Cops in the US get THE MEMO ... better late than never??

Taser International's new warning against tasing human beings in the chest area, which went viral across Canada and Australia last week, finally did "the wave" across the USA (and New Zealand) today. Why so late to the party? And why did Taser International send a revised version (from the September 30, 2009 version they sent to Canadian police forces to the October 12, 2009 edition police in the US received)? Since when does the date on a safety bulletin CHANGE in mid-stream after it`s already been issued? What else, besides the date, the addition of a covering memo and an FAQ, did they change between versions?

CTV News (a national Canadian news outlet) broke the story in this nation on October 7th. See here.

See also: http://excited-delirium.blogspot.com/2009/10/on-their-tightly-twisted-explanation.html for more analysis.

THE WAVE (in no particular order):

Taser advice: Don't aim at target's chest (USA Today)

Taser Issues Advisory on Use of Stun Guns (ABC News)

Cops Warned Not to Fire Tasers at Chest (CBS News)

Don't fire Tasers at the chest, manufacturer warns (AFP)

Don't tase me in the chest, bro (ZDNet)

ACLU to Boulder police: Change Taser policy (Colorado)

Taser Warns Against Shooting at Chest (North Carolina)

Taser to cops: Don't shoot perps in the chest (Florida)

Rockford's News LeaderSafety warning issued about Tasers (Illinois)

BPD Reviewing Stun Gun Policy Following Taser Advisory (Texas)

Police update instructions on Taser training (New Zealand)

New TASER recommendation for police officers (Virginia)

ETC. (And tomorrow`s another day!)

Taser advises police not to aim at chest

October 21, 2009
Robert Anglen, Arizona Republic

The maker of Taser stun guns is advising police officers to avoid shooting suspects in the chest with the 50,000-volt weapon, saying that it could pose an extremely low risk of an "adverse cardiac event."

The advisory, issued in an Oct. 12 training bulletin, is the first time that Taser International has suggested there is any risk of a cardiac arrest related to the discharge of its stun gun.

But Taser officials said Tuesday that the bulletin does not state that Tasers can cause cardiac arrest. They said the advisory means only that law-enforcement agencies can avoid controversy over the subject if their officers aim at areas other than the chest.

The recommendation could raise questions about whether police officers will find it more difficult to accurately direct the probes emitted by a Taser gun at a recommended body area in order to subdue a suspect. Taser officials say the change won't hinder officers' ability to use Tasers.

In a memo accompanying the bulletin, Taser officials point out that officers can still shoot the guns at a suspect's chest, if needed.

Police departments across the United States and in Canada and Australia reacted immediately to the bulletin, with some ordering officers to follow Taser's instructions and begin aiming at the abdomen, legs or back of a suspect.

Officials with the Phoenix Police Department, one of the first in the country to arm all its officers with Tasers, said Tuesday that the new guidelines are being adopted by trainers who are reviewing departmental policy for possible changes.

Critics, including civil-rights lawyers and human-rights advocates, called the training bulletin an admission by Taser that its guns could cause cardiac arrest. They called it a stunning reversal for the company, which for years has maintained that the gun was incapable of inducing a cardiac arrest.

Scottsdale-based Taser insisted that the revision admitted no risk of cardiac arrest and served only as risk-management advice for law enforcement.

In the past, Taser has cautioned that use of its stun gun involves risk inherent in police-suspect conflicts, including the risk that suspects fall after being struck by a Taser.

"Taser has long stood by the fact that our technology is not risk-free and is often used during violent and dangerous confrontations," Taser Vice President Steve Tuttle said in an e-mail.

"We have not stated that the Taser causes (cardiac) events in this bulletin, only that the refined target zones avoid any potential controversy on this topic."

Taser's training bulletin states that "the risk of an adverse cardiac event related to a Taser . . . discharge is deemed to be extremely low." However, the bulletin says, it is impossible to predict human reactions when a combination of drug use or underlying cardiac or other medical conditions are involved.

"Should sudden cardiac arrest occur in a scenario involving a Taser discharge to the chest area, it would place the law-enforcement agency, the officer and Taser International in the difficult situation of trying to ascertain what role, if any, the Taser . . . could have played," the bulletin says.

The bulletin recommends that when aiming at the front of a suspect, the best target for officers is the major muscles of the pelvic area or thigh region. "Back shots remain the preferred area when practical," it says.

For years, Taser officials have said in interviews, court cases and government hearings that the stun gun is incapable of inducing ventricular fibrillation, the chaotic heart rhythm characteristic of a heart attack.

The guns are used by more than 12,000 police agencies across the country, including every major law-enforcement agency in the Valley. Many authorities credit the weapon with preventing deaths and injuries to officers and suspects.

Mark Spencer, president of the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association, said Tuesday that line officers had not been told of the new guidelines. But he had only praise for Tasers.

"It really minimizes harm, not only to officers but to suspects," he said.

Advocacy groups such as Amnesty International allege that Taser guns are often used by police as a compliance tool on unarmed individuals who pose no deadly threat, who are drunk or on drugs and simply quarrel with officers.

Mark Silverstein, legal director of the Colorado American Civil Liberties Union, who has tracked Taser issues for years, said the bulletin means that police departments should now be asking questions about liability and reconsider how the stun gun is used.

"This is further evidence that law-enforcement agencies need to stop and ask if they have been sold a bill of goods," he said. "This (training) bulletin confirms what critics have said for years: that Taser has overstated its safety claims. . . . (It) has to be read as if Tasers can cause cardiac arrest."

Since 2001, there have been more than 400 deaths following police Taser strikes in the United States and 26 in Canada. Medical examiners have ruled that a Taser was a cause, contributing factor or could not be ruled out in more than 30 of those deaths.

The training bulletin is drawing significant attention in Canada, where controversy erupted after the 2007 death of a Polish immigrant at Vancouver International Airport. The man stopped breathing after being shocked five times by Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers.

A Canadian government investigation in July concluded that Taser stun guns can cause death, spurring law-enforcement agencies across the country to put severe new restrictions on how and when police there can use the weapons.

In view of Taser's bulletin, the Mounties revised policies to urge officers to avoid firing at suspects' chests.

Video of mentally ill Halifax man's final hours of life shown at inquiry

October 20, 2009
By Michael Macdonald (CP)

HALIFAX, N.S. — Grainy images from a silent surveillance videotape flickered in a hushed Halifax courtroom Tuesday as a public inquiry started a painstaking visual review of the actions of jail guards and health officials during the final hours of Howard Hyde's life.

Hyde, a 45-year-old musician with a long history of mental illness, died on the morning of Nov. 22, 2007 after a brief struggle with guards at the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility.

The day before he died, he was arrested for allegedly assaulting his common-law wife, who told police Hyde, diagnosed in his 20s with paranoid schizophrenia, had not taken his medication for a week and needed psychiatric help.

The inquiry, which started in July, has spent weeks trying to determine why that never happened.

The first two videos played Tuesday showed Hyde leaving a van in shackles and entering the jail, where he sits on a stool as his paperwork is processed by Chris Dixon, a correctional officer.

Dixon testified he was aware that after Hyde was arrested, he was involved in a struggle at a police station in Halifax, where he was Tasered up to five times and eventually lapsed into unconsciousness.

The officer said Hyde's demeanour when he arrived at the jail at 5 p.m. did not concern him until Hyde rose from the stool for a moment. He also said Hyde seemed to be speaking in riddles at times, but that didn't bother the officer because of his frequent dealings with the mentally ill.

"He seemed to be fine at that point," he said.

In another video played Tuesday, Dixon and other guards can be seen coming and going from a hallway on the morning Hyde died.

Dixon told the inquiry that Hyde had struggled with guards that morning and was taken down the hallway to a cell around 7:30 a.m.

"He was shouting out about ... the RCMP," Dixon said. "He said, 'Don't take me down there. There are demons."'

Dixon recalled that Hyde was handcuffed behind the back and hauled backwards by the arms.

Hyde continued to struggle as he was pulled inside the cell by at least two other guards, Dixon said.

Dixon said Hyde was eventually pushed to the floor and subdued by another officer who straddled his legs inside the cell.

He said he saw the officer holding Hyde's wrists where they were cuffed, but the officer did not appear to apply any pressure to Hyde's back.

"Then he became quiet ... We thought it was all over," said Dixon, noting that Hyde appeared to stop resisting the officer as he laid face down.

But it soon became clear that Hyde was no longer conscious as officers called his name and received no response.

Dixon said he called for help on his two-way radio and health officials from another part of the jail arrived within minutes.

He said he didn't know if paramedics were able to revive Hyde before he was taken to hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

A coroner listed Hyde's cause of death as excited delirium stemming from paranoid schizophrenia.

Dixon testified he had no training on how to deal with mentally ill people prior to Hyde's death, and he twice told the inquiry that improved training in that area would help him do his job.

Having served for four years as a corrections officer, Dixon said he encountered mentally ill inmates on a daily basis.

At times, the videos played Tuesday showed very little because justice officials have blacked out the identities of corrections officers and inmates not directly involved in the case. The videos also lack sound.

Other videotapes, including one recorded inside the cell where Hyde died, are expected to be played later at the inquiry.

The inquiry resumes Wednesday.

Officers did not have jurisdiction to follow doctor's orders: senior Halifax cop

October 20, 2009
By Michael Macdonald (CP)

HALIFAX, N.S. — A Halifax police staff sergeant confirmed Monday he knew his officers didn't have the jurisdiction to follow the orders of a doctor who was trying to arrange a psychiatric assessment for a mentally ill man who later died in custody.

