Sound cannons too scary

June 23, 2010
By MICHELE MANDEL, Toronto Sun

Trust us, the police insist. These controversial sound cannons we want to blast at G20 protesters won’t hurt a bit.

Of course, that’s what they once said about tasers as well.

Chastened widely for their use of the stun gun, the wary RCMP has deemed the LRADS, or long range acoustic devices, as too dangerous to use for crowd control.

Yet lawyers for the Toronto Police and OPP insist there is nothing to fear from their use this weekend as they argued against an injunction sought by the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the Canadian Labour Congress.

“It is only being used as a communication tool. Full stop,” Toronto Police lawyer Darryl Smith told Justice David Brown.

“It is not a taser. It is really fear mongering to use that analogy,” he argued.

“It’s not being used and it’s not designed to be used in an aggressive way.”

But lawyer Paul Cavalluzzo, representing the CCLA and CLC, warned the newly purchased sound guns are weapons that can cause serious hearing damage and are being rushed into use without having been properly tested in a downtown setting and with officers receiving minimal training in how to safely use them.

“Surely the citizens of Toronto are not going to be used as guinea pigs to see the impact of these sonic cannons in an urban environment,” Cavalluzzo said. “We need independent studies.”

G20 protesters will have to wait until Friday morning to find out if the judge will allow the police to use their new sonic toys. The contentious sound guns were initially developed as a maritime weapon for the U.S. military to warn small boats to stay away from naval ships after al-Qaeda bombed USS Cole in Yemen in 2000. Used in Iraq and Afghanistan for crowd control, their first North American use came at the G20 summit in Pittsburgh last year to disperse protesters.

Toronto Police have bought four of the cannons and the OPP have purchased three. They can be used in two different ways with the switch of a button: the first is the “communication” function — which turns it into a powerful loudspeaker that blasts pre-recorded messages. The more contentious second use is “alert” — which directs a high-pitched ear-piercing sound at a target.

Toronto Police insist they’ll be used be used mainly as a new and better way of communicating with large crowds and at levels that will pose no more threat to hearing than leaf blowers and weed whackers.

Yet according to an internal review by the RCMP — the senior partner in Toronto’s summit security — the Mounties took a pass on using the sonic guns in urban settings out of concern they will possibly “cause hearing damage to those targeted or in close proximity.”

The RCMP also noted that the Boston Police Department stopped using their sonic cannons for crowd control “out of a concern for public safety and fear of civil litigation issues”.

The only independent test done on the device was hastily conducted for the OPP just last week at an empty Huntsville airstrip, Cavalluzzo told the court, which doesn’t mimic an urban setting where the sound beams will be ricocheting off tall office buildings, with the potential of harming bystanders.

As for training, he said 22 Toronto Police officers were given two hours of instruction and then given a quiz so challenging that they all scored 100%.

“The training was absolutely absurd,” Cavalluzzo charged.

According to Toronto Police guidelines, the ear-piercing alert blast can only be used at full volume for a maximum of three to five seconds and aimed at a crowd more than 75 metres away.

The concern, said the civil liberties lawyer, is “technology creep.”

If G20 protests turn into mass chaos, barely-trained officers caught in an intense situation might throw those procedures to the wind. “There is a real reasonable fear that will happen,” he argued.

It all sounds too scary to me. Let’s just hit the mute button and be done with them.

Toronto cops say Tasers are up to snuff

June 3, 2009
By ROB LAMBERTI AND JENNY YUEN, SUN MEDIA

While the RCMP recall and review 1,600 Tasers, GTA police services say their cache of the stun guns is fine.

The RCMP is recalling the M26 model because it failed to meet the manufacturer's specifications 80% of the time. The Tasers will be tested and repaired if necessary.

The Monday recall came hours after B.C. Solicitor General Rich Coleman ordered the RCMP to stop using the older version of the weapon in that province.

The concern is that the M26 appears to be producing less charge than required by the manufacturer. Last year, B.C. pulled 82 stun guns purchased before Jan. 1, 2006, after tests showed them misfiring.

Stun guns are under increased scrutiny since the October 2007 death of Robert Dziekanski after he was jolted multiple times with an RCMP Taser at Vancouver's airport.

CHECKED DAILY

The Taser used on Dziekanski was an X26 model, and not the M26 affected by the RCMP recall.

Halton uses the M26, the same model being yanked by the Mounties and Sgt. Brian Carr said yesterday there were concerns about the 2005 version. Halton's tactical team has 13 M26 Tasers that were made in 2006 and 2007, and he said they appear to be functioning properly.

Road sergeants in Halton are armed with the newer X26.

In York Region, which has a total of 30 X26s, Const. Gary Phillips said only tactical officers have them. Durham and Peel also only use the X26.

The M26 was retired in Toronto in 2005 and replaced with the newer version, Chief Bill Blair said. In Toronto, only road sergeants and tactical officers have Tasers.

"We check our devices on a daily basis," Blair said. "They go through regular checks before they're used each day and we also send them in to make sure they're appropriately calibrated."

EDITORIAL: Firing Tasers in Toronto

March 20, 2009

Police say stun guns prevent injuries, sparing the lives of officers and those who are zapped with 50,000 volts of electricity. Amnesty International says 25 Canadians have died after being stunned.

Clearly, we're still in a phase of exploring the benefits and the dangers of these weapons. As such, it's welcome news that Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair has produced a comprehensive accounting of the circumstances of Taser use by his officers.

Last year, Toronto police used Tasers on 312 people (and five dogs) according to the report prepared for next week's Police Services Board meeting. In the vast majority of cases, police deployed the stun guns – defined as everything from unholstering and aiming the weapon to firing the probes – on people who were violent or likely to cause serious bodily harm or death to themselves, an officer or someone else.

Yet, 11 people who displayed no aggression at all but simply refused, verbally or by not moving, to follow police direction were subjected to "demonstrated force." That can include having the Taser pointed at them and electric sparks shown.

Police rules allow for this but given the growing controversy over Tasers, the police board would do well to give this policy a second look. If it's unacceptable for police to threaten passive people by pointing their handgun at them, why allow it with a Taser?

Greater care must be taken to ensure Tasers are used only in cases where the danger is real and immediate, not as a first response.

Boys, 15, Tasered by Toronto police, stats show

March 20, 2009
JONATHAN HAYWARD/THE CANADIAN PRESS
Toronto Star

A 71-year-old man and two 15-year-old boys were among the people Tasered by Toronto police last year, new figures indicate.

While a police report says 122 people were Tasered in 2008, it fails to reveal where and when each incident took place and more explicit details of the events leading up to the confrontations.

