the cause of his death.

"Specifically in Canada, while previous incidents were widely reported in the media as 'Taser deaths,' the role of the Taser device has been cleared in every case to date," Taser said.

While the medical questions about causes of death are not resolved, Cox said this is precisely why more study is needed. "Nobody really knows exactly why these people are dying, we only know that people are dying after they're tasered," he said. "It's nearly 300 people who have died in the United States - they're tasered, and then they die.

"It may be because they have a heart condition. It may be because they're on drugs. It may be because of some other factor that we don't know about. The important thing is, they are dying after they are tasered. That cannot be denied, no matter how you spin the language."

The devices are used by about 12,000 police departments, often in chaotic situations.

Retired police officer Paul Mazzei told Chen, "Minus the Taser, they would have to use an impact weapon like a baton, possibly pepper spray or in some extreme cases of violent behavior they might even have to use deadly force to control that individual."

In fact, in New Mexico earlier this month, the parents of a suicidal woman who was shot to death by Bernalillo County deputies two years ago are suing, contending that the police should have used Tasers instead of firearms.

Brittany Wayne was killed in her bedroom 23 seconds after police arrived.

And in Utah, a patrol car's dashboard camera caught an officer tasing a driver who refused to sign a speeding ticket. The officer is now under investigation, accused of being too quick on the draw.

Amid a growing outcry, civil rights groups are urging police to put down their Tasers until more research is done.

"The danger of Tasers is that they seem safe, they seem easy and therefore I think it's natural that police will be inclined to use them much more quickly than they would ever use a gun," Cox told Chen.

"Most of the cases we've looked at, there's been no weapon involved at all [on the part of the suspect], let alone a deadly weapon," Cox said. "So these are not situations where necessarily the police officer sees a threat."

In the Utah highway arrest, the unarmed motorist talks back to the officer and walks away before being stunned.

"The penalty for resisting arrest should not be death," Cox said.

CBSNews.com producer David Morgan contributed to this report.

[drbellamy]

The questions are:

WHY are so many MORE Americans incarcerated, compared to the same population vs. incarcerated in the EU?

WHY do we have body building centers in prisons, where the people going in come out meaner and tougher than they go in?

Those are the real crimes against the great people of this nation!!!

Tasers? BAN THEM NOW!!!
Re-educate our enforcement to use simple common sense, and teach our kids NOT to be aggressive!

[newsreader21]

It seems that in October, the U.N. wanted to *buy* Tasers; check out this document on the U.N.''s own web site:

http://www.un.org/Depts/ptd/pdf/eoi3495.pdf

[flreason]

"If you know a person who quit school, pursuade them to go back and finish and get a more promising life. Our society reserves violent experiences for the most stubborn and under-educated souls." Pensacola88

I wish it were that simple. As today''s story about the Ivy League professor who bludgeoned his wife to death shows, education doesn''t insure rational behavior.

I do think that our violence-as-entertainment culture contributes to public violence. Also, the attack-dog political climate that equates compromise with weakness teaches that the end justifies the means--not an example that public officials who want to preserve respect for the rule of law should be setting. That''s reinforced when justice is for sale to the highest bidder, leading to two justice systems: a harsh, judgmental system for the have-nots, and pattern of leniency for those of means, including the professor. Add the diminished importance of religion in our society, and you''ve removed most of the factors that inhibit people''s aggressive behavior. We need, as a society and worldwide, more practice in humility and humanity.

Tazer''s allow police an quick, easy alternative to negotiation. That makes them a tool that is easily abused. With the mounting evidence that they represent lethal force, the rules for their use by law enforcement should be the same as for guns.

[michellem99-2009]

Tool I don''t think for a minute you can hold yer own as they think they need a gun.
Back to police..They may be trained to use that bloody taser But they have no medical know how when they use that thing what it will do to a person. The fact is torture is what they perfer to do. They love it.

[facts6]

I had a window peeper who would move the slide panel on the AC window unit to peep. Someone suggested I buy a taser and whop him in the eye. Wouldn''t that have been hysterical!!!!

[toolmangler-2009]

I wonder how the police would react if they were required to endure a tasing everytime they used one on somebody? Might slow down the incidents a bit.

[toolmangler-2009]

Using a Taser is not torture, if it is then anything that causes pain is torture (handcuffs, Billy clubs, Karate, arm twisted behind the back, knee on neck) just what is left for criminal control? I can kill with anyone of those just as good as using a gun.

[bob0matic]

How mant police have been shot tased or beaten this year. Wrecking your car does not count. That would fall into the catagory of your own fault.

[bob0matic]

Ron Paul is sounding better all the time to me.

[ultrateslan]

Arrest non~Teslan
criminal SMITHS...


Now,people,lets talk some bitter reality, most of you, if not all, could not tell me how the
International Taser works, nevertheless, what effects it has on the human body, primarily
the nervous systems...so experts beware of giving your opinion on such electro~torturing
Teslan technologies, i.e E~F, Electro~Fourtitics ( IT CAN DAMAGE BOTH THE NERVOUS SYSTEMS
AND ENDOCRINE SYSTEMS ( HORMONE PRODUCTION ), as we joined INTERPOL about 2 years ago
( Forensics Science Division, Leon, Fr, under article 41 ) to be able to arrest non~Teslan
criminal SMITHS and those ( International Taser Inc. ) involved in the criminal distribution
of said infernal weapons ( AS THIS HAS BEEN USED ON CHILDREN 10 TO 12 YEAR OLDS, AS CUSTODIAL DISCIPLINE, CRIMINAL AND DANGEROUS, HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE SHOT WITH 6 MILLION VOLTS ( OUR INTERPOL UNIT ), INSTEAD OF THE 50,000 VOLTS THE TASER NORMALLY PUTS OUT...