Staff Sgt. Don Fox was testifying at the inquiry into the death of Howard Hyde, a 45-year-old musician and diagnosed schizophrenic who died 30 hours after he was repeatedly Tasered inside the Halifax police station during a violent struggle with several officers.

The inquiry has heard that Hyde had been off his medication for a week when he was arrested Nov. 21, 2007, for allegedly assaulting his common-law wife. He was later jolted several times with the Taser as he tried to escape the downtown station.

Fox, a 34-year veteran of the force, told the inquiry that Hyde was taken to a hospital after the Tasering left him in medical distress. Officers have testified that Hyde turned blue and they couldn't find a pulse when they called for help.

The senior officer testified he was surprised when he learned several hours later that the injured man was also being assessed at the hospital for his "mental capacities."

"That's not what he was there for," Fox said. "He was taken there for his physical condition and all of a sudden his mental state came into play."

Fox said he asked for an update on Hyde's condition and the amount of time he would be kept at the hospital because Hyde had to be brought before a judge to face charges within 24 hours of his arrest.

Fox, the 36th witness to testify at the inquiry, confirmed that he told the officer guarding Hyde that the mentally ill man would likely get a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation once he was brought before a judge.

He said the officer later confirmed that a doctor had medically released Hyde to appear in court, but the physician included a key condition on the health information transfer form.

A handwritten note from Dr. Janet MacIntyre said police had to return Hyde to the hospital if the judge did not order a forensic psychiatric assessment.

Earlier in the inquiry, MacIntyre testified that she could have kept Hyde at the hospital for an in-house assessment, but the police officer had expressed some "urgency" about the court appearance.

Fox said the timing "wasn't a big issue at that point," and he stressed that it was routine for police to make arrangements for judges and lawyers to be dispatched to hospitals to handle arraignments if the accused couldn't make it to court.

However, Fox conceded that he knew police did not have the jurisdiction under the Involuntary Psychiatric Treatment Act to carry out MacIntyre's orders to return Hyde to the hospital.

"Police would not have the authority to take him back," Fox said in response to questions from Kevin MacDonald, a lawyer for Hyde's sister and brother-in-law.

Fox testified that even though his officers did not have such jurisdiction, he suggested they could have informally persuaded him to follow the doctor's orders. But that never happened.

Fox said he assumed the court would order an assessment for Hyde, but that didn't happen either.

Outside the inquiry's hearing room, MacDonald said MacIntyre had been left with the wrong impression from police.

"If Dr. MacIntyre had known that it could not happen, she would have not released Mr. Hyde to the police - and she's testified to that effect," he said.

Once Hyde was in the court system, he became the responsibility of the province's sheriff's department, which is in charge of court security and prisoner transfers.

Earlier evidence revealed that MacIntyre's instructions weren't relayed to Crown or defence lawyers because health information forms were not one of the documents routinely disclosed to justice officials. That practice has since been changed.

In the end, the judge presiding over Hyde's court appearance decided to transfer him to the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility, where he died the next morning after a scuffle with guards.

Correctional officers and mental health staff members at the provincial jail are expected to testify in the days ahead.

Tasers OK in theory, bad in practice

October 19, 2009
By Kris Kotarski, Calgary Herald

Earlier this month, just days before the second anniversary of Robert Dziekanski's death at Vancouver International Airport, Taser International posted a bulletin for law enforcement organizations instructing officers to avoid shooting people in the chest, and encouraging them to target the abdomen, legs or back.

"When possible, avoiding chest shots with electronic control devices avoids the controversy about whether ECDs do or do not affect the human heart."

Aim lower. Avoid controversy. Words to live by.

Considering the ongoing public-relations disaster that is the Braidwood Inquiry into the Oct. 14, 2007 death of Dziekanski after he was repeatedly stunned by RCMP officers with Taser International's weapons, it is not surprising that "the controversy" is a matter of grave concern for the company.

Controversy is not conducive to a healthy bottom line, and even fundraisers featuring Playboy bunnies cannot make people forget the stunning video of Dziekanski screaming on the floor before he died, with four RCMP officers standing over him with Tasers drawn.

The Braidwood Inquiry has heard a number of compelling arguments to ban the weapons completely, and Amnesty International's running tally of American fatalities that occurred shortly after a Taser discharge (presently at 351 since 2001) is enough to give anyone pause.

Yet, as Taser International and police spokespeople are quick to point out, there are also compelling reasons to continue to arm officers with the weapons, especially in light of the very real dangers faced by the police.

The second anniversary of Dziekanski's death is a good moment to reflect on this ongoing argument, and to consider what electroshock weapons have done to our society. Do Tasers make us safer? And, more importantly, do they make us a better people?

Writing at Salon.com,American blogger Digby has argued that "Tasers were sold to the public as a tool for law enforcement to be used in lieu of deadly force." "Nobody wants to see more death and if police have a weapon they can employ instead of a gun, in self-defence or to stop someone from hurting others, I think we all can agree that's a good thing. But that's not what's happening."

A quick YouTube search shows a number of incidents in the United States and in Canada where officers use the weapons against people who, as Digby puts it, "have not broken any law and whose only crime is being disrespectful toward their authority or failing to understand their 'orders.' "

Here's but one example. After getting into an argument about a parking ticket with a Kelowna RCMP officer in 2007, 68-year-old John Peters was punched in the head and Tasered twice while sitting in his car next to his horrified wife. It is not difficult to imagine how the argument between Peters and the officer may have progressed, but it does require a major stretch of the imagination to see how a 68-year-old stroke survivor who is partially blind in one eye could have possibly threatened the officer in a manner that justified his treatment.

In that case, the RCMP has since admitted its mistake and the officer was disciplined by the force, but that hardly makes up for the terror of the initial situation. And that is the problem with Tasers. Anyone who has read about cases like Dziekanski's or Peters' is entitled to feel disgusted by the practical-- if not the theoretical --use of the weapons.

The basic premise underlining community support for police work is fairness. Without fairness, there is no chance for trust, and without trust, the dangers faced by police officers and ordinary citizens increase exponentially.

Weapons like Tasers continue to shock the conscience not because of how they are used in theory, but because of how they are used in practice. And, despite assurances by Taser International, aiming lower will not solve the underlying issue of fairness, or stop the very credible accusations of cruelty, negligence and abuse.

NYPD Orders Cops Not to Aim Tasers At Chest

This line jumped out at me: "A source also tells the News that Taser International did not actually notify the NYPD about the warning."

Since I have yet to see any reports out of the U.S. about police conforming with the new taser target zone, issued to Canadian police departments by Taser International via Training Bulletin 2015, I can't help but wonder whether the company even issued this bulletin to police south of the border. According to the following report (and as quoted above), the NYPD was NOT notified by Taser International. WOW!!

October 18, 2009
Gothamist

Hey, whaddaya know—shooting 5,000 volts of electricity at somebody's chest could adversely affect the heart! Manufacturer Taser International Inc. has issued a warning about Taser chest-shots, suggesting that law enforcement officers aim their Tasers at perpetrators' backs, arms, or abdomens. In response to the warning, the NYPD brass has formally ordered officers not to shoot Tasers at suspects' chests.

NYPD spokesman Paul Browne tells the Daily News, "Until the NYPD can more fully evaluate the implications of the manufacturer's newly advanced recommendation, we are temporarily adopting Taser International's suggestion." Last year an NYPD officer fired his Taser at an emotionally disturbed man waving a long florescent light bulb atop a first story awning; the man fell to his death and the sergeant who gave the order to Tase subsequently committed suicide.

A source also tells the News that Taser International did not actually notify the NYPD about the warning. The company has been vigorously defending their product despite repeated deaths and controversy, and some communities have banned officers from using them entirely. Earlier this month, a Florida teenager died after being Tased and falling off bicycle, and at Coachella in April, a naked wizard was Tased multiple times.

Inquiry resumes with focus on mentally ill man's final hours after Tasering

October 18, 2009
By Alison Auld (CP)

HALIFAX, N.S. — An inquiry that resumes Monday into the death of a mentally ill man who was repeatedly Tasered by Halifax police will turn to the final hours of his life and the central question of why he didn't receive a doctor-ordered psychiatric assessment, a lawyer for the man's family says.

Kevin MacDonald said the hearing into the 2007 death of Howard Hyde will look at how the 45-year-old paranoid schizophrenic was treated by the court system and guards at a correctional facility where he died 30 hours after police stunned him up to five times.

The hearing, which began in July and has been on hiatus since mid-August, will focus on what happened to Hyde after he was released from hospital following the Tasering and sent to the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility, where he collapsed after struggling with guards.

MacDonald said he will show that Hyde, a musician who had several earlier run-ins with police, didn't undergo a mental health evaluation despite widespread recognition that he had a psychiatric illness and had been off his medications for weeks.

"A big part of this case is the treatment of people with mental illness, and it was surprising that everyone appeared to recognize that Mr. Hyde had a mental illness and was displaying signs of mental illness, but no one was prepared to take any steps to get him any help," MacDonald, who represents Hyde's sister and brother-in-law, said in an interview.

"There seemed to be a system breakdown at every step of the way and there didn't seem to be any checks for him."

A key element of the probe is an instruction given by an emergency room physician who treated Hyde after he lapsed into unconsciousness and stopped breathing soon after police restrained him during a violent struggle at the police station.

Dr. Janet MacIntyre testified that she had filled out a health information form before Hyde was released from the hospital into police custody, indicating he was to be brought back to the hospital if a forensic psychiatric exam wasn't ordered by a judge.