Police are refusing to comment on the contents of the 21-page report until it is presented at a March 30 Toronto Police Services Board meeting.

Despite the lack of detail, board chair Alok Mukherjee called it one of the most comprehensive Taser reports ever created in the country. Nevertheless, he admitted there could be a need for the release of more information in the future.

In the last year, the issue of Taser transparency has come up at several board meetings, leading police to provide more information about incidents involving the conducted energy weapon.

"I won't be surprised if we have a similar discussion again after board members review this report and have issues that they want probed further," Mukherjee said. "I won't be surprised if the chief has to consider (more) improvements."

The current report entitled Use of Conducted Energy Weapons provides at least three times the information contained in the 2007 document. Whereas the previous report indicated only brief reasons for using the controversial weapon and the type of deployment chosen – showing the current, pressing it against a subject or shooting the darts – the new document reveals better description of the incidents and subjects by age, condition, behaviour and the threat officers believe they posed.

It also includes information about whether another type of force, such as a gun or baton, was used before officers decided to deploy a Taser. Whether training issues may have factored into an officer's decision and if an injury resulted from the interaction, are also contained in the report.

Last year, the report shows, Emergency Task Force officers shot the weapon's darts into the 71-year-old man after responding to a weapons call. They had deemed the man an emotionally distressed person in danger of doing harm to himself or others – grounds, according to the police Use of Force Model, to use lethal force, even a gun.

In two other instances, front line supervisors stunned two teenagers. One 15-year-old boy was deemed suicidal. The other was armed with a knife. On yet another occasion, to quell a 12-year-old boy who police perceived was in danger of causing bodily harm to himself or others, the report shows officers pulled out their Tasers and displayed its threatening blue current.

Police spokesperson Mark Pugash would not comment on details of the current report, but said it is the behaviour of a subject that influences how an officer reacts and with what type of force – not the subject's age, mental status or motivation. "Age doesn't matter. A 13-year-old is able to pose as great a threat as a 60-year-old," Pugash said. He said the same applies to those deemed EDP, emotionally disturbed persons.

Last year, police used Tasers in one of its three modes 376 times in 329 incidents. It's a slight reduction from 2007, when the conducted energy weapon was used 404 times in 368 incidents.

In 2008, 312 people came into some contact with a police Taser, down from 347 people in 2007.

Of the 2008 incidents, the report indicates officers classified 112 subjects as emotionally disturbed. But, the report says "to conclude (Tasers) are used primarily on those with a mental disorder would be inaccurate" because few of the same subjects were subsequently arrested under the Mental Health Act.

In at least one 2008 incident, police appear to have stunned someone unlawfully, the report shows, by fully deploying the device on a person classified as active resistant. In lay parlance, that means a subject was refusing to cooperate with police by actively pulling away or trying to escape.

Only a handful of highly specialized officers are permitted to holster a Taser and can only shoot its darts if a subject is assaultive – threatens or gestures violence – or is perceived as capable of causing serious bodily harm to self or others.

Toronto cops sued over Taser use

October 9, 2008
Edmonton Sun

TORONTO -- A man who claims he was zapped with a Taser a dozen times by emergency task force officers is suing the Toronto police and the force's civilian board for $6 million.

Robert Algeo, 40, claims officers barged into his west-end apartment in July 2007 without a warrant after he got into a fight with a neighbour on the street.

He alleges in court documents that officers shot him twice with blasts of teargas, and also targeted him with pepper spray and Tasers.The incident left him needing doctors to insert four metal plates in his eye socket and mouth.

"Then buddy booted me in the jaw while I was being Tasered, kicked out three of my teeth, broke my jaw, broke my cheek, broke my eye socket and dumped me off at St. Joseph's (Hospital)," Algeo said. "They never charged me with anything and they didn't have a warrant."

The allegations in Algeo's suit have not been proven in court.

In a written statement of defence, police said a "member of the public" flagged down officers claiming he was assaulted by Algeo, who "had mental health issues" and who had pulled hydro wires from the side of a building.

The police said Algeo allegedly drove a knife through the wall where officers were standing.

The statement noted that pepper spray and tear gas had no effect on Algeo, so a Taser was used.

Mentally disabled man sues Toronto police after bedroom tasering

October 8, 2008
TAMARA KING, The Canadian Press
Globe and Mail

TORONTO — The case of a mentally disabled man allegedly zapped with a taser when Toronto police burst into his bedroom highlights the need for an ongoing national debate on the use of the stun guns, a prominent lawyer said Tuesday.

The family of George Lochner is suing the police for more than $9-million, claiming the man was beaten and zapped with a taser in August of 2006 when officers entered the family home looking for his brother, Silvano, who was wanted for threatening a neighbour.

Armed with a warrant, police were searching for Silvano when they came across George, who has the mental capacity of a 10-year-old and was sleeping at the time.

The sequence of events is unclear.

George, 43, has difficulty explaining what happened and the police force's statement of defence does not contain many details of the encounter. The family's lawyer, Clayton Ruby, says photographs of Mr. Lochner's body taken one day after the incident show he was zapped with a taser in five places.

“Tasering someone on at least five separate occasions is inhumane and wrong. Just wrong,” Mr. Ruby said.

“He's an unarmed man in his own bed.”

The pictures, displayed at a news conference Tuesday, show marks that resemble two side-by-side cigarette burns on various parts of Mr. Lochner's body. He was also photographed with a black eye.

Mr. Ruby says the officers used “abusive and unnecessary force” with the five-foot-10, 220-pound Mr. Lochner.

“I can see how George might seem menacing to somebody. He's large... and he speaks in a peculiar way,” Mr. Ruby said.

The allegations have not been proven in court.

Although the Toronto force is the focus of the lawsuit, Mr. Ruby said the case has national implications.

“I think it's very important that there continue to be an ongoing debate about the wisdom of this technique. This is just one little piece of that debate, in my view,” he said.

More than 20 people have died in Canada after being hit with tasers, which can deliver a shock of up to 50,000 volts.

The company points out the devices have never been directly blamed for a death.

In a statement of defence, police say Mr. Lochner tried to attack them. The document states officers encountered the man in a bedroom and told him not to move, but he “immediately tried to attack members of the team and eventually he was subdued.”

The statement also says Silvano had “become increasingly violent and aggressive towards police and others.”

“It is our very firm belief that our officers acted reasonably and responsibly given what they were faced with,” said police spokesman Mark Pugash, who declined to discuss the details of the case.

