Do you believe the Taser is a useful tool for law enforcement?
I absolutely believe it’s a very effective tool. The Taser temporarily incapacitates a subject and affords officers an opportunity to handcuff and restrain them. The other options are a physical fight, which has enormous potential for injury to all parties. I don’t want to roll around with somebody on the concrete. Impact weapons, such as batons, are not as effective. In an emotionally charged event, the pain may not be felt and the injury may not be realized. The court said that to justify the use of a Taser, “the objective facts must indicate that the suspect poses an immediate threat to the officer or a member of the public.” Disobeying orders or acting out are not sufficient. What’s your response? I would hope there would be a recognition that acting strangely is one thing, but disobeying orders can lead to a situation in which it’s necessary to take someone into custody. Absent the Taser, an officer could say “You’re under arrest.” If a person fails to comply, the officer could ap