MacIntyre said she would not have discharged him had she known he would be sent to a jail cell rather than a psychiatric hospital following his arrest on Nov. 21, 2007, for alleging assaulting his common-law spouse.

MacIntyre testified that a police officer told her he was confident Hyde would get a court-ordered assessment once he appeared before a judge later that day.

"I felt quite certain that was going to happen in a timely manner," MacIntyre told the inquiry. "The police officer I spoke to felt that would be highly likely. So that's the route I chose."

But the rookie officer who spoke to MacIntyre testified that he didn't have a good grasp of the court process.

MacIntyre said she could have kept Hyde at the hospital for an in-house assessment, but police expressed some "urgency" about the court appearance.

Another emergency room doctor testified he told the RCMP that Halifax police were "gung-ho" to get Hyde out of the hospital and into a courtroom.

The deputy sheriffs escorting Hyde to court did not hand the health form to lawyers handling the case because legislation at the time forbade them from sharing such information with anyone but health-care providers.

In the end, the judge presiding over the arraignment did not order a psychiatric assessment and Hyde was sent to the correctional facility.

Dan MacRury, the inquiry's lead counsel, said communications between the various health and justice sectors that came into contact with Hyde is a critical part of the probe and will likely be central to recommendations when it concludes.

For example, he said when MacIntyre released Hyde as being "medically stable," it may have been interpreted incorrectly by justice officials that he was mentally and physically cleared.

"Certainly that was one communication area that may have to be improved," he said. "At the end of the day, how all the systems work and how they work together I think is important."

The inquiry will also examine training for police and others on how to deal with people with mental illnesses. Video played earlier showed several officers at the station tackling Hyde after he tried to flee custody when an officer came at him with a knife-like device to cut a string from his shorts.

"How quick the officers went to the Taser was striking when really Mr. Hyde was not offering the resistance that was being suggested in the testimony," MacDonald said.

"There should have been efforts made to speak to Mr. Hyde to defuse the situation. ... To go to use of force that is an intermediate weapon when he was clearly only scared and trying to get away from the knife was excessive."

The probe is expected to resume with testimony from the Crown prosecutor who handled Hyde's case and from health workers at the correctional facility.

A coroner listed the cause of death as excited delirium stemming from paranoid schizophrenia.

Police chiefs' links with Taser sniffy

See also: August 15, 2008 Globe and Mail Editorial - More than a perception

See also: August 12, 2008 - Taser International a major sponsor of the 2008 Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police Conference

See also: November 2, 2007 - Taser International a major sponsor of the 2007 Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police conference

October 18, 2009
Robert Marshall , Winnipeg Free Press

Maybe a conflict is only in the eye of the beholder -- even if it's the eye of an ethics adviser. Still, will an alleged relationship between the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and Taser International affect an unsuspecting street cop?

I fully get the Taser manufacturer's product -- stun guns -- and the advantage they can give an officer in difficult circumstances. I also get that they are the most controversial piece of equipment in the police arsenal with a sobering fact becoming increasingly clear: The danger of a Taser's 50,000 volts increases with the target's abnormal increases in blood pressure, heart rate, exhaustion and so on. In other words, in the heightened and volatile situations for which the weapon is designed.

The chiefs of police support of Taser International's product has been unwavering since being introduced. In 2007, the president of the police chiefs' association, Steven Chabot, said that Tasers have "a solid track record for safety." The same communiqué reported that the chiefs would continue to look at new developments in directed energy technologies. And, in February 2009, the chiefs' association released its position paper, offering its continued endorsement.

But the status quo changed recently, only when Taser International made new recommendations that Canadian police brass couldn't adopt fast enough.

Officers are now being instructed to aim for areas such as the gut or legs (but not the groin) and to avoid the traditional, easier to hit, centre-mass. While police administrators write Taser International's corporate guidance into policy, the cop on the street might consider enrolling in Calamity Jane's school of trick shots.

Most striking in the new guidelines is Taser International's self-admitted attempt to avoid "the controversy" while "increasing safety margins and enhancing the ability to defend such cases in post-event legal proceedings."

I can't imagine average cops from across the country being anything other than disappointed with their agencies subscribing to the same source of corporate tutelage that at one time promoted the weapon as a near risk-free implement. Or at least safe enough to use real live officers as targets and training aids.

The new guidelines may well increase the danger for the street officer who uses the weapon -- physically, if the two separate electrical probes miss the now-more-difficult mark and legally, should the charge land in the chest area, contravening manufacturer and department edicts.

There will be legal chop-licking in the aftermath of the next Taser-related death. And it will be the front-line cop -- the lowest wrung on the ladder -- on which all eyes will focus.

Why, in the last few years, have Tasers become the must-have tool? There's a long list of legitimate reasons, but it's one of the not-so-good possibilities that sticks out like a sore thumb.

Each year, the police chiefs hold a national meeting that goes beyond issues of public safety. For sure, the meeting's a perk. And every year corporate sponsors donate cash to keep the chiefs and their parties entertained.

Last spring, according to the Globe and Mail's pro-cop columnist, Christie Blatchford, one sponsor picked up most of the tab for $215,000 worth of Celine Dion tickets for the six-figure-salaried police executives and their entourages. Meals for the 2008 conference were taken care of, too.

Taser International had been a top, platinum sponsor (meaning a minimum donation of $25,000) for a number of years. Rumour had it that the company made a $200,000 donation to the 2008 meeting in Montreal, something that was denied by the chiefs.

The country's senior cops who attend these million-dollar meetings are the ones that swing the big sticks when deciding with whom to do business. That would include Taser International. That didn't sit well with John Jones, the chiefs' former ethics adviser who quit earlier this year when he couldn't convince the highfalutin' board of directors that the incestuous relationship between big businesses and police decision-makers (and the freebies) "didn't pass the smell test." The chiefs, perhaps realizing they were on some pretty thin ice, dropped Taser International from their listed sponsors for its 2009 Charlottetown gathering.

But was it too late? Is there anything to the allegation of conflict? Is there a perception that Taser International has undue sway with the police chiefs and with the new rules? Will the next cop involved in an awry stun gun matter be left holding more than his fair share of the legal bag?

Sounds like an expensive free lunch.

Robert Marshall is a security adviser and former Winnipeg police detective.

rm112800@hotmail.com

Ottawa spends more than half a million to defend RCMP, officers at Taser inquiry

October 18, 2009
James Keller (CP)

VANCOUVER, B.C. — The federal government spent more than half a million dollars defending the RCMP and the actions of the four officers who stunned Robert Dziekanski with a Taser at Vancouver's airport.

The force and each of the four officers had lawyers at the public inquiry into Dziekanski's death, which began in January and finished with closing submissions last week.

The Polish immigrant's fatal confrontation with police on Oct. 14, 2007, has been a source of intense criticism for the RCMP and the four officers and for police use of Tasers, fuelled in large part by an infamous amateur video of the incident.

The Justice Department had billed the RCMP more than $373,000 in legal fees to represent the force at the inquiry as of July 31, according to documents obtained under federal access to information laws.

Lawyers for the officers had together cost the RCMP about $200,000 by the end of August, according to the documents.

Those figures were tallied during a three-month summer break, which was ordered in June to investigate an internal RCMP email that raised questions about the officers' testimony. Since then, there have been several days of hearings in September and final submissions this month.

And lawyers for three of the officers are heading to the B.C. Court of Appeal in December to challenge the inquiry's authority to make findings of misconduct against them.

The RCMP and the four Mounties were named in a lawsuit filed by Dziekanski's mother earlier this month, although it's not clear who will pay the officers' legal fees in that case.

The officers' lawyers were hired just days before the inquiry was set to begin in January, and the inquiry has taken far longer than anticipated. Initially, the hearings were expected to be finished by the spring.

Ravi Hira, who represents Const. Kwesi Millington, the Mountie who fired the Taser, said it wasn't his place to comment on the RCMP's decision to pay the officers' legal fees.

"In terms of cost, you have seen the length of the inquiry, you know the amount of time that we're talking about here," said Hira.

The RCMP couldn't be reached for comment.

The force has always stood firmly behind the actions of the officers, and that position has been reflected at the inquiry.

In its written final submissions, handed over to the inquiry two weeks ago, the federal government maintains the officers used an "acceptable" level of force that was consistent with RCMP policies and training.

Walter Kosteckyj, who represents Dziekanski's mother at the inquiry and in her recently filed lawsuit, said regardless of his criticisms of the officers, it's important to ensure they've been adequately represented at the hearings.

"I would be a hypocrite to say they're not entitled to be properly defended," Kosteckyj said in a recent interview.

"And no one can say they didn't get the best legal help necessary, no one can come back and say these guys were railroaded or weren't treated fairly. That's important to the process."

The B.C. government ordered a two-phase public inquiry a month after Dziekanski died.

Commissioner Thomas Braidwood held the first part last year, broadly examining Taser use by law enforcement agencies in British Columbia. He released a report from that phase during the summer, concluding Tasers can kill but are a necessary tool for police.

The second phase, examining Dziekanski's death in detail, has now wrapped up and Braidwood's final report is expected to be made public next year.

By August, the provincial government had spent $3.99 million since the first phase began, said Leo Perra, executive director for the commission. That total could increase by another million by the time the commission's work is finished, he said.

Perra said most of that cost goes to salaries, including Braidwood - who is paid about $1,700 a day - the inquiry's own lawyers and support staff. That money also pays for facility costs.

