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Stun guns save lives when used properly by licensed, professional peace
officers
By Christopher McGill
President, CLEAT
(Combined Law Enforcement Associations of
Texas)
The advent of the stun gun in law enforcement has offered a breakthrough for officers in Texas and elsewhere across the country. In fact, one might use the word revolutionary when it comes to comparing police work prior to the invention of the Taser.
The challenge in police work has always been the milliseconds in which a peace officer has to decide whether to shoot or not to shoot in a volatile situation.
If an officer should hesitate, he or she could easily lose their life. On the other hand, if they squeeze the trigger too soon or before they have correctly sized up the situation the officer could very easily injure or kill a fellow citizen.
Even with the training that a Texas peace officer is given there is no real way to prepare you for the moment that a police officer is forced into a situation that requires deadly force. Even if the perpetrator brings on the violence and even if they are deserving of a bad end�the officer suffers through the agony of rethinking and wondering and second-guessing whether or not he or she made the correct decision.
Any peace officer who makes a mistake in judgment and brings injury or death to an innocent citizen would suffer for the rest of their life. These are just some of the reasons that Texas requires so much training for Texas peace officers.
The invention of the stun gun and its wide usage has brought a wave of relief to peace officers. No longer were officers caught in the trap of being forced to use their weapon in cases that did not really rise to the level of deadly force.
In fact, stun gun usage has protected both citizen and officer from death and injury. Indeed the stun gun brought about a new way of dealing with citizens who were out of control without having to revert to physical methods.
Injuries to Texas officers have dropped since the stun guns were introduced. There is no doubt that stun guns have saved hundreds of lives and stun guns have offered the officer another way of dealing with the suspect.
There are those who want to restrict usage of stun guns and one legislator has called for a one year moratorium on stun gun usage. These kinds of nonsensical ideas would surely result in more death and injuries to citizens and officers alike.
There are those who want to arm everyone with a stun gun. We think that too, is ludicrous. The stun guns developed for police usage should be available only to licensed peace officers who have been trained and understand the immense responsibility that comes from possessing such a powerful, but usually, non-lethal weapon.
As CLEAT president, our executive board and lobbyists have pushed for our policy to be simple: stun gun usage should be decided locally without a state law mandating anything. We believe that each local political subdivision should set out how it expects its officers to handle their stun guns in the line of duty. Each Sheriff, Chief of Police, County and City should develop and implement a policy that fits that law enforcement department. The citizens should elect or un-elect the political leaders based on these policies.
A recent scientific survey completed by CLEAT shows the public has some concerns regarding stun guns and shows there is some support for regulation.
I think this comes primarily from the media overplaying the issue when there has been an unfortunate death after the deployment of a stun gun.
Often the media never looks at the coroner�s report or never considers the high level of illegal chemicals introduced into a suspect�s blood stream prior to the death. The, often simplistic view, that stun guns actually are the cause of death has created fear in the mind of the public.
More education by the companies that manufacture these weapons is needed so that the public understands that stun guns save lives. In short, stun gun policies should be developed from the ground up and not handed down as some edict from state government. When used properly by a licensed, trained professional peace officer the stun gun can go a long way towards saving lives and keeping the peace.
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