Tasers rarely kill, inquest told

February 28, 2007
Canadian Press

N.B. man died as police applied repeated shocks to subdue him

MONCTON -- A bioelectricity expert has told an inquest into the death of a man who had been tasered by police that there are almost no recorded cases of the devices killing people.

"There have been deaths following taser use, such as the one before you, but in no case was it caused by the taser," J. Patrick Riley said yesterday.

In each case, he said, "other factors were present."

Mr. Riley was testifying at the inquest into the death of Kevin Geldart, 34, of Riverview, N.B., who died May 5, 2005, after being shocked several times by RCMP officers.

Mr. Geldart, who suffered from bipolar disorder, left the psychiatric unit of the Moncton Hospital that night. Police were called when he showed up at a bar and began acting strangely.

He was heavily medicated and likely experiencing a psychotic episode.

Mr. Riley is an electrical engineer who works at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He's an expert on the effects of electricity on living creatures and this is the third time he's testified at a Canadian inquest into a taser-related death.

Mr. Riley said aside from the death of a seven-month-old child who was shocked repeatedly by her foster mother, there are no cases where a person died solely because they were shocked by a conducted-energy weapon such as a taser.

But he also said more research needs to be done on tasers to fully understand how they affect people.

For example, inquest legal counsel Nicole Poirier asked Mr. Riley about the effects of a taser on an individual who was mentally ill, heavily medicated, recently pepper-sprayed or suffering from asthma -- all factors that applied to Mr. Geldart.

Mr. Riley said he's not familiar with any research that covers those specific circumstances.

He did list several factors that could make an individual more sensitive to this kind of electrical shock. They include people high on illegal drugs such as cocaine, pregnant women, young children, the elderly, thin or small people, and people with physical conditions such as muscle injuries.

Women would likely be affected more by tasers because they're smaller, on average.

Large people -- like the 6-foot-6, 360-pound Mr. Geldart -- tend to be less affected.

"The larger person tends to be less sensitive so they require a larger dose of electricity to have the same effect as a smaller person," Mr. Riley said.

Mr. Geldart had been tasered in November of 2003 and didn't stiffen and fall down, like most people do. He simply kneeled down and allowed police to cuff him, the inquest was told.

Police testified that at the bar the night of his death, he didn't react or slow down when they shocked him.

Four officers struggled with him and pinned him to the floor as he tried to escape. Police wanted to take him back to the hospital, but he wouldn't go and witnesses said he looked scared of the officers. When they finally had him cuffed, they realized he was no longer breathing.

At various times, police, firefighters and paramedics worked on Mr. Geldart, but he never recovered.

Mr. Geldart's death is being blamed on excited delirium, a condition that will be explained as the inquest proceeds.

*****

How a taser weapon works

A taser weapon uses compressed gas to launch a pair of small darts at its target. The darts are connected to the weapon with wires. When the darts make contact, an electrical charge is released from the weapon through the wires. The charge is strong enough to disrupt the human body's electrical impulses. This disrupts the central nervous system, causing the muscles to contract. The target usually recovers within several minutes.

---

Air cartridge: Uses compressed nitrogen to fire darts.

Fine sight: Allows user to line up the target.

Screen: Shows power level remaining.

Laser sight: Activated when safety off.

Blast doors: Fly off when fired.

Darts: Fired at 60 metres per second.

Wires: Carry the electrical pulse to the target.

ID tags: Are dispensed when the gun is fired making the use traceable.

HITTING THE TARGET

Distance: The optimum shot is from 2 to 3 metres away from the target to achieve maximum effect.

Effectiveness: As long as the spread of the probes is at least 10 centimetres, the taser will be extremely effective.

Through clothing: Will work through up to 5 cm of cumulative clothing, even leather jacks.

Recovery time: Varies by individual - generally several minutes.

Automatic impulse regulation: Once the probes are launched, unit stay active for 5 seconds to keep target reliably down.

IF THE TARGET IS MISSED

There are 2 stun electrodes on the front of the unit that can be used to incapacitate the person by making direct contract.

SOURCE: TASERX26.COM