"Commissions of inquiry aren't particularly provided with a budget, because nobody knows where they're going and exactly what's going to happen," said Perra.

Kosteckyj said it's been money well spent.

"Every once in a while we have to shine a light on the things that are bothering us and the things that don't seem right, and here, we put this under a microscope," he said.

"People have to know that in certain circumstances, when you're involved in things, there is going to be full scrutiny and this makes everybody better."

Nineteen year old male dies after police in California use Taser on him

Frank Cleo Sutphin, 19, San Bernardino, California

October 18, 2009
Associated Press

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Police say a 19-year-old man has died in Southern California after officers used a Taser to subdue him at a board-and-care facility.

A San Bernardino police department statement says the man died at a hospital early Saturday.

The department says officers had been summoned to the facility to investigate a fight involving three people late Friday night.

Police say officers separated the trio but "one of the subjects became combative and a Taser was deployed to control him."

The man was having trouble breathing, and police called paramedics. He was pronounced dead at a hospital about an hour later.

The man's name and cause of death haven't been released.

Kingston Police to start aiming stun guns lower

October 17, 2009
THE WHIG-STANDARD

Kingston Police officers will follow the lead of other large police agencies in Canada and start aiming their Tasers lower.

Taser International, the maker of the electric stun guns, issued a directive recently suggesting that the weapons should not be aimed at the chest.

Tasers deliver a jolt of electricity that momentarily incapacitates a person. The recommendation was designed to lessen any controversy about whether the guns affect the heart.

"We have issued an interim direction," Kingston Police Chief Stephen Tanner told the police services board yesterday (wed).

Only sergeants and specially trained tactical officers in the Kingston department carry Tasers.

"We will err on that side of caution," Tanner said.

EDITORIAL: New Taser directives deserve grace period, but banning may be way to go

October 17, 2009
DOUG MILLROY, Sault Star

After proclaiming the safety of its stun gun product for years, Taser International, it seems, is finally accepting that its weapon can have lethal consequences.

It has issued a directive that officers should not aim the weapon at a targeted person's chest in order to avoid impact to the heart. As a result, police forces across Canada have begun to change their policies concerning use of the Taser.

The change is all well and good, but I think we will have to wait a while to see how much of a difference it will make in cutting back the death toll.

In a new training bulletin Taser International said it had lowered the recommended point of aim from centre of mass to lower centre of mass for front shots and that police officers should now target the back, legs or abdomen.

The company seems to be saying that aim is what will now count.

I believe that can be taken into account, all right, but the most important aspect will still be how police approach the use of the Taser, a conducted energy device which sends out a jolt of electricity through the barbs that strike a target.

Will some officers still be as indiscriminate with its use as they were in the case of Robert Dziekanski, who was Tasered by RCMP after he had become distraught when he was unable to make contact with his mother, whom he had come to visit, after he arrived at Vancouver International Airport.

Receiving reports that a man, who apparently couldn't speak English, was throwing furniture around, four RCMP officers attended and within 30 seconds of their arrival deployed the Taser. They zapped Dziekanski five times, leaving him writhing in agony on the floor with death following.

I said in a column on Nov. 8, 2008, that I thought it was incumbent on us to provide and allow police the use of the best equipment available. However, even though I saw the merits of the Taser as a police tool I couldn't escape the nagging thought that something had been going wrong, very wrong.

The Dziekanski case was a prime example.

Retired Judge Thomas Braidwood, appointed by the B. C. government to examine municipal police forces' use of the weapon after Dziekanski's death, slammed the government and B. C. police for not properly studying the potential dangers of Tasers and not training officers adequately in their use.

One of his key recommendations was to raise the threshold for using a Taser from "active resistance" to an officer suffering bodily harm or being threatened with imminent bodily harm..

The active-resistance standard in the province was open to broad interpretation and the discretion of officers.

For example, if a person suspected of not paying a Sky Train fare was told by a transit police officer, "Come here," then turned to walk away, that, according to a story in a Vancouver paper, was considered sufficient grounds for a Taser to be deployed.

That, of course, is ridiculous.

Police forces have upgraded their policies since Braidwood's initial report but I am afraid that no matter what policy is laid down and how strongly it is worded, the use of the Taser will still be decided by the officer or officers on the scene. Some, no matter the policy, will still be prepared to use it far quicker than will others.

I also wonder just how accurate police will be with the Taser under the new directive. Will they be able to pinpoint the abdomen, arm or leg? In regard to zapping the person in the back, I suspect this would only happen when there are enough officers present to surround the suspect and if that is the case, surely they could take the target down without using the Taser.

B. C. Civil Liberties executive director David Eby says the weapon should be banned and that changing the targeted area on where to aim is not enough.

"We are disappointed that police have to wait for the company to issue a directive before making these changes," he said. "Admittedly that is a step towards limiting the use, but it's hard to imagine in what situation it makes sense to aim at a suspect's back."

Amnesty International says from 2003 to 2008, 26 people died in Canada after being jolted by stun guns. The total in the United States was 330 between 2001 and 2008.

These totals had not gone unnoticed by former city police officer Ken Slewidge, who has been attempting to market an alternative weapon, a pepper gel officers would swipe on a target's eyes.

In an e-mail in response to my 2008 column he said police have difficulty defending the use of the Taser in situations that have alternatives.

"The entire concept of police use of force is progression through the circumstances. If the news reports of the individuals who died demonstrated that the situation was going to lead to the imminent death of someone, then for sure spray or Taser, no problem," he said.

"But police will surround a house for hours if a person is inside with a gun. Why can't the same tactic be scaled down to a person in the room that is upset? I'm sure that containment for 15 or 20 minutes would de-escalate a scene . . .

"I personally have had many wrestling matches over my 30 years that resulted in a sore back, shoulders and knees. But I would not trade these injuries for a chance to be the subject officer in a wrongful-death allegation."

I think the majority of the officers in forces across the country would agree with him.

The problem is, as I seem to keep repeating, there will be those who will still use the Taser when it isn't really required, such as in the Dziekanski case where evidence has now been brought forward that RCMP discussed using the Taser before they even got on the scene.

Slewidge said he was pleased with the Braidwood report, saying the justice understood what most Canadians have been implying to law enforcement all along, that CEDs have their place, but not in incidences other than the most serious. He said he hoped police agencies world-wide would eventually understand the logic of Braidwood's findings.

"Police agencies must realize that it is the police who need to keep taking the risk to save lives," he said in an e-mail. "Police cannot keep a rational of doing anything that may provide death to anyone, other than those individuals that fully put themselves in such a serious situation that exhausts all other options."

I'm willing to give Taser use a couple of years grace but if there is evidence at that time that it has not been brought under control, then I will be joining those, like Eby, who believe the Taser should be banned.

EDITORIAL: Nothing speculative

Merriam Webster definition of SYLLOGISM:
1 : a deductive scheme of a formal argument consisting of a major and a minor premise and a conclusion (as in “every virtue is laudable; kindness is a virtue; therefore kindness is laudable”)
2 : a subtle, specious, or crafty argument
3 : deductive reasoning

October 16, 2009
Editorial, Globe and Mail

The manufacturer of the taser acknowledged the uncertainty over whether the weapon is deadly, then argued at the inquiry into Robert Dziekanski's death that it most certainly is not. That death, and the Taser company's new directives to aim away from the chest, show why there should be a high threshold before police can use this dangerous weapon.

Taser's faulty syllogism goes like this: People have always died in police custody. They still die in police custody. Therefore the taser does not kill them. Does this follow? No. Yet this is what a lawyer for Taser International of Scottsdale, Ariz., argued at the inquiry before former appeal-court judge Thomas Braidwood in Vancouver this week.

Taser added a false argument to the faulty syllogism: It is speculative to say the taser caused or contributed to the death of Mr. Dziekanski, a Polish immigrant who was tasered five times at the Vancouver International Airport in October, 2007. Why? Because he was in an "acute emotional, physical and physiological crisis the night he died," says Taser.

Yes, and then the RCMP shot this man five times with 50,000 volts of electricity - five seconds each shot - smack in the middle of his medical crisis. He was shot, he died. What is so speculative?

Taser wants its weapon to be given the benefit of any doubt that exists. But it is plain the benefit should accrue to the people who might be shot. If the weapon has been wrongly accused, it will get over it. The people who have been killed, on the other hand, won't.

Taser acknowledged the uncertainty in a bulletin last month, saying that while the risk of a heart attack is extremely low, complicating factors of drug use or underlying cardiac problems may exist, and police should aim at the pelvic area. The RCMP has passed the directive on to its officers. It is a good directive. It will make it harder for police to rely on this weapon, because at 15 feet, the optimal shooting distance, it may be more difficult to aim accurately. (Keep in mind the two wires with barbed hooks that it shoots are designed to go into the body a metre or so apart, thus creating a vector of electricity.) It should also make those provinces that have not yet reconsidered their guidelines for taser use, in light of the findings from an earlier inquiry related to Mr. Dziekanski's death, take a second look.

The taser may kill, or contribute to a death, and yet it has been used on people such as Mr. Dziekanski, distressed but posing no threat to anyone. It should be used only in situations where there is a serious risk of physical harm.

Forgive mistakes, don't excuse lies

October 16, 2009
Ian Mulgrew, Vancouver Sun

Bullies and liars should be drummed out of the RCMP and other police departments. That should be former justice Thomas Braidwood's No. 1 recommendation.

Now that he has retired to write the final report of his public inquiry into the death of Robert Dziekanski, the commissioner must deal with the ugly picture that has emerged.