Police use tasers out of convenience, said Mr. Ruby, who added that rather than tackling an aggressor, officers find it's more efficient to use the stun gun.

“They don't actually have to get their shirt mussed,” Mr. Ruby said.

“[Toronto police] Chief [Bill] Blair is addicted to tasers and that addiction has to be stopped.”

Several reviews on the use of stun guns are under way across the country.

Recently, a report commissioned by the RCMP said national standards, more resources and better co-ordination are needed to ensure officers are properly trained to use tasers.

In Mr. Lochner's case, his lawyers also plan to challenge the validity of the warrant. The warrant was signed, but in a space designed for warrants issued in Ontario but for use in other provinces, said Brian Shiller, a Toronto lawyer who is working with Mr. Ruby on the case.

On that basis, the search police conducted before Mr. Lochner was tasered would have been illegal, Mr. Shiller said.


CANADIANS COMMENT:

Nick W from Canada writes: Fascists.

Conservatives Lie from Canada writes: More disgraceful, criminal actions from the people who are supposed to protect Canadians.

Fire these pigs.

Jah Nee Kah Sun from Canada writes: Get your very own 400,000 volt stun gun in the States. Freaks out the cops every time.

Ryan Weal from Vancouver, Canada writes: Sounds like the police are prone to having some sort of "excited delirium" when investigating petty crimes.

Rain Couver from Canada writes: I say we taser each police officer that was involved with this situation 5 times and beaten until they have a black eye by George Lochner.

Tamara Shiels from Victoria, Canada writes: Police have gotten out of hand with the tasers and they should be banned from using the taser. Makes you wonder if they are really a tad scared cause they use it so freely. I hate to say it but some police have the attitudes that they are above the law and more superior than the rest of us. Not!!! Heads up we pay your salaries. Time some of you got a tad more humble you are not better than the rest of us.

dreaming of a green party majority from Canada writes: if they give this guy 8 million dollars take it out of the police budget so that will think the next time they abuse this instrument

C. Beresford Tipton from Toronto, Canada writes: Consider the circumstances. A man is sleeping in his bed and a bunch of guys break into his house in the middle of the night and start shouting commands at him. What would your reaction be? It wouldn't be unreasonable in such circumstances to defend oneself. Factor into the scenario a person with the mental capacity of the man the police tasered. Is it any wonder he became agitated? I am sure the Toronto Police will try and blame the man they mistreated for the way they treated him. I wonder what a reasonable member of the police service would do in similar circumstances in the middle of the night in their dwelling? A little tactical planning would go along way to preventing this sort of thing from occurring.

Maurice Caissy-Cyr from Canada writes: Police are using taser gun like drunk driver use to go on the road 30 years ago. They use to say, no danger, I know what I am doing.

Then some come with a different approach, drunk driver should be out from driving. Drunk driver do wrong sometime, and taser gun do wrong sometime. It is so easy to drive drunk, it is so easy to taser, it not a gun, it is not a knive.

But lately, It kill a lot, and when it is suppose to be use 1 time like in experience on cop to show them how it is painfull, they in return use it 5 to 10 time. When the guy is in paint and jumping on the floor, may be it is because he is dying, not because he want to attack. But do police really care when they are in trouble and scare

Jo Blo from as far from Toronto as possible, Canada writes: "The company points out the devices have never been directly blamed for a death."

What a crock!

Dr Demento from Winnipeg, Canada writes: "The company points out the devices have never been directly blamed for a death."

And tobacco companies still maintain that smoking doesn't cause lung cancer . . .

Tusker 23 from Toronto, Canada writes: "The company points out the devices have never been directly blamed for a death."

Because it's extremely difficult to prove that tasering stopped the victim's heart. Strange though, the number of people who have died immediately after being tasered though, isn't it?

Some police officers act like they're cowboys, and use far too much force -- way in excess of what's required, particularly in cases like this, against an unarmed man.

True North from Canada writes: Welcome to Harper's New Canada - the police hear Harper's 'get tough' message too.

True North from Canada writes: Either tasers are killing people or it is the police. The police say it is not the tasers.

Ghetto Dude from Istanbul, Turkey writes: Taser is being used for punishment purposes only. The police act as a legislative force by defining crime as "misbehaving of the serfs before their noble officers", the police act as the judiciary force by converting people into suspects and suspects into criminals within seconds, and the police execute the penalty without delay: TASER!
Has there been one single incidence in which tasering worked for the benefit of the society? Even the bus butcher was not tasered but lots of people died of taser attacks of these cops for having done nothing. This story looks like a Hollywood film supposedly taking place in Guatemala.

Technically speaking, no substance can directly be blamed for a death. Your heart stops beating and that is why you die. For eg, if you are beheaded this does not mean the sword has killed you, you are alive for some instants without a head until your heart stops beating. So your death may be due to your own heart failure, a healthy person should have survived it.

Come on, has anyone of you thought of becoming a policeman for once? I personally would do the dishes instead. Are they working hard for choosing these sickos among applicants?

Make them pay that 9 million please, next time they may think twice.

My Cat Knows Better from Hamilton, Canada writes: It is difficult to make a judgement from the limited information in this article and the sound bites on the six o'clock news. That being said, I think that the taser has become a tool of convenience for some members of the police forces in this country. It is easy, especially if you want to believe that it is harmless. Unfortunately, the evidence is mounting that the taser is deadly in far too many instances where it is used. Its use in this case was in hind sight, which is 20/20, not is any way justifiable. My sense is that the victim will win in this case. The problem in my mind is not the money, but the fact that until the use of this tool is strictly regulated, it abuse by over zealous police officers will continue, so will the deaths. I am also concerned about the ease with which these things can apparently be imported from the US. They should be banned, along with handguns and assault rifles. There is no justification for private ownership of these weapons.

Grassroots are the wave of the future from Canada writes: Welcome to Nazi Germany. When do the concentrations camp start opening?

J M from Calgaristan, Canada writes: You vill kneel before zee neocon revolutionary government. Vee do no tolerate zee volk vis zee deficincies. Heil Harper, heil Harper, heil Harper.

Spence Cole from Vancouver, Canada writes: It is not the Police Service that is being sued for $9 million. Its the Toronto taxpayer that is being sued for $9 million.

I am all for police being able to use force to defend themselves and protect others. But in this case, maybe the best thing to do was to back up 1 metre and close the guy's bedroom door. If I, as a lay person, know that is a simple solution, why can't a phlanx of police officers know?

If the police want to lose the right to lose the right to use the stun gun, then they should keep using it in an inappropriate way.

brian silva from Canada writes: he should sue his brother silvano instead. furthermore, when a police officer tells you not to move, the smart thing to do is not to move.

