Police chief says officers were right to taser diabetic
December 2, 2008
The Canadian Press
AMHERST, N. S. -- Police officers in Amherst, N. S., followed proper procedure when they used a Taser on a struggling, combative man who was going into diabetic shock, the town's police chief said Monday after reviewing a new report on the violent incident.
Charles Rushton said the report confirms his officers didn't break any rules.
On Sept. 14, an unidentified Amherst woman called 911 when her husband's blood sugar dropped and he started having difficulty breathing.
When paramedics arrived, they called police after the 34-year-old man became combative and refused to let them administer an intravenous tube.
The director of the province's emergency services, Dr. Andrew Travers, later said paramedics were discussing the glucose injection to calm the man when local police caught them off guard by jolting him with the stun gun.
Travers, the medical director of Emergency Health Services, said the paramedics would have advised against using a stun gun on the 220-pound man if local police had asked.
The woman said she was shocked by what happened and she later complained to police.
"I left the room because it was very crowded and I was upset," the woman said at the time. "All of a sudden, I heard the officers telling him they were going to taser him. I ran down the hall yelling to them, `He doesn't understand,' but they zapped him anyway .. I told them to get out of my house ... After that an IV was put in."
Still, Rushtown said Monday he has told the town's police commission that the review of the incident determined that the use of the Taser fell within the guidelines of the provincial, federal and Amherst police policies.
2 comments:
As a diabetic, I can tell you that the implementation of a taser is ill-advised. Most medically trained personel know how to handle people who are reluctant to the administration of aid and are aware that diabetics have a low-blood sugar event can be somewhat combative. Many diabetics also have heart problems, so you are really rolling the dice on using lethal force when you taser a diabetic.
An American champion body-builder was beaten up by police who didn't understand his this common medical dilemma, thinking he was drunk and disorderly. He could've successfully sued them, but instead, ceased the opportunity to force police to take training on this matter. A similar solution might be found in the case in the post, but only if police and those who are protecting them their wrongdoing are willing to help their citizens.
Seen you on tv.. Nice job. I've been saying that the whole time. What testing? The more you check the facts the more you discover the "tests" are really weak.
Even the ones that are suppose to be working properly are still way too powerful. The thing that you need to know, Skin resistance can't be tested. It is different on every single person. It will very on one single person by numerous factors. It's not a constant it's a variable. That number that you cannot test will determine how much current will be applied.
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