RCMP didn't study taser use enough: Report

This is exactly what I and others have been trying to emphasize. Finally, someone "gets" it!!

September 12, 2008
Tonda MacCharles, Ottawa Bureau - Toronto Star

OTTAWA–The RCMP did not do "due diligence" when it approved the Taser stun gun for use as a less-than-lethal weapon by its officers, a hard-hitting independent review concludes.

The report was ordered by RCMP Commissioner Bill Elliott after the uproar following the death last October of a Polish immigrant shot with a Taser by RCMP at the Vancouver airport.

Submitted in June to Elliott but not made public, the review says the RCMP relied too much on the advice of the Taser's American manufacturer in developing its policies and training, did not consult widely enough with medical and mental health experts about its impact on people, and did not treat the weapon as a "prohibited firearm" – its proper legal classification.

Across Canada, 170 police agencies use stun guns and 22 people have died after being hit by stun guns, although the deaths have not been linked directly to their use.

The report, obtained yesterday by the Star under Access to Information, slams the use of the term "excited delirium" by police officers to describe combative, resistant suspects, saying it is an excuse to justify firing the 50,000-volt charge.

"Excited delirium" is not a recognized medical diagnosis, but a term sometimes used by emergency room doctors or coroners, the report says. However, its use by police amounts to "folk knowledge" and it should be eliminated from the RCMP's operational manual unless formally approved after consultation with a mental-health policy advisory body, said the review.

The report urges the federal government to set national standards for Taser use by all police forces in Canada, under its power in the Criminal Code to regulate firearms.

The conclusions come in an edited copy of the report that exempted all recommendations to the commissioner from public release, citing protections for advice to a minister, and "solicitor-client" privilege.

Prepared by a group of independent consultants led by Ottawa-based John Kiedrowski, the review says former commissioner Guiliano Zaccardelli authorized the use of the guns in December 2001 to subdue suspects or anyone who resists arrest or is combative or suicidal.

The RCMP's move followed the adoption of the weapon by police forces in Edmonton and Victoria.

"In contrast to other police services, which took the precaution of restricting CEW (conducted energy weapon) use to supervisors, the RCMP's position was that all of its officers should be trained to deploy a CEW," the review stated.

It said the "apparent rationale" was that about 80 per cent of RCMP officers work in rural or isolated areas with little or no backup.

Paul Kennedy, the commissioner for public complaints against the RCMP, recommended in June that the force restrict the use of Tasers to experienced officers, and order medical attention once a person has been hit. Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day approved the report in principle, although he signalled the RCMP had reservations about the impact on their operations.

The review found other problems with the RCMP's approach, saying the force should have used trained policy analysts to conduct its own research on the weapon. And, although the RCMP consulted two provincial schizophrenia societies, it did not consult national medical and mental-health associations.

There was also an over-reliance on research carried out by the Taser's manufacturer and the views of other police services – who had also relied primarily on the company.

It said while medical literature does not establish a "sufficient causal link" between a Taser shock and death, "there is considerable information" showing many factors that could relate to "risk of harm" including: pregnancy, size, body weight, existence of medical conditions, pacemakers, psychosis, ingestion of drugs and "prolonged acute stress and exhaustion."

And while manufacturers need to provide information, the report says "the policing community needs to be assiduous in assessing the manufacturer's information."

It criticized the work of the Canadian Police Research Centre – relied on by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police in its review of Tasers – saying the reports were not subject to rigorous peer review, overlooked important information and contained factual errors.

It also cited the erroneous characterization of the Taser as a prohibited weapon instead of a "firearm" – the Taser was legally classified as the latter in 1998 Criminal Code amendments – a designation that brings much stiffer rules for storage, training, certification and use.

A change to recognize the correct legal classification was made in 2007 in the RCMP's operational policy – after the death of Robert Dziekanski – but other documents and procedures weren't changed.