BeB AmomA from Canada writes: Another taser victim. What about the dude who beheaded the kid on the bus. Betcha the cops didn't taser him. The cops didn't even shoot him. Tasering is about power and abuse of power. Cops..... yeah.... you know what I'm thinkin.....

brian silva from Canada writes: my neighbour has an autistic daugther who is half this guy's size and a third of his age. she has kicked out walls, toilets, windshields, television screens, etc. to name a few things. her parents are black and blue from bite marks, punches, fingernails, etc. there is no telling when, how, and why she flips out - anything can be a trigger. so let's not jump so quickly to conclusions as to what happened in that bedroom. the guy most likely freaked when the cops barged in...

Patricia F. from Berlin, Germany writes: If someone burst into MY bedroom, I would also react violently. Who wouldn't?! My question is: WHEN will these lethal weapons be outlawed?!

Saskatchewan Seal Hunters Assoc. from Canada writes: Good grief.........when will this insanity end. And the cops wonder why they have no respect. Gestapo bas*ards.

doctor business from vancouver, Canada writes: "Police use tasers out of convenience, said Mr. Ruby, who added that rather than tackling an aggressor, officers find it's more efficient to use the stun gun."

Actually police use these when they wouldn't bother to tackle someone - that is why they use it. Same goes for pepper spray.

Turns out that by making "less lethal weapons" the effect isn't that police stop using lethal weapons as often. Turns out they use them when they wouldn't need or use weapons in the first place. Also, they can be trigger happy without much repercussion so they use it when even tackling someone (sleeping at home in own bed) would be heavy handed. My friend in Portland was tasered for riding his bike at night time without proper lights (the logic of the law is that you endanger yourself without lights... the idea of endangering someone with a TASER to stop them and tell them they need lights is beyond absurd). Police use this violent weapon on people who are no threat to them at all, sometimes people who the police have no right to even be ordering around because they are law abiding (sleeping in own bed)!

Basically the TASER is a new kind of violence that wasn't there before. There is minimal overlap and displacement of "traditional" violence. It's just more violence.

Frankly a good cop is one who doesn't need to carry a weapon. The UK police use to pride themselves on that. Laws aren't enforced by force. That force is just supposed to be for the rare exceptions - and even then force isn't appropriate mostly. Laws get followed because people want them. This is a democracy. Our laws are for us. Sadly, it's falling apart because we expect police to be gods of force rather than human champions of common sense and good reasoning.

'I did not attack' police, autistic man says

October 7, 2008
Michele Henry, Toronto Star

An autistic man has denied that he provoked police officers before they allegedly used a Taser to subdue him during a search of his family’s North York home.

"I do not attack," George Lochner, 43, told reporters this morning at the office of lawyer Clayton Ruby. "I did not attack. I did not try to leave the room. I tell the truth."

According to a lawsuit filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Lochner was Tasered by police on Aug. 11, 2006 in the bedroom of his Verwood Ave. home.

The officers were apparently searching for Lochner’s brother, Silvano, following allegations that he had threatened to assault a neighbour with a sledgehammer.

The lawsuit, which seeks more than $9 million in damages, claims George Lochner was hit at least twice with the Taser.

None of the family's accusations has been proven in court. In a statement of defence, the police and the board deny all of the family's allegations.

Speaking this morning, Ruby called the use of the Taser a blatant misuse of force, especially since he said police did not have a valid warrant to enter Lochner's home.

Ruby called for a ban on Tasers, and described Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair as being “addicted” to them.

“That addiction has to stop," Ruby said.

A spokesperson for Toronto police said the force completely rejects the family's allegations and will vigorously challenge them in court.

"We will put evidence before the court that that wasn't the case," said Mark Pugash. "Our case is laid out clearly."

Pugash also described Ruby's call for a ban on Tasers as "ridiculous."

Family sues police claiming Taser raid on son

October 7, 2008
Dale Anne Freed, Toronto Star

A 43-year-old physically and mentally disabled North York man and his family are suing several police officers, including members of the Emergency Task Force, and the Toronto Police Services Board for more than $9 million in damages after he was hit with a Taser in his bedroom.

According to the lawsuit filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, George Lochner was in his second-floor bedroom when emergency task force officers came looking for his brother Silvano, who was wanted for allegedly threatening to assault his neighbour with a sledgehammer.

None of the family's accusations has been proven in court. In a statement of defence, the police and the board deny all of the family's allegations.

Police Tasered Lochner twice and beat him on his face and all over his body, his brother Silvano, 50, said last night at the family home in a quiet, middle-class neighbourhood.

"It was scary. My brother was in his room on the second floor sleeping when emergency task force officers came in with rifles. They said my brother tried to attack them," said Silvano, as he and his mother Lina, 77, showed the Star photos of George's injuries. "We have a medical report that says he was Tasered twice.

"Look what they did to him – he's handicapped, he's autistic," said his brother.

"Our lawyer, Clayton Ruby, will explain it all at a press conference at his office (today.)"

On Aug. 11, 2006, Silvano, who police said showed "violent tendencies," refused to surrender. The emergency task force team, backed up by tactical paramedics, arrived at the Lochner family home, where George Lochner lives with his parents and Silvano.

Police found George's mother and his brother Paul Lochner in the garage. They told police Silvano was out walking their disabled father and nobody was in the Verwood Ave. home.

The Lochners claim police attacked and punched Paul, pushed him to the ground, "pointed guns at his head" and handcuffed him.

Police then went in the home, "clearing" it room by room and found George lying in his bed.

Police say they identified themselves and told the special-needs man not to move, but say he tried to attack them and had to be subdued. But the Lochner family claims that police Tasered George "numerous" times in "drive stun mode" and "full deployment mode."

"I'm a good boy," George reportedly told police after they Tasered him. Silvano was later arrested.

Police say they used no more force than necessary and that he "suffered no physical injuries."

Taser guidelines needed

August 12, 2008
Ian Robertson, Toronto Sun

Toronto's police bosses are seeking support from colleagues across Canada to set standards for the use of Tasers by officers coast-to-coast.

Criticism of the high-voltage alternatives to guns used by police to subdue unruly suspects has intensified since the recent deaths of two men.

"The problem is there is different training standards and different reporting procedures," said Dr. Alok Mukherjee, chairman of the Toronto Police Services Board.

