Lawyer pushing stun-gun scrutiny

July 20, 2004
ERIN POOLEY, Globe and Mail

Information lacking on extent of use and by whom, rights advocate says

The use of controversial Taser stun guns by police forces across the country should be monitored more closely by the federal government, a civil rights lawyer said yesterday.

"What is disturbing is, it's not clear there are any kind of provincial or national regulations that regulate their usage and frequency of usage," Julian Falconer said. "Right now there is an utter lack of information concerning the frequency of usage of Tasers and who is using them. There has to be far greater transparency in their usage."

The debate over the use of Taser guns resurfaced after 29-year-old boxer Jerry Knight died on the weekend when police used one of the stun guns during a violent confrontation at a Mississauga motel.

Law-enforcement officials say the guns -- which deliver up to 50,000 volts of electricity to their targets, causing temporary loss of muscle control -- offer a safer and more effective alternative to the use of deadly force or pepper spray and batons.

But human-rights and civil-liberties groups argue that the weapons are being overused and that their safety is questionable.

The M26 Taser gun has been approved for use by several municipal police forces across Canada -- including those in Windsor, Montreal, Vancouver, Toronto and London.

Mr. Falconer, who co-chaired a 2001 conference on alternatives to the use of lethal force by municipal police departments, said it is extremely difficult to determine how many Tasers are out there, who is using them and the requirements officers must meet to use the "less-than-lethal" stun guns.

In Ontario, for example, where the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services approved Taser guns for specially trained emergency response officers and hostage-rescue teams, ministry officials said they do not keep track of the number of Taser guns across the province or the frequency of use.

"They buy them. They look after them. We don't have anything to do with them. All we do is approve them," ministry spokesman Bruce O'Neill said yesterday. "We give them the guidelines, and as long as they fall under the guidelines, it's up to them."

In February, Monte Kwinter, Minister of Community Safety, expanded the use of Tasers to include "front-line supervisors" -- the officers who secure an area before emergency tactical units arrive on scene.

Mr. Kwinter also approved a six-month pilot of a smaller and more expensive version of the Taser for use by Toronto Police.

The battery-operated X26 model is 60 per cent smaller than the M26 and costs twice as much, at about $1,000.

The study is expected to be completed in September.

Taser International, the Arizona-based company that manufactures the guns, said the X26 delivers a more focused pulse that results in increased muscle contractions. However, it is less powerful than the M26.

A company spokesman also said a microchip contained in the X26 model will track when the gun is fired and for what duration.

Steve Tuttle, a spokesman for Taser International, said yesterday the company "stands by the safety of its products 100 per cent."

He likened being shot with a Taser gun to "a funny bone that's working 18 times per second from head-to-toe" but added that the effects are only temporary.