Fantino a taser fan

February 26, 2008
Orillia Packet & Times

Despite some highly publicized deaths following the administration of high-voltage shocks, Tasers are a valuable tool for police, says OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino.

"We trust police officers with sidearms, so why the big to-do (about Tasers)?" He added it's unfortunate when the use of force results in a suspect's injury or death, but Tasers are not the only police tool that poses a risk in violent confrontations.

"So does pepper spray; so does a baton; certainly a firearm. Yet those tools are available to us."

Taser use must be subject to strict guidelines, he said: "It can't be used as a tool to force compliance. It has to be used for all the right reasons. And the right reasons are the officer is either in immediate danger, real or foreseen, or the public is."

A Taser gives an officer a less lethal weapon than a handgun for the most dangerous situations, said Fantino. "And you don't want to be using a sidearm if there's other options available."

In two inquests involving fatal shootings of suspects by police, juries recommended the addition of Tasers to an officer's arsenal, said Fantino. Currently, only OPP supervisors have possession of the devices. Fantino said he would like to see them available to all front-line officers.