While many police boards have set guidelines for officers, as Toronto did, some have no standards and others left the matter of Taser use to their police chiefs, he said. The issue became particularly controversial after the deaths of an irate traveller at Vancouver International Airport Oct. 14, 2008, and an accused 17-year-old thief in Winnipeg on July 22. In Toronto's most recent Tasering, an almost-naked 38-year-old upset when city workers tried to raze a shed at his Secord Ave. home was jolted by police. He was later accused of threatening to kill police with a machete.

The Toronto board's recommendation for a working group to study nation-wide standards will be one of eight topics of a conference here this weekend. About 200 delegates are due at the Canadian Association of Police Boards conference, starting Friday at the Toronto Hilton Hotel.

Letter from a concerned citizen

Attention: Alok Mukherjee
Chair, Toronto Police Services Board

Dear Chairperson Mukherjee,

As a concerned citizen, the site below should interest you, Vice-chair Pam McConnell, and other members of the Board concerned about the continuing use of Tasers by the Torronto Police Force. To date, 367 Taser deaths have been reported in North America - 22 in Canada, approximately 350 in the United States.

Many Taser victims have been psychiatric survivors - whom Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair has labeled "EDPs" (emotionally disturbed persons).

Tasers are neither safe nor "sub-lethal". Further, there is considerable medical-scientific evidence documenting the Taser's many serious health risks including cardiac arrest, arrhythmia, and death. Further, the relevant and negative medical evidence has been largely minimized, ignored or suppressed by Dr. David McKeown, Toronto's Medical Officer of Health, and Ontario coroners. Why?

As relevant evidence re Taser deaths, please read the powerful and personal statement [online] by Ms.Patti Gillman, sister of Robet Bagnell who died shortly after being tasered by Vancouver police in June 2004. Ms. Gillman delivered her statement on April 16, 2008 at a public meeting of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in Ottawa. (click on url below, also "What We Believe" below photo of Mr. Bagnell.)

You will note that Manitoba Liberal leader Dr. Jon Gerrard has publicly called for an immediate "suspension on the use of Tasers" in Manitoba - the only political leader in Canada to do so. Once again, I urge the Board to recommend and issue an immediate moratorium, suspension or ban on police use of Tasers in Toronto. {see my previous submission delivered at a public meeting of the Board on September 28, 2006).

Please forward this letter to all Board members. I look forward to your reply.

Sincerely,
Don Weitz
Toronto, Ontario

C: Patti Gillman
Councillor Pam McConnell, Vice-Chair, Toronto Police Services Board
Cameron Ward, B.C. Civil Liberties Union
Dr. David Williams, Chief Medical Officer for Health/Ontario
John Sewell, former Mayor of Toronto
Alex Neve, Secretary-General, Amnesty International/Canadian Section
Linden McIntyre, "the fifth estate"/CBC
"The National"/CBC
Fred Kuntz, Editor-in-Chief, The Globe and Mail
Ed Greenspon, Editor-in-Chief, The Toronto Star
Dr. Jon Gerrard, Leader, Manitoba Liberal Party

See http://truthnottasers.blogspot.com

Toronto Transit Commission constables remain unarmed

July 4, 2008
BY EVAN FRENCH, The Etobicoke Guardian

The TTC's decision not to arm their special constables with Tasers or guns was not influenced by the Taser-related death of a man at Vancouver airport last year, said TTC spokesman Brad Ross. He said the decision was made this week, after an outside research firm carried out a study on the possibility of arming the peace officers, costing the city $100,000.

"It's a question of being sensitive to the issue of Tasers right now," said Ross. "We have a risk assessment going on ensuring the special constables have all the tools and training so they can do their job in a safe manner."

Rachel Poku, 22, a student at Humber College, said she feels safe when she rides the rocket to and from school every day but is concerned for the safety of the special constables. "For their safety, I think they should (be armed)," she said while waiting at a bus stop on Humber College Boulevard. "They need the equipment to protect themselves when they're confronting people."

The 95 special constables, in addition to their black pants and blue shirts, are currently equipped with batons, pepper spray and handcuffs, said Ross. "People think they're just security guards but that's not true," he said. "They're very highly trained." Ross confirmed several of the special constables are former police officers. "They're uniformed as well as plainclothes," he said. "When they're on the TTC, they have basically the same powers as police officers."

Although Tasers and pistols won't be filling TTC holsters, one tool which has been approved is the video camera. Ross said all TTC vehicles and stations will be equipped with CCTV surveillance cameras by August of next year. He said the cameras will provide police with evidence and help to solve crimes committed on TTC property.

Canadian medical journal calls for independent studies on taser safety

May 1, 2008
The Canadian Press

OTTAWA — A scathing editorial in the latest Canadian Medical Association Journal says the safety of Taser stun guns must be studied independently. The journal blasts Taser International, which makes the powerful weapons, for funding much of the research used to support the safety of Tasers. It reviews existing scientific studies and says there's an urgent need for new and unbiased research.

More than 300 people in North America, including 20 in Canada, have died soon after being Tasered. The electronic guns are overwhelmingly popular with police, who say they avoid injuries to suspects and officers. The medical association says Taser International has aggressively challenged researchers and coroners who've raise safety concerns.

Tasering could affect heartbeat, Toronto researchers find

May 1, 2008
Sharon Kirkey, Canwest News Service

Despite the theory that stun guns don't harm internal organs such as the heart, Canadian researchers are reporting that, in fact, research suggests stun gun discharges are able to stimulate heart muscle under certain circumstances.

"In our view it is inappropriate to conclude that stun gun discharges cannot lead to adverse cardiac consequences in all real-world settings," Dr. Kumaraswamy Nanthakumar, of the University of Toronto, and colleagues report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, published online Thursday.

The researchers studied a total of 150 discharges in six anesthetized pigs and found that 74 of the discharges resulted in stimulation of the myocardium, or heart muscle.

"We took care to ensure that the gun barbs did not pierce deep into the tissue," the researchers reported, just days before a B.C. inquiry into the death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski is set to begin. Dziekanski was Tasered by the RCMP last October after he began behaving erratically in a secure area of Vancouver airport, and died shortly after.

The researchers from the University of Toronto and two Toronto hospitals found that the positioning of the barbs, which transmit the electrical impulses from the device, played a key role. Placing them across the chest, nearest the heart, simulated "the worst-case scenario of creating a current vector that directly passes through the heart," the researchers reported.

If the barbs were placed away from the chest and across the abdomen, none of the 56 test discharges stimulated the heart, "suggesting that the location of the barbs had a crucial influence on stimulating the heart."

In one study, the pigs' blood pressure was suddenly lost after a stun gun, such as a Taser, was discharged. In another study, two animals died from ventricular fibrillation - rapid, uncontrolled contraction of the heart - immediately after being Tasered.