P.S. aiding and promoting the now U.N. declared TASER, could now be a criminal offense...so beware...

THE ULTRA~TESLAN(Hm)
URL: http://ufo.cc ( Ultra~teslan(Hm)Foundation OPS )

[pensacola88]

It does not matter what kind of tool is given to a police officer. When used, it can have lethal results. Most citizens who offer resistance have prior incarceration experience and don''t want to return. No one likes dead police officers or dead prisoners. Under-education clearly takes people to this type of experience faster than anything. If you know a person who quit school, pursuade them to go back and finish and get a more promising life. Our society reserves violent experiences for the most stubborn and under-educated souls.

[libsluvsuvs]

gunownerdan get out in the street take your shirt off and get tasered and tell us how fun it is. you''''d think a man with knowledge of weaponry would be smarter than than that, obviously your knowledge is second hand...


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by crzmeat at 10:53 AM : Nov 26, 2007
+ report abuse
***************

see the thing here is that you are trying to make a case in which law enforcement officers are walking around and just taser people for no apparent reason.

When an officer uses a taser, it is after a confrantion in which the suspect is non-compliant. There were other OLDER alternatives prior to the taser..THOSE YOU DONT WANT.

if you dont want to be tasered..then dont do anything illegal..simple.

[yatyas72]

Having been a soldier and living by a set of "handicapping" rules "known as rules of engagement" designed by the panzies in the UN to prevent our troops from maintaining their own safety unless you meet 3 or more conditions of the rules of engagement. I say this, when a police officer or "rent a cop" usually an off duty or retired police officer tells you to do something, Do it. Ask questions later, but don''t resist. If you get tased for being unruly and you die from it later, is it really the fault of the police officer- who may i remind you has been trained to use this taser. Also every police officer I have spoken to has been tased before being issued a taser. How many people have been tased? vs. how many have died? How many people we''re on drugs or how many people''s bodies were in a weakened state from drugs etc. How many people have lived after being tased? How many lives has the taser saved? You will always have accidents where people die or are injured, but stop and think about why they died or got injured, many are fault of no one but themselves. Think about how many warnings they recieved. Stop and watch COPS one night on TV and count how many people resist arrest or disobey direct orders from police. I think this is another hype story like- apples can kill you if you eat enough. truth was you''d have to eat more than 100 apples per day to be at risk for getting cancer from the apples.

[Krazcarl]

gunownerdan get out in the street take your shirt off and get tasered and tell us how fun it is. you''d think a man with knowledge of weaponry would be smarter than than that, obviously your knowledge is second hand...

[lnardozi]

Which particular parts reminded you of the lumberjack song? I notice you didn''t mention any of Dr. Paul''s campaign items. Is this an ad hominem attack you''re making because you''re too lazy to do research? Here''s some of the bills Dr. Paul has introduced this year.

1. H.CON.RES.43 : Expressing the sense of Congress that the President should implement Recommendation 9 of the Iraq Study Group Report.
Sponsor: Rep Paul, Ron [TX-14] (introduced 1/23/2007) Cosponsors (12)

2. H.RES.63 : Amending the Rules of the House of Representatives to ensure that Members have a reasonable amount of time to read legislation that will be voted upon.

3. H.J.RES.23 : Proposing an amendment the Constitution of the United States relative to abolishing personal income, estate, and gift taxes and prohibiting the United States Government from engaging in business in competition with its citizens.

4. H.J.RES.46 : Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to deny United States citizenship to individuals born in the United States to parents who are neither United States citizens nor persons who owe permanent allegiance to the United States.

5. H.R.191 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the inclusion in gross income of Social Security benefits.

[gunownerdan]

Dr. Ron Paul is the ONLY anti-war and pro-liberty candidate running for president.
ronpaul2008.com

[gunownerdan]

I bet being tazered is much safer than being shot.

[yatyas72]

I have a solution! Quit giving the police a reason to use the taser and you won''t die from it. Almost every single one of these incidents listed reports of a person being combative, resisting or otherwise not obeying the law. There are far too many people out there who will cry out for their rights being violated but won''t own up to the fact that they themselves are the reason they are in these positions to be tasered, beaten, or shot by police. I am all for it. We loose far too many police officers trying to do their jobs by people who don''t respect the law or the rights of others. Why does the criminal have more rights than the law? Grow a backbone!

[jowand]

With all the new crazy definitions about what is torture, yelling(anything over 845db)is torture as it could permanently affect their hearing. Maybe keeping the questioning on a 9 to 5 basis, at 78 deg F- 50 percent RH, padded chair with arms on it, 3 meals(no bacon)a day from a multilingual menu, conjugal visits up to four wives after questioning, no questioning on weekends. When we are done Islamists will just think we are a bunch of losers, how correct, but we will have maintained the moral manure heap high ground.

[roach9703]

How about putting a rheostat on the Taser gun?
That way the voltage can be better regulated to a given situation. The problem of the abuse power must not be confused with the proper use of this weapon. Written guidelines, clearly written and mutually agreed upon are essential.