NYPD –Bringing Tasers out of the Trunk

Taser guns have been common tools in the law enforcement arsenal for some time, but have seen limited use in the nation's largest police force – the NYPD. Newer model Taser guns are smaller, lighter and easier to carry in a holster, the main reason for the change, said NYPD spokesman Paul Browne. Starting mid-June, thousands of police sergeants will begin carrying electronic stun guns on their belts. The NYPD has utilized Tasers since 1984, but until now department policy has required that sergeants store the stun guns in the trunks of their patrol car, rather than carrying the weapons in traditional holsters.

"They were a little too cumbersome," Browne explained. Older model Taser guns were about the size and weight of a large flashlight and were less essential than other items necessary for police to carry. About 3,500 uniformed sergeants and other NYPD supervisors on patrol duty will be issued Taser guns, which cost approximately $500 each. Browne noted that stun guns can be instrumental when handling psychologically distressed persons who might be harmless but are acting in a violent manner and lost their ability to comply with an officer's orders.

Police departments across the United States commonly use stun guns as non-lethal alternatives to traditional weapons. And while Taser’s critics have questioned whether the devices are used with too much haste and on defenseless victims, Amnesty International claims to have tallied more than 300 taser-related deaths since June 2001. Because that count does not take into consideration final cause of death, the stun gun manufacturer, Taser International Inc., says their product has been listed as a contributing factor in only about 12 deaths.

This precedent-setting move by the nation’s largest police force may mean that other police forces follow suit soon, making way for more peaceful solutions for our nation’s citizens.