The four heavily armed Mounties overreacted with a probably illegal amount of force when they Tasered and manhandled the tired and confused 40-year-old Polish immigrant exactly two years ago Wednesday in Vancouver International Airport.

The evidence of the last year's hearings establishes that after Dziekanski died, the officers misconstrued what happened in an effort to limit their culpability and forestall potential criminal charges.

Their memories, notes and testimony are belied by the now famous amateur video by Paul Pritchard that captured Dziekanski's agonizing final moments. It is Canada's Rodney King moment, a continuing viral YouTube j'accuse.

Rather than circling the wagons as they have, the national police force should remember Oct. 14 as a day of infamy.

Maybe the first Taser shot can be justified; maybe even the second, which was administered while Dziekanski was writhing on the floor screaming in blood-curdling agony. But the third?

The fourth?

How about the fifth?

Watching those burly Kevlar-vested officers standing over Dziekanski's motionless body wondering what to do next, it was difficult to believe it could get worse.

But it did.

Using too much force to subdue a suspect is one thing. Refusing to remove handcuffs to facilitate medical aid for an unconscious man turning blue is downright criminal.

Rather than own their behaviour, the four officers went on to massage their recollections and craft misleading statements.

The response of their organization was not much better.

No one in the RCMP can be proud of how this was handled -- and the new commissioner didn't do any better by seemingly defending these four clowns with his walk-a-mile-in-their-shoes comment.

This kind of brutal, unthinking and deceitful behaviour cannot be tolerated. There should be no place for such men or women in a modern police force.

Yet we see it too often, not just in this tragedy.

Look at the recent case in Burns Lake where the Mounties roughed up a suspect without cause, dragged their feet on disclosure and delivered testimony the judge dismissed as beyond belief.

Or consider the latest civil finding against two Vancouver Police Department officers who smashed a sober 47-year-old civic worker's face into the ground and then falsely claimed he had been belligerent and drunk.

Of course, there's the outrageous case of the Mountie who committed perjury testifying about why he shot dead unarmed 29-year-old Kevin St. Arnaud in Vanderhoof.

These are unfortunately but a few of what are many instances in recent years of police officers overstepping the bounds and then trying to cover up their misconduct.

It's clearly time for Braidwood to state the obvious.

Whatever else he recommends early next year when he delivers his report, the commissioner should emphasize that cops can be forgiven mistakes but they cannot be excused for unleashing unwarranted violence and lying about it.

We must be able to trust police and have faith in them to use good judgment before force. That seems self-evident, but it manifestly needs to be said.

And those that don't get it need to be quickly shown the door.

Kelly McParland: Alcohol killed Robert Dziekanski. Seriously. Quit laughing.

October 14, 2009
Kelly McParland, National Post

Some years back I happened to attend a Congressional hearing in Washington that featured the CEOs of the top U.S. tobacco companies.

Henry Waxman, the ultra-Liberal congressman who is now busy trying to torpedo any hope of Congress crafting a workable health plan, was intent on embarrassing them. In an inspired move, he asked them to stand, raise their hands and swear under oath that they didn't believe smoking was in any way harmful to health.

Well, you have to earn your money, so they did as exactly as requested, standing side by side with their hands in the air, professing utter bewilderment at the suggestion all those people dying of lung cancer might have lived longer if they hadn't been sucking back 20 or 30 smokes a day. Surely it was all just a coincidence.

There is an oft-used photo of that moment, but perhaps David Neave has never seen it. Lawyers have to earn their money too, and Mr. Neave is the lawyer for Taser International, so on Tuesday he had to appear before the Braidwood inquiry into the death of Robert Dziekanski and profess with as straight a face as possible that there was no evidence "the Taser device caused or contributed to his death."

Nope, it was all just an unfortunate coincidence. Or maybe worse: a conspiracy against the good name of Taser International, those fine folks who manufacture devices capable of firing 50,000 volts of electricity into some poor sap's body.

"We say it is time this uninformed speculation about the role the Taser device may have had in this case be dispelled and the attack on Taser's reputation ended," intoned Mr. Neave.

Mr. Neave assured the hearing, which has spent months listening to details of Mr. Dziekanski's death, which came after he'd been zapped five times with a Tazer in the hands of a bunch of RCMP officers. A key bit of evidence is the famous video, which shows Mr. Dziekanski alive and well, if a bit upset. The cops arrive, Taser him five times, he turns blue and dies.

Hey, it could happen to anyone. The guy is fine, 100% healthy; he gets Tasered five times, which has absolutely no effect on him, but just happens to die of some completely unrelated factor at the exact same moment he's being Tasered by a harmless little electricity gun. I mean, what are the odds eh?

Mr. Neave had to make sure the inquiry understood just how tragic a coincidence it all was. The cops could have Tasered Dziekanski every 30 seconds for months on end and he'd have been just fine and dandy, if not for that unfortunate fatal attack he just happened to have at that moment.

As Canwest reported, "Neave said Dziekanski presented the classic profile of someone who dies during restraint by the police, as he appeared to be in a state of delirium prior to the incident, which was likely caused by alcohol abuse and withdrawal."

Oh sure, blame the alcohol industry, as if booze ever hurt anyone.

Neave noted that the poor ill-informed boobies who foolishly concluded Dziekanski's multiple tasering contributed to his death "had no scientific studies to back up their claims", while "experts" who said Tasers did not cause the heart to stop functioning had conducted studies to support their findings.

Wow, I mean is that convincing or what? Taser put forward "experts," not just drunks off the street like the commission used. Those "experts" had "studies" to prove their point, and we all know that "studies" conducted by "experts" are 100% fool-proof and not subject to doubt.

Now, you may want to recall that the tobacco companies survived for years on their 100% foolproof argument that there was no scientific proof connecting tobacco to cancer, and rolled out expert after expert to present studies backing up their claim. But don't make the mistake of concluding that the Taser industry is engaged in exactly the same old game, or that Mr. Neave was spouting utter nonsense on Tuesday.

This time it's really true. There is just no way that police killed Mr. Dziekanski with their Taser, no matter what the video and the evidence shows. I mean, who you going to believe, David Neave or your own eyes?

The Braidwood Inquiry

The truth about Robert Dziekanski’s death doesn’t come cheap: The Braidwood commission has cost B.C. taxpayers $3.7 million to date. But compared with other recent public inquiries, we’re getting “excellent value,” an expert says.
Photograph of Thomas R. Braidwood, QC by: Glenn Baglo, Vancouver Sun

Closing Submissions at the Braidwood Inquiry

Death by Taser assertion is 'junk science', lawyer tells Braidwood inquiry

October 13, 2009
Gerry Bellett, Vancouver Sun

VANCOUVER — A lawyer representing Taser International attacked the medical opinions that Robert Dziekanski died as a result of being Tasered at Vancouver International Airport almost two years ago as “junk science.”

Lawyer David Neave told the Braidwood Commission inquiring into Dziekanski’s death that there was no evidence that “the Taser device caused or contributed to his death.”

“We say it is time this uninformed speculation about the role the Taser device may have had in this case be dispelled and the attack on Taser’s reputation ended,” Neave said Tuesday.

Various opinions from 15 medical experts have been submitted to the inquiry regarding the use of the Taser and its effect on Dziekanski, ranging from those who have worked for Taser — claiming the device does not cause heart failure and death — to those who said otherwise.

Dziekanski died on Oct. 14, 2007, at the airport’s international arrivals area following a confrontation with four RCMP officers who Tasered him five times.

Neave said physicians who testified the Taser contributed to the death had no scientific studies to back up their claims, whereas the experts who said Tasers did not cause the heart to stop functioning had conducted studies to support their findings.

He said a severe electrical shock would stop the heart instantly, whereas Dziekanski was seen to continue struggling on the ground with police after he had been Tasered.

Neave said Dziekanski presented the classic profile of someone who dies during restraint by the police, as he appeared to be in a state of delirium prior to the incident, which was likely caused by alcohol abuse and withdrawal.

“There are thousands of cases each year where a Taser device is safely deployed by law enforcement personnel on individuals who are distraught or unstable,” he said.

“The factual evidence together with medical research on sudden death during restraint excludes the Taser device as the cause or a contributory to Mr. Dziekanski’s death.

“Sudden in-custody deaths of the sort Dr. [Charles] Lee [who conducted the autopsy] discussed in his report have been documented for more than 150 years and have been associated with every police restraint or technique or tool that has been used. The Taser device is just the next one in this long line,” he said.

“Cases often occur without a Taser being deployed. Without the mechanism of such deaths being known, we say it is speculative to say the Taser deployment caused or contributed to Mr. Dziekanski’s sudden death and for these reasons we ask you to make these findings:

“That Mr. Dziekanski was in an acute emotional, physical and physiological crisis the night he died, which some experts term delirium. The cause of his state is unknown, but likely was associated with alcohol abuse and withdrawal.

“There is a risk of sudden death associated with these states. There is no evidence on post-mortem or expert opinions to explain the mechanisms of his death. On all of the available evidence, it would be speculative and misleading to conclude the Taser deployment caused or contributed to [Dziekanski’s] death either directly or indirectly,” Neave said.

Taser International has always maintained that its devices did not cause death. But recently, the company released an advisory to police and other law enforcement agencies not to aim the device at the area of the heart, but to use it against other parts of the body.

Meanwhile, a memorial mass will be held Wednesday for Dziekanski, on the second anniversary of his death, at Holy Rosary Cathedral on Richards Street in Vancouver at 5 p.m.