"This suggests that sufficient current density was produced by the stun gun to stimulate the heart, which, according to theory, should not and could not occur."

"Three different studies involving pigs, one of which was performed by us, have shown that a stun gun discharge can stimulate the heart,"Nanthakumar noted.

The team cautions that a human's chest is different from that of a pig, and that "one should be prudent in extrapolating data from animals to humans because of this fact." Still, most of what's known about cardiac defibrillation comes from studies in animals, not humans.

In an accompanying editorial, CMAJ deputy editor Dr. Matthew Stanbrook says deaths occurring in association with Tasers "make the safety of these devices a public health issue."

He says police should share information about their use, and that information that should be analyzed by independent researchers, "on the principle that the assertion that Tasers have saved lives of police and suspects alike, while plausible, should be proven, not merely asserted as fact."

"New and independent research, both epidemiologic and biological, into whether Tasers can kill is essential to settle this issue."

More than 300 deaths following stun gun use have been documented, 20 of them in Canada.
The devices are used to physically incapacitate a person by discharging controlled electric energy into the body.

The Toronto researchers found no conclusive evidence to show whether stun guns can cause erratic heartbeats sometime later, after the stun gun discharge is complete.

Toronto Transit Commission studies using tasers

Apr 17, 2008
Debra Black and Tess Kalinowski, Toronto Star

The TTC is looking into whether its special constables should be armed with guns or Tasers. A consultant's review will cost the Toronto Transit Commission $100,000 to study its use-of-force policies, assessing if constables should "be armed with firearms, Tasers, that kind of thing," said TTC spokesperson Brad Ross. Constables now can use pepper spray, collapsible batons and handcuffs.

The study into the use of Tasers and firearms was commissioned as part of an ongoing "standard review" of the special constable forces, TTC chair Adam Giambrone said. This "independent and comprehensive assessment" will be completed by the end of the year.

Giambrone said he is not personally in favour of arming constables with either Tasers or guns. "No evidence has been provided to me so far that indicates our special constables have to be armed any further than they are today," he said in an interview. "In my opinion they don't need to be armed any further. They have the backup of the Toronto police."

Ross said the review of the TTC's use-of-force policy was triggered by "a desire to address health and safety concerns that the special constables have regarding their work."

The agency decided to ask for an assessment of what would constitute appropriate use of force by its constables while protecting themselves, staff, patrons or property.

Crimes on TTC property jumped by about 24 per cent in 2006, according to a special investigation by the Toronto Star. At least 181 TTC drivers have suffered post-traumatic stress disorder, a rate four times higher than that of Toronto police officers, according to the investigation.

Vancouver's transit police carry Tasers; it is the only armed transit police service in the country. Tasers were used 10 times in the past 18 months in the city, including five times against riders who allegedly were trying to evade paying fares. An inquiry into their overall use begins next month in British Columbia. It will also examine whether transit police should carry the devices.

The Taser's use among police forces nationally has been criticized after Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski died shortly after being Tasered at Vancouver's airport last year. Amnesty International has called for a moratorium on all Taser use in Canada.

Tasers are currently used only by Toronto police supervisors, although police chief Bill Blair has said he prefers every police officer to be armed with a Taser as well as a firearm. The TTC's 95 special constables make more than 950 arrests each year and issue approximately 5,500 provincial tickets. The constables respond to about 10,000 calls a year. By the end of this year, the number of special constables on the TTC will grow to 117.

"As the force expands and defines itself, questions like this come up from time to time," Giambrone said. Only a couple of weeks ago, an 18-year-old woman was shot in the leg inside a subway car, seconds after the bells chimed and the subway doors opened at Spadina station. Giambrone said that incident has nothing to do with the newly announced review, which had been in the works for months.

If the consultant's report recommends the use of Tasers and firearms and the TTC approves the recommendation, the final decision would still be up to the Police Services Board. Many special TTC constables are former police officers or Toronto police officers who have been seconded to the TTC force, said Giambrone.

Reassure me I won't be tasered

April 3, 2008
Joey Slinger, Toronto Star

The Canadian Press reports that according to Insp. Troy Lightfoot, an RCMP Taser expert, "the majority of cases he's studied have shown Tasers were used appropriately."

The Star quotes Toronto police spokesperson Mark Pugash as saying that while the city's officers have clear guidelines on Taser use, people are entitled to ask whether the policies and procedures are being followed. "The answer is overwhelmingly – yes."

They apparently think we should find what they say reassuring. Considering how frequently Tasers are used, however, "majority" and "overwhelmingly" leave an awful lot of room in which people – respectful, law-abiding citizens – are entitled to feel scared spitless.

And unless Toronto's Chief Bill Blair and his force can come up with evidence that officers use the weapon more responsibly than it sometimes appears (and our perceptions definitely count here), they are going to erode the one thing that is absolutely – absolutely – essential to their operations: our trust.

Based on a variety of incidents, the following scenario becomes appallingly possible.

The cop says I've been speeding.

To show how much I disagree, I throw my hands skyward and say something like "Jesus Christ Almighty!"

As I lower my arms, I step toward the officer so we can speak in normal tones. He concludes that I'm about to attack him, pulls his Taser, and zaps me.

The cop's action is in keeping with the policies and procedures of the Toronto department. He possessed, in the words Superior Court of Ontario Justice David Brown used in a recent case, "the honest subjective belief that he was about to be assaulted."

(The judge heard not only that the department approves using Tasers in "assaultive" situations, but that what's "assaultive" is a matter of the officer's professional opinion. Wouldn't it take a pretty dopey cop not to argue successfully that it looked like I was going to hammer him?)

You need to understand that, more than anything else, a cop wants to finish his, or her, shift safely and go home and have dinner and watch CSI the same as everybody else. With the Taser, they've been given a useful, convenient (relatively safe?) tool that makes sure they won't come to any harm at all, that their hair won't even get mussed. Why take chances?

When we believe a cop has misunderstood the circumstances and is treating us unfairly, what will we do if we're afraid he'll zap us for speaking up for ourselves?

Are we going to respect an officer as an employee of the democratic system we support because he is an employee of the system, and we support it? Or are we going to respect him because we're terrified of what he'll do to us if he simply decides we're too twitchy?

The RCMP's Lightfoot says, "I can tell you there are many accountability systems in place with regards to police actions. You have the courts, you have coroners' inquests, you have a multitude of oversight bodies. There is a complaints process that can be followed."

We all know what complaining about the Mounties gets you. And try not to think about those coroners' inquests.

