Police across the country have used them. Medical examiners across the country have blamed them. And now advocates have to defend them. Taser guns are taking the heat for deaths which have occurred soon after their use on the victim, and Taser International isn’t taking it lying down. Taser International is taking legal action against medical examiners who they say are incorrectly naming the Taser gun as the cause of death.

A recent news article (http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/05/02/20080502taser0503.html) in Taser’s home state of Arizona discusses the debate. Taser International says there isn’t enough evidence to name the stun gun as the cause of death, and that medical examiners aren’t adequately trained on the effects of a Taser on a person. Taser attributes death in these cases to “excited delirium,” which is a fancy way of describing the state of persons whose nervous systems are already distressed by drugs, health problems, and/or extreme stress. Taser actively promotes and funds studies about this diagnosis, which has not been officially recognized as a medical term by medical professionals.

Medical examiners who have cited Tasers as the cause of death say they feel pressured and intimidated by a company with an obvious conflict of interest. Many have been approached by Taser officials, as well as inundated with research and literature detailing how Tasers have no lasting harmful effects.

So who do we believe? The people who stand to lose the most if Tasers are labeled as dangerous and deadly or the people who have relatively little experience with such devices and may in fact be naming Tasers as the cause of death for lack of a better option? As consumers and citizens who will see an increasing need for protection for us and our families, it’s going to be up to us to do our own research and make an informed decision.