Niagara Regional Police changes Taser use policy

October 13, 2009
Grant LaFleche, St. Catharine Standard

Niagara Regional Police have joined the growing ranks of police forces changing their Taser policies following a warning by the weapon’s manufacturer.

Last week, the NRP changed its use of Taser policy, instructing officers not to shoot the weapons into the chests of suspects after Taser International said it might be dangerous.

Police spokeswoman Sgt. Jacquie Forgeron said Taser International sent out a bulletin to police services on Sept. 30, advising that striking the chest with the conducted electrical weapon could put the suspect’s heart at risk.

Taser International now recommends officers aim for the legs, back or abdomen.

Forgeron said the NRP made its policy change on Oct. 7.

“Our training unit will start instructing officers on the change,” she said.

The RCMP, along with the Calgary and Winnipeg police services, are among those that are also instructing officers to aim lower when firing a Taser.

The use of Tasers by police in Canada has been in the spotlight because of the hearing into the death of Robert Dziekanksi, who died after being jolted with the weapons by RCMP officers in 2007 in Vancouver.

Some of the controversy over Taser use has reached Niagara. Michael Parsons successfully sued the NRP in civil court after officers used the weapon on him. He was awarded $50,000 after suing the police service and five officers for negligence, false arrest, malicious prosecution and breach of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The NRP had originally planned to appeal the decision, but has recently withdrawal its challenge.

In 2005, James Foldi of Beamsville died after being Tasered by NRP officers. However, an inquest found Foldi’s death was an accident, caused by acute cocaine toxicity leading to sudden cardiac death, in the setting of excited delirium.

Most NRP patrol officers are not armed with Tasers. Only NRP supervisors and members of the tactical unit are authorized to use the weapons.

In 2008, Tasers were used by NRP officers in 44 incidents, down from 98 in 2007.

California man dies

October 12, 2009 - Christopher John Belknap, 36, Ukiah, California

Tasered three times ... quit breathing ... taken to Ukiah Valley Medical Center ... died at the hospital.

Australia: Chest shot advice 'proof Tasers should be scrapped'

October 13, 2009
Robyn Ironside, Courier Mail

LAWYERS claim a recommendation that Tasers not be aimed at a person's chest are proof the weapons are lethal and should be scrapped.

Manufacturer Taser International has issued the directive based on controversy over the impact of the stun guns on the human heart.

It recommends Tasers instead be aimed at a suspect's legs or back.

Queensland Police are considering the directive as part of its revamped Taser training package to be rolled out next year.

But criminal defence lawyer Jim Coburn of Ryan and Bosscher said the official warning from Taser was a ``spectacular disclosure of the possible health risks from firing the devices into a person's chest and seriously undermined Queensland police and state government assurances that Tasers were safe to use.''

"Why has it taken so long for authorities to realise tasering in the chest could be life threatening?" he said. "It seems to be yet again evidence of the rushed manner in which these weapons were introduced."

Queensland's Police Union has also criticised the directive, calling it impractical.

"The decision by Taser makes it almost impossible for police who are using Tasers,"
said QPU general president Ian Leavers. "It's just not practical to ask a suspect to turn around so they can be Tasered in the back."

A joint QPS-Crime and Misconduct Commission report released last month recommended police be prohibited from aiming Tasers at a person's face, neck or eyes.

www.excited-delirium.com

I don't say this nearly enough: PLEASE don't miss www.excited-delirium.com's blog - today, tomorrow or ever. This blogger is the first to admit that he doesn't have all the answers, but he sure as hell knows the right questions to ask. I never cease to be amazed.

Canadian employer of the year

Interesting comments on the Toronto Star website today:

"It amazes me that countless cases of deaths by tasers was not enough evidence to get the RCMP to smarten up. A simple memo by Taser International results in immediate action. Just who do the Police work for?"

"As a police officer, I can tell you that this new guideline will not be well implemented on the streets. Aiming for other than centre of mass (the chest) runs against the training of all other weapons that the police use. Muscle memory and instinctive aiming would have to be overcome - highly unlikely - it would be like trying to tell a hockey player that he can aim a slapshot at the top corner because he might hit the goalie in the head."

Toronto Police followed notice to aim Tasers lower

Toronto Police changed its Taser use policy following a directive to avoid a suspect's chest when deploying the weapons.

The change was made over two weeks ago after Taser International, the weapon's manufacturer, issued a bulletin instructing users not to aim the weapon at suspect's chest area in order to avoid impact to the heart.

"What it says is to aim slightly lower and stay away from the upper chest area," Mark Pugash, police spokesperson said.

The force's Taser use training program has already been adjusted to reflect the changes, Pugash said, and all front-line officers have already been informed of the change.

Nearly two years ago, Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski died after being hit by a Taser at Vancouver International Airport.

Dziekanski, who was approached by four RCMP officers, died within minutes of being jolted.

In its training bulletin, the company said that by avoiding the chest area, it lessens the controversy about whether the jolts do or do not affect the heart.

The risk of a cardiac arrest after the weapon was deployed was "extremely low," according to the company.

Pugash would not comment on risks involved with using Tasers, saying only that Toronto Police strives to comply with all safety information as soon as it's made available.

He says Toronto Police offers twice as much Taser training as prescribed by the manufacturers.

According to Toronto Police reports, officers deployed Tasers 122 times last year.

The RCMP and OPP, as well as police forces in Vancouver, Calgary and Winnipeg have also changed their policies following Taser's bulletin.

Ontario Provincial Police Sgt. Joe Bosie said Sunday that officers received a memo about the new policies last week.

"It makes sense," said Bosie. "Those probes or needles are very sharp and if you were to discharge a Taser in or above the heart area like the neck or eyes it could cause serious injury."

Spokespersons for York, Peel and Durham regional police were unavailable to discuss the matter.

John Tackaberry, spokesperson for Amnesty International Canada, said that adjusting the location of where police aim their Tasers "isn't a solution to the problem."

"It's not the location of the Tasers," he said. "It's the impact the Tasers themselves have on bodies."

The group is calling for a full suspension of Taser use until more questions have been answered about the impact they have on people's bodies.

Paul Lochner, whose 43-year-old brother George was jolted with a Taser by the Toronto emergency task force during a raid in 2006, agrees that the change isn't enough. He, too, would like to see Tasers banned.

"These are the same people who said a couple weeks ago that 'no, you can shoot in the heart, it has no effect.' Now they're saying this," he said.

His family is currently involved in a lawsuit related to the incident with Toronto Police.

"Tasers clearly cause permanent injury and death. They scar families and shouldn't be used."

Texas sheriff declines to adopt Tasers

FORT WORTH, Texas — The sheriff of Tarrant County is bucking the trend of issuing Tasers to his deputies even as Texas' largest metropolitan law enforcement agencies continue to adopt the use of the weapon.

Sheriff Dee Anderson says he was concerned that an officer might cause someone's death with a Taser. Anderson says he conducted his own research in which Tasers were used. He said in cases where people have health issues or who have used alcohol or drugs, the electric shock could be deadly.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports Anderson sought advice from Tarrant County Medical Examiner Dr. Nizam Peerwani in making his decision.

Aim Tasers lower, police told

October 12, 2009
Petty Fong, Toronto Star

Police forces across Canada, including the RCMP and OPP, are immediately changing their Taser use policy after the manufacturer issued a directive that officers should not aim the weapon at a suspect's chest.

Taser International said in a bulletin that it's no longer advisable to aim the conducted energy weapon, which sends out a jolt of electricity, at a target's chest area to avoid impact to the heart.

"[W]e have lowered the recommended point of aim from centre of mass to lower centre of mass for front shots," the company said in a new training bulletin.

Rather than the chest area, which could lead to electricity affecting the heart, the company said police officers should target the back, legs or abdomen.

The new directive comes as the two-year anniversary approaches of the death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski, who died Oct. 14, 2007 at Vancouver International Airport.

Taser International is giving its closing submissions this week at the public inquiry headed by retired B.C. judge Thomas Braidwood, who is looking into the circumstances of Dziekanski's death.

Dziekanski, who was approached by four RCMP officers, died within minutes after he was jolted by an RCMP Taser.

A spokesman for the RCMP headquarters in Ottawa Friday said a directive has been sent out to officers to immediately avoid targeting a suspect's chest and head.

Ontario Provincial Police Sgt. Joe Bosie said Sunday that officers received a memo about the new policies last week.

"It makes sense," said Bosie. "Those probes or needles are very sharp and if you were to discharge a Taser in or above the heart area like the neck or eyes it could cause serious injury."

While the latest Tasers are wireless, most others include barbed darts attached to wires that strike the victim, before delivering an electric jolt.

Toronto police had no comment on the new policy, saying a spokesperson would not be available to discuss the matter until Tuesday.

Spokespersons for York, Peel and Durham regional police were also unavailable to discuss the matter.

Vancouver police spokesman Const. Lindsey Houghton said Sunday the municipal force has also received the new directive from Taser International.

"We immediately began advising and training officers to change where they aim from upper back or upper chest to lower centre of mass per the bulletin," he said.

The Calgary and Winnipeg police forces have also advised their officers to lower their aim when using the Taser.

Taser International has strenuously denied at the public inquiry that the weapon was the direct cause of Dziekanski's death.

The 40-year-old Dziekanski was on his first-ever flight from Poland to join his mother in Kamloops, B.C. when he was left lost and wandering at the airport for nearly 10 hours.