Just think about accountability. Accountability comes after the fact!

I don't want accountability. I want assurance ahead of time. I want a guarantee – and it's not a perfect world, but at least as much as the guarantee that I won't get drilled with a 9-mm round from the cop's Glock – that I won't get Tasered for acting the way a law-abiding human being might understandably act.

As things stand, I'm not confident I have that guarantee. If you don't feel just as vulnerable, you're fooling yourself.

Toronto cops back tasers

March 28, 2008
IAN ROBERTSON, SUN MEDIA

Tasers are a safe, less deadly way to deal with violent suspects, a Toronto police union official told commissioners after opponents yesterday sought a ban or reduced use of the electric stun guns. "Contrary to the media hype and disinformation, Tasers are a safe and effective direct use of force," George Tucker told the Toronto Police Services Board.

The Toronto Police Association director said there has been "not one single death in Canada from the direct use of a Taser."

After public lobbyists and several board members queried why zappings ranged from "pain compliance" to stun mode, Tucker told the Sun use of force is a last resort, depending on circumstances. Tasers are fired either in response to obvious danger or after efforts to calm a suspect fail and they become agitated, posing a physical threat to themselves or others including police, he said in an interview. Most people don't realize if the ETF is called, "the scene has already escalated to very serious."

Defenders have insisted deaths from a Taser would be instantaneous and those who died had other conditions.

Opponents told the board fears increased after the death of a man the RCMP zapped in October at Vancouver airport.

"There is a lot of confusion about what it is and the circumstances of their use," said Tan Goossen, of the Urban Alliance on Race Relations. "What is the criteria for officers to use them?"

Graeme Norton, of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, demanded an independent body review of all stun gun use plus restrictions for their use only to stop "serious, imminent threat and peril to life." In a letter, Andrew Buxton, head of the local Amnesty International branch, demanded "a moratorium on Taser use."

Since their introduction here and elsewhere, Buxton said police shootings have dropped, but Taser use has risen as officers get into the "habit" of using them.

Blair wants the province to change regulations to permit Tasers for all front-line officers. It has 454 of the 50,000 volt, hand-held devices, which are issued only to trained supervisors and Emergency Task Force (ETF) officers, he told the board. "They are always trained to use the use-of-force option that is ... less lethal."

Tasers were used in 368 cases last year -- the largest number 52 times in Parkdale and 43 in downtown Toronto. Scarborough ranked highest as a district for Taser use.

Toronto taser use doubles, report shows

March 26, 2008
Robyn Doolittle, Toronto Star

Police officers used Tasers 404 times during 368 incidents on Toronto streets last year, a new report shows. That number has more than doubled since 2006, but so has the number of officers armed with the electroshock weapons.

Two years ago, 88 officers were armed with Tasers and the controversial weapons were used 174 times in 156 incidents. In the same year, the Toronto Police Service launched its Taser pilot project. It was deemed a success, and the police services board approved Taser use for all front-line supervisors. By the end of 2007, 454 front-line supervisors and Emergency Task Force officers were armed with the device.

The report also breaks down the way in which Tasers were used. Last year, Tasers were fully deployed – meaning police fired darts – 46 per cent of the time, compared to 37 per cent of the time in 2006. A Taser is considered used if it is pulled from its holster.

"What's not in the report, but is becoming apparent in speaking to officers who are authorized to use Tasers, they are seeing many cases where they don't have to use them," said police spokesperson Mark Pugash. "The mere fact that someone knows the officer has it acts as a de-escalating factor."

But John Sewell of the Toronto Police Accountability Coalition, a community watchdog group, says something else is not in the report. "I'm very concerned. It obviously means they're using the Taser an awful lot more, more than twice as often," he said. "We're going down the road of other police services that have had Tasers – the RCMP and police in the States."

Records recently released to the CBC and The Canadian Press indicate that Taser use by Mounties has more than doubled since 2005. Throughout the country, RCMP officers drew the weapons more than 1,400 times in 2007. That's up from 597 in 2005.

"The issue is in this service we have very clear guidelines on when and where the Taser is to be used," Pugash said. "Certainly, the question people are entitled to ask is: Are your policies and procedures being followed. The answer is overwhelmingly – yes."

The report, prepared by Chief Bill Blair, will be presented to the police services board tomorrow.

BY THE NUMBERS
94% of situations effectively de-escalated in 2006
90% of situations effectively de-escalated in 2007
270 of 352 subjects perceived to be in crisis in 2007 report
77 subjects perceived to have a mental disorder in 2007 report
52 incidents – most incidents of Taser use (by 14 Division)

Tasering violated man's rights, Toronto judge rules

March 18, 2008
Betsy Powell, Toronto Star

A Toronto police emergency task force officer used "unnecessary force" when he fired his Taser at a man "lying face down on the floor, handcuffed ... fully restrained and compliant," an Ontario Superior Court Justice ruled yesterday.

Justice David Brown also found the officer fired his Taser at the man's back almost two minutes after another ETF officer had fired his stun gun at the man.

Police denied the allegations but Brown said he rejected their evidence and was staying the cocaine trafficking charge against Francis Walcott, 41. The large man seemed surprised and bowed his head yesterday as the judge read excerpts from his 44-page ruling.

"We review our policies to see whether they need to be changed and if any action needs to be taken in the wake of this decision we will do that," said police spokesperson Mark Pugash.

Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair is a proponent of Tasers and wants all his frontline officers to be equipped with them. In Ontario, only tactical units, hostage rescue teams and qualified frontline supervisors may use Tasers.

Walcott has been in custody at the Toronto (Don) Jail since his arrest almost a year ago. Brown said in his ruling the infringement of Walcott's Charter rights outweighed the "legitimate societal interest" in prosecuting the drug offence.

"Officer (Michael) Fonseca deployed his Taser well after Mr. Walcott had been subdued and handcuffed," the judge concluded. "In addition, since the discharge of a Taser after a person has been restrained and controlled would have no other purpose than to punish the person ... I find that Officer Fonseca's discharge of his Taser on Mr. Walcott constituted cruel and unusual treatment."

Defence lawyer Adam Weisberg applied for a stay of proceedings on the ground that the ETF used an excessive amount of force, thereby infringing Walcott's Charter rights. "The judge is sending a clear message that if you're going to use force on an individual it better be done appropriately," Weisberg said after the decision. "He's upholding and protecting the rights of other people that may be subject to the inappropriate use of Tasers or other police weapons."