Police were summoned after a 911 call of reports that a distraught man was throwing furniture around the arrivals lounge. Within 30 seconds of the RCMP surrounding Dziekanski, the weapon was deployed and fired five times, leaving Dziekanski writhing in agony on the ground.

In its training bulletin, the company said that by avoiding the chest area, it lessens the controversy about whether the jolts do or do not affect the heart.

The risk of a cardiac arrest after the weapon was deployed was "extremely low," according to the company.

While Taser International noted sudden cardiac arrests can occur on "golf courses, in airports" or anywhere, the involvement of a Taser discharge at around the same time would place police officers and the company in a "difficult situation to ascertain what role, if any," the Taser played, according to the bulletin.

B.C. Civil Liberties executive director David Eby said Sunday the weapon should be banned and that changing the targeted area on where to aim is not enough.

"We are disappointed that police have to wait for the company to issue a directive before making these changes," said Eby. "Admittedly that is a step towards limiting the use, but it's hard to imagine in what situation it makes sense to aim at a suspect's back."

In 2004, Robert Wayne Bagnell, 44, died after Vancouver police used a Taser on him, sending two electrical shocks to his chest. His death was later cited as restraint-associated cardiac arrest due to acute cocaine intoxication.

Bagnell's sister, Patti Gillman of Belleville, Ont., has since become an advocate against the use of Tasers by police.

"Finally this is an acknowledgment from Taser that the weapon isn't as safe as they've been claiming," she said Sunday. "Hopefully this will make police even more skeptical about using Tasers."

Amnesty International says 330 people died in the United States after being jolted by stun guns between June 2001 and late 2008. In Canada, the human rights watchdog says at least 26 such deaths occurred from 2003 to 2008.

Aim tasers away from chest, RCMP told

October 12, 2009
Daniel Leblanc, Globe and Mail

RCMP officers have to stop aiming their stun guns at the heart and chest, after Taser International raised new concerns about its weapons causing cardiac arrest.

As of last Friday, Mounties are called upon to aim their tasers at the abdomen, legs or back of people they want to subdue – abandoning the chest, which offers the biggest and easiest target.

“It's a major shift from what we're used to, and it certainly has lessened the target zone,” said Staff Sergeant Scott Warren, chairman of the RCMP's officer safety committee. “I think we were all surprised that quite suddenly, [Taser International] had changed their opinion on the taser.”

The new “taser targeting guide” was forwarded to all RCMP officers on Friday and is already in effect. To make sure that everyone understands the new procedure, Mounties will undergo a new round of training.

Taser International issued the directive at the end of September, saying that cutting back on chest shots “avoids the controversy about whether [electronic control devices] do or do not affect the human heart.”

Taser said in its bulletin that the “risk of an adverse cardiac event” related to taser use is “deemed to be extremely low.” However, the company adds that a number of factors come into play, including drug use or underlying cardiac problems that cannot be diagnosed by police officers on the spot.

Taser users are now expected to aim, whenever possible, at the balancing muscles in the pelvic area. According to Taser, that will lower the legal consequences in the event of death involving the use of the weapon.

“We believe this recommendation will improve the effective use of Taser ECDs while also increasing safety margins and enhancing the ability to defend such cases in post-event legal proceedings,” the Taser bulletin says.

A battery-powered taser fires two barbed darts attached to wires. The darts hit the subject at different spots on the body, and the subsequent burst of electricity overwhelms the normal electrical messages in the central nervous system, locking up muscles.

NDP MP Don Davies said the new rules are inadequate, and called for a moratorium on taser use until further testing is conducted.

“Up until now, Taser International has consistently taken the position that their weapons were completely safe,” he said. “This seems to me to be a clear admission that this is not the case.”

The RCMP's view on tasers has rapidly evolved after events like the death of Polish traveller Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver airport in 2007.

Last February, RCMP Commissioner William Elliott surprised many observers when he acknowledged that people hit by tasers “may be at a high risk of death” if they are agitated or delirious.

“I do not think there is evidence that tasers kill, but certainly, we have had some incidents where shortly after a taser was deployed, individuals died,” Mr. Elliott said in announcing new rules on the weapon's usage.

Mr. Elliott said the weapons can no longer be used against people who are simply refusing to co-operate with Mounties.

“Prior to June of last year, the RCMP's policies would have permitted the use of tasers in dealing, for example, with people who were actively resistant,” he said. “We've now made it very clear that the only time the use of a taser can be justified is where there is a threat, either to our officers or to members of the public.”

Four months ago, a number of police forces in Canada took 1,600 older-model tasers out of service until each unit could be tested. Testing revealed that the older units produced less electrical output than expected 90 per cent of the time.

EDITORIAL: Curb use of tasers

October 10, 2009
EDITORIAL, Winnipeg Free Press

For many years police forces in Canada, including the Winnipeg Police Service, rebuffed concerns the Taser could kill people, relying on the manufacturer's assurances the device was a safe way to instantaneously incapacitate a suspect. Police forces lost that assurance last week when TASER International revised its instructions on the use of the device, cautioning police not to aim for a suspect's chest.

The revision restricting police officers to hitting suspects with the Taser on the stomach, legs or in the back was the first flinch by a manufacturer that for many years rebuffed concerns the weapon was linked to deaths of those jolted by the gun.

But TASER International insists it is standing behind years of evidence that the stun gun is safe. The new instructions, the company's webpage states, will avoid "controversy" raised by more recent research that indicates hitting a person across the chest can cause the heart to race. Those contrary studies would make it difficult to prove the gun had no role in any such incident, it says.

The manufacturer's move to limit its legal liability prompted police forces across Canada, including the Winnipeg Police Service, immediately to change their stun-gun use policies. That is a welcome development, as it has become clear the evidence on the Taser's effects is still being collected, alongside the rising frequency which the stun gun is used by all police forces.

The rapid compliance with TASER's new advice by the Winnipeg Police Service stands in stark contrast to the fact the force is still studying, after three months, the interim report issued by the Braidwood inquiry. Former judge Thomas Braidwood looked at broader medical evidence, in context with the actions of the RCMP at the Vancouver airport in 2007, where Polish traveller Robert Dzienkanski died after being repeatedly stunned by the Taser. Among the recommendations, Mr. Braidwood advised that police officers use the stun gun only when a person is causing bodily harm, or an officer has reason to believe harm is imminent.

TASER's new caveat to its once iron-clad claims of product safety indicates that it is making room for the possibility the stun gun's effect on people of varying health status and in dynamic circumstances needs further review. That fact should prompt Police Chief Keith McCaskill to adopt Mr. Braidwood's sage advice and curb Taser use by the officers.

Edmonton police review taser use

October 10, 2009
Laura Drake, edmontonjournal

EDMONTON — City police have been instructed not to aim Tasers at people's chests after the weapon's manufacturer issued a warning not to do so.

Insp. Bob Hassel, who is in charge of EPS training, said a directive was sent to all officers telling them to avoid intentionally aiming for the chest when they fire a Taser.

"We are reviewing it, but considering that it's a manufacturer's recommendation and they don't support that target area based on target research, for now, as an interim solution, we will immediately cease that practice," Hassel said.

Tasers use an electric charge to induce involuntary muscle contractions to temporarily incapacitate a person. Hassel said EPS officers have been trained to point Tasers at the body's largest muscle groups, including the chest, for the best results. Training will "immediately change" to reflect the new manufacturer's guidelines, Hassel said. "We want to ensure, especially for public safety, that we are complying with this directive," he said.

The bulletin from Taser International lists three main reasons to avoid chest strikes: That strikes are more effective to the thigh or pelvic area; to avoid the chance of hitting the face; and to avoid controversy.

Taser International maintains that its research shows that Taser strikes rarely cause ventricular fibrillation, and that the risk of an "adverse cardiac event related to a Taser electronic control device (ECD) discharge is deemed to be extremely low," but that if someone went into cardiac arrest during a Taser incident "it would place the law-enforcement agency, the officer, and Taser International in the difficult of situation of trying to ascertain what role, if any, the Taser ECD could have played."

Edmonton police have been using Tasers since 2001.

Death prompts ban on Taser use from cars

October 10, 2009
Miami Herald

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- The Pensacola Police Department has banned the firing of Taser guns by officers from moving vehicles following the death of a 17-year-old.

The teenager died this month after a patrol officer fired the stun gun from his cruiser. The teen then fell from his bike and the officer hit him with his cruiser, according to witnesses. The officer had ordered Victor Steen to stop after spotting him at a vacant construction site early on the morning of Oct. 3.

The officer is on paid leave while authorities investigate. The death has prompted community protests and vigils.

On Friday, Assistant Pensacola Police Chief Chip Simmons said officers would no longer be allowed to fire Tasers from their cruisers.

Calgary officers told not to aim Taser at suspects' chests

CALGARY - Calgary police officers will no longer aim their Tasers at a suspect's chest when possible, following new guidelines issued by the weapons manufacturer.

In a Sept. 30 bulletin, Taser International called on users to avoid "chest shots when possible" and instead aim for the abdomen or lower when deploying the weapon to avoid "the controversy about whether(Tasers) do or do not affect the human heart."

The manufacturer says the risk of a heart attack in connection with a Taser discharge is low, but if it happened after the weapon hit the chest area, it would place police and the company in the "difficult situation" of trying to determine what role, if any, the weapon had on the cardiac arrest.

In the bulletin, Taser International instructed users to aim for the abdomen, back or legs.

Calgary police Chief Rick Hanson sent a memo to the rank-and-file Wednesday, announcing the change to targeting.