Last March 29, ETF officers along with other Toronto police officers executed a search warrant at a Parliament St. boarding house. When the officers entered a room they found Walcott naked with a woman. While making the arrest, the ETF officers fired their Tasers.

There was no dispute that Walcott was Tasered separately by Fonseca and officer Eric Reimer. At issue in proceedings before the trial began was the timing of when the Tasers were deployed. According to police witnesses, including Fonseca and Reimer, the Tasers were fired "almost simultaneously," as Walcott came towards them.

While a senior officer also testified that "firing sequence information contained on the Tasers' data chips showed a difference of about 2 1/2 minutes," there was also evidence submitted that the Taser clocks are subject to "drift" that could explain differences in firing times recorded on the two Tasers.

The ETF officers all testified that if a suspect was under control, restrained and cuffed, it would be inappropriate to deploy a Taser against him, Brown said, summarizing testimony heard over 10 days in February and early this month.

The Crown has 30 days in which to appeal.

Walcott, originally from St. Lucia, smiled broadly before he was handcuffed and led out of court. He remains in custody on an "immigration hold."

Toronto taser news - a delay or a victory?

From the March 6, 2008 edition of the Toronto Police Accountability bulletin:

Toronto Police Accountability Coalition had a successful public meeting on tasers on February 6. The speakers Andy Buxton, chair, Amnesty International Toronto organization; Naomi Klein, author of `The Shock Doctrine, The Rise of Disaster Capitalism'' and David Reville, advocate and builder of the psychiatric survivor movement.

In spite of a major snow storm sweeping into the city three or four hours before the meeting, about 70 people attended, and the discussion was lively. We agreed that when the next opportunity next came at City Hall, many of us would attend to stress the need to not allow more general police use of tasers. A video of the forum can be found here.

The next occasion arose very quickly: the chief put the matter of buying tasers for all front line officers on the agenda of the Toronto Police Services Board meeting for February 21. His report listed the taser's advantages - fewer officer shootings; fewer and less severe injuries all round; fewer public complaints; less police liability; and improved officer morale. It also claimed the taser causes no permanent harm or serious side-effects, although after the October death of Robert Dzerkanski in the Vancouver airport - he was repeatedly tasered - there's serious doubt about that.

Eight individuals quickly notified the Board they wished to speak in opposition to the matter. Then the chief quietly removed the report from the agenda. Mark Pugash, director of communications for the police, says it was a simple matter of the chief being out of the city at the time of the meeting, but apparently there is no date for which the matter has been rescheduled.

Will the matter resurface? The Board may be badly split on the issue - Board chair Alok Mukherjee has openly expressed his concerns about tasers. The Minister of Community Safety may have privately said he is not eager to approve the regulation needed to expand taser use in Ontario. Perhaps finding the necessary $8.6 million is a problem. We know there is strong and vocal public opposition.

For now, it means the Board is not going ahead with supplying tasers to all front line officers. Perhaps there should be a moratorium on taser use in Ontario; perhaps tasers should be restricted to the specially trained officers on the Emergency Task - those seem to be two strong options.

The taser will be a permanent part of police arsenal

March 4, 2008
Henry Aubin, Montreal Gazette

The videotape of RCMP officers' gratuitous and fatal use of a Taser against a man in Vancouver last fall prompted a nationwide eruption of public horror over police forces' use of this weapon. In the wake of that incident, many law-enforcement officials have voiced concern and reviewed their use. So, problem over, right? Wrong.

Don't let officialdom's regretful tone fool you. Now that the Vancouver affair has blown over, Tasers are creeping back in much of the country.

Let's start with Quebec.

Although the incidents drew little attention because they were not videotaped, two men died in Quebec last year in the days after police shot them with the electric-shock device.

Quebec City police tasered a 32-year-old translator, Claudio Castagnetta, after they stopped him for loitering and, according to witnesses, he resisted being placed in a patrol car by making his body rigid.

In Montreal, police tasered 38-year-old Quilem Registre after they stopped him for erratic driving and, they say, he became aggressive.

Quebec's public security ministry, which oversees police forces across the province, issued a report on Tasers in mid-December. The ministry immediately accepted all the report's recommendations for restricting the police's use of Tasers, but those restrictions are slight.

For example, the province's earlier rules, apparently ignored by the officers who zapped Castagnetta with impunity, barred tasering people who were only "passively resisting" arrest. The new rules say officers can use the Taser on people whose "resistance represents a significant risk to the safety of the officer or anyone else." Despite the change in wording, the versions differ little in their practical application.

Indeed, the new rules also say officers should assess a person's "potential for violence." The word "potential" is a loophole giving officers enormous discretionary power. Officers might claim after the fact that even mild-mannered individuals had given them reason to believe they would become aggressive.

The report also cavalierly dismissed France's practice of clipping a camera (made by the Taser's manufacturer) onto the weapon and recording all the action in video and audio. The report says current training "conditions police to place their hands (on the Taser) in a way that would obstruct the camera's view."

The panel that wrote the report had 26 members and associates, of whom 25 are from the world of law enforcement -- that is, from the police departments, the police academy or the ministry. (The exception is a doctor employed by the province.) So much for taking into account the broad public interest.

Incidentally, Montreal could set tougher rules for its own force. So far, however, the current administration has given no sign of concern.

Elsewhere in Canada, it's much the same lethargy.

After the Vancouver incident, the Commission for Public Complaints against the RCMP made recommendations for changes. The RCMP, however, rejected a key one: The elevation of Tasers from the category of "intermediate weapon," a relatively humdrum status that includes pepper spray, to the serious category of "impact weapon."

If Tasers were in the latter group, they could be used only against people who are "combative" or otherwise dangerous.

In New Brunswick, police chiefs ordered a review of Taser use, and have concluded no substantive changes are needed.

As for Toronto, its police chief is certainly demanding change -- but it's not in the direction that reformers would like. He wants to buy 500 additional Tasers.

The devices are supposed to be substitutes for firearms. Too often they are substitutes for talk.

In Montreal, a coalition of critics that includes two councillors from the city's ruling party -- Warren Allmand and Marvin Rotrand -- is asking to suspend the use of Tasers until impartial research is in on how these 50,000-volt guns affect people with various health problems or who are high on drugs.

Twenty people in Canada have died after being tasered, says Amnesty. If governments require the pharmaceutical industry to test its wares for health effects before selling them, why not ask the same of Taser International?

The company is poised to launch later this year a new model that will make the current one look like a peashooter. The current handgun-style model zaps people as far away as eight metres. The new model is a 12-gauge shotgun with a range of 30 metres.

Unless politicians suddenly wake up, we ain't seen nothing yet.