"Clearly there has been more and more medical research that has been conducted that has caused a change in this target," he said.

There are no plans to stop the use of the energy weapon, he said.

"Absolutely, we will continue to use it as a tool because it's incredibly effective when dealing with highly combative or disturbed individuals."

The president of the Alberta Civil Liberties Association said Taser's bulletin acknowledges the weapons may cause serious injuries.

"We have to recognize these are dangerous weapons," Stephen Jenuth said. "We know electrical currents can stop hearts. Medical opinion is pretty unanimous on that."

Jenuth said he believes police should not be armed with Tasers, saying they should only be used in circumstances where a life is at risk.

Last year, Calgary officers used their Tasers 87 times--deploying the weapon 73 times and using only the laser illumination to gain compliance 14 times.

So far this year, the weapons have been used 69 times, 45 of those were deployments, said field training coordinator Staff Sgt. Chris Butler.

Butler said officers will aim for the diaphragm or lower whenever possible from this point forward.

"In circumstances where members have discretionary time and they have time to intentionally target . . . they should take all possible measures they can to avoid intentionally targeting the chest area,"

However, Butler said, where the probes land--even if carefully aimed -- is often beyond the control of the officer considering offenders are moving at the time a Taser is deployed.

"Even if the officer's intent is to put the laser dot on the abdomen and fire the Taser, by the time the darts actually impact the subject's body, it could be in a different position," Butler said.

Meanwhile, the province has completed testing on all of the Tasers used by municipal forces in Alberta.

In the second round of tests, 970 of the weapons were examined to see if they were meeting manufacturer's specifications. Of those, 88 -- about nine per cent--were operating outside of specifications, said Solicitor General spokeswoman Michelle Davio.

In the first round of testing, about 12 per cent of the weapons failed to operate as specified.

Those found not to comply have been returned to police departments who will decide to get rid of the weapons or fix them.

If they choose to repair the Tasers, they will have to be retested before being put back into use, Davio said.

The province is continuing to work on ongoing testing protocols for the weapons.

Rules announced in July stipulate all Tasers used by police in the province, including RCMP, will have to be tested yearly.

The regulations also restrict police in Alberta to using Tasers only when there is a "real likelihood of injury" to a person being arrested, a bystander or an officer.

RCMP review probe into N.W.T. Taser incident

October 9, 2009
CBC News

RCMP in the Northwest Territories are reviewing the findings of an independent investigation into a police officer's use of a Taser on a teenage girl in a young offenders' facility in Inuvik, N.W.T.

An Inuvik RCMP officer used the 50,000-volt stun gun to subdue the girl, who was 15 years old at the time, at the Arctic Tern Young Offender Facility on March 13, 2007.

The girl, who cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was laying on the floor with her hands cuffed behind her back at the time of the incident.

Corrections officials have said the teen was acting so aggressively that staff called in an RCMP officer.

Following an investigation by CBC News last year, the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP launched its own probe into what happened.

The independent police watchdog submitted its report to police for comments late last month.

A spokesperson for the commission told CBC News it hopes to release its report before the end of this year.

In addition to reviewing the 2007 incident, the commission also examined how impartial the RCMP was in its two investigations of the incident.

The police force had concluded that the officer who used the Taser on the girl did nothing wrong.

But the CBC News investigation found that at least one of the police probes was conducted by an officer who worked in the Inuvik RCMP detachment.

Another review by the Northwest Territories government cleared corrections workers of wrongdoing.

New stun-gun guidelines concern Winnipeg police

October 9, 2009
CBC News

Winnipeg police are being retrained in how to use stun guns after new guidelines were set down by the manufacturer, Taser International.

The guidelines adopted by the Winnipeg Police Service instruct officers to refrain from targeting the chest area, to avoid an impact on the heart.

Deputy Chief Shelly Hart said over the past two days the police service has been advising officers on the new guidelines.

"This went out to all the units, all the front line units who have access and use Tasers," she said.

Mike Sutherland, head of the Winnipeg Police Association, said the changes are causing concern for some officers, who are nervous about making an accurate hit in a volatile situation.

Because the target area is now lower, it increases the likelihood of striking the groin, he said.

"It's going to be harder too, I think, to get an effective deployment," Sutherland said. "It'll be harder to thread the needle as I said, because of targeting.

"And of course, if you inadvertently do strike some area outside the targeting zones that are recommended, I imagine there's probably going to be significant costs in terms of legal bills. Our members just want to get reassurances from the police service that we are going to be indemnified."

City Coun. Gord Steeves, chair of the city's standing policy committee on protection and community services, supports the changes.

He has requested the police service provide him later this year with statistics on the number of stun guns they have at their disposal and how often they are used.

Braidwood inquiry recommendations
The guidelines by Taser International stem from the Braidwood inquiry into the death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski, who was shocked by RCMP officers at Vancouver airport in 2007.

The recommendations said police services should test their existing stun guns every year and must test new devices before they are used by officers.

The recommendations also provided clearer direction to police on the use of stun guns. In Winnipeg, they are now limited to when an officer believes there is a "real likelihood" a subject will cause injury to themselves, the officer or a bystander.

The flight of a suspect in itself would not be grounds for firing a stun gun.

The Braidwood report was the first of two coming from the provincial inquiry prompted by Dziekanski 's death on Oct. 14, 2007.

Dziekanski is recorded as the 18th person in Canada to die in recent years after being shocked by a stun gun. Amnesty International says at least 280 people have died since July 2001 in the United States.

Taser International has stressed the devices have never been directly blamed for a death.

Winnipeg police aiming away from the heart and studying Braidwood's Taser recommendations

October 9, 2009
Gabrielle Giroday, Winnipeg Free Press

WINNIPEG — The deputy chief of the Winnipeg Police Service said Tasers are still in use by the force but officers have adjusted the way they are used after the manufacturer said it should be aimed away from the heart area.

WPS Deputy Chief Shelley Hart told the standing committee on protection and community services that the service will study the findings of the Braidwood Report and report back to the committee within 30 days.

Hart told reporters after the meeting she did not know how many Tasers are currently in use by the WPS.

The Braidwood Report has 19 recommendations on changes the British Columbia police should make on their Taser use. It followed the death of Robert Dziekanski at the Vancouver International Airport after Mounties used a stun gun on him in October 2007.

The report is not binding for the Winnipeg Police Service.

"It is of great interest and importance to us to be sure that our policies and practices here are constantly reviewed and updated as we deem appropriate," Hart told the committee.

Hart refused to elaborate on how Taser use by the force has changed.

"It's an operational issue," she said.

"We don't make a habit of releasing that kind of information just from a purely tactical perspective."

The WPS refused earlier this year to release statistics on how many times the devices were used by their officers on an annual basis. Those statistics were previously released.

New warnings from taser manufacturer

October 8, 2009
CTV BC
With files from CTV British Columbia’s Peter Grainger

The manufacturer of Taser guns has posted a new training bulletin on its website recommending that officers avoid aiming at the chests of suspects.

The bulletin says it is not possible to predict or test whether Tasers do or don’t affect the human heart.

“In order to increase the safety margin and since field experience shows that (Taser) discharges are effective when deployed to the large muscles of the back, abdomen, legs and pelvic triangle, users should aim for the back or (when practical) toward the mid lower abdomen and avoid intentionally targeting the chest area,” the bulletin states.

The lawyer representing the family of Robert Dziekanski, who died after being hit in the chest by a Taser at Vancouver International Airport and whose death spurred a public inquiry, said the warning comes too little, too late.

“The inquiry in the first phase did find that there could be direct capture of the heart, as a result of the use of the Taser. That is something that has always been denied,” said Walter Kostecky.

M-P and B-C's former Attorney General Ujjal Dosanjh agrees this is an overdue but welcomed development, “Now Taser by implication is admitting that it causes death, that it is a very serious weapon and that it should be used under more strict guidelines.”

Police in Vancouver say they have already notified their officers about the warning.

There is no word yet from B.C.’s solicitor general or the RCMP on whether this will become a province-wide policy.

Meanwhile, Dziekanski's mother filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging excessive force and "cruel and unusual" treatment by the four RCMP officers who stunned her son with a Taser.

Zofia Cisowski is suing the four officers, the Canadian and British Columbia governments, and the Vancouver airport, where Dziekanski collapsed and died after being stunned by Mounties in October 2007.

The lawsuit alleges everyone involved failed Dziekanski in some way.

"Mr. Dziekanski died as a result of injuries he sustained in the assault and physical restraint by the RCMP members," says the statement of claim filed in B.C. Supreme Court on Wednesday.

It claims the four RCMP officers had no reasonable grounds to detain Dziekanski or stun him multiple times with a Taser after being summoned to the airport to deal with an agitated Dzieksanki.

Cisowksi's lawsuit also alleges that RCMP failed to notify of her son's death -- that was left to an airport employee when she returned to the airport to find him -- and then "knowingly misrepresented her son's conduct and the cause of his death."

In the statement of claim, she says she it wasn't until she saw a witness' video of the confrontation her son had with the four RCMP officers that she realized how he had died. Cisowski says she saw the video prior to it being released to the media.

The lawsuit alleges the airport and federal border officers also failed Dziekanski, by not providing translation services or adequately helping Dziekanski, either when he was making his way through customs or after he began throwing furniture in a public area.

These officials also failed to provide Cisowski any "meaningful" assistance, and she left the airport while her son was still waiting inside the customs area.

A Justice Department lawyer confirmed that the federal ministry has been served but no statement of defence has been filed and the department declined to comment Thursday.