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Hey TASER® Blog fans- we have a very special opportunity for you! It’s our way of saying thank-you for your continuing interest in our product, company, and the people behind it all.

Starting a blog has been a new and exciting project for TASER International, a foray into the world of social media- and it’s been the dedicated blog fans like you that have made it so rewarding. So, we would like to give you a little something extra for your support.

By using this link , you will receive an extra two-pack of cartridges and a free target with your purchase of a TASER C2.

Happy Shopping!

Today I came across an article regarding a man in Alice Springs, Australia, who was waving a machete and screaming, “I want to chop people up,” and to the police, “I’ll make you shoot me.”  Sadly, while this story may be horrifying to most citizens, it is all too familiar to law enforcement officers. This is known as “suicide by cop.”

According to Wikipedia, “suicide by cop is a suicide method in which a suicidal deliberately acts in a threatening way, with the goal of provoking a lethal response from a law enforcement officer, such as being shot to death.” Tragically, those officers that are placed in those situations not only face media and public scrutiny, internal investigations, self-doubt, but they have to live the rest of their lives with the fact that they were involved in an incident where a life was taken to no fault of their own.

The main mission that co-founders Rick and Tom Smith had when starting TASER International in 1993 was to find a safer response to resistance. This mission is accomplished each time we read of similar lives saved by the use of a TASER ECD. To shed a little light on “who” we are, our staff at “Team TASER” is highly motivated and driven by these stories. Although we aren’t walking the beat or putting on a badge to protect and serve, it still makes us feel like we are, albeit a small, but important contributing cog in the law enforcement world. It’s a story like this that helps feel like we’re doing our part to make the world a little bit safer and doing our part to protect life.

We are human at TASER International. We read the controversial stories and sometimes you can feel overwhelmed that so many of the life-saving events are simply not covered or reported in any large extent despite thousands of lives that have been positively affected by the use of a TASER ECD. However, we as a company continue to produce products that help deter incidents that end in any death or serious injury, which allows us to continue to fulfill our number one mission: Protect life.

Although our technology is not a replacement for deadly force, we do know our TASER technology has been invaluable in more than 800,000 field use in situations — including the prevention of suicide by cop. It’s a good reminder today to see the positive impacts this technology makes each day at nearly 14,500 law enforcement agencies  in more than 40 countries.

Back in June we told you about three new studies and reports that were crucial to understanding issues surrounding the use of TASER devices. One of those reports was by the American Medical Association (AMA) and was announced at its annual meeting that month.

As we said then, the report is generally positive. It recognizes that TASER devices, when used appropriately, can save lives during interventions that would otherwise involve deadly force.

However, since we first told you about the report, some others have looked at it and drawn additional interpretations and conclusions.

Greg Meyer — a retired Captain from the Los Angeles Police Academy — has done some of  the heavy lifting over at PoliceOne.com in taking a closer look at the AMA report. Capt. Meyers offers an excellent point-by-point breakdown and analysis.

Take a look at the column by Capt. Meyers. I think you will find it interesting.

It amazes me how little coverage there is of life saving incidents that involve TASER® devices. However, today I spotted an article from last weekend I wanted to share with you. I think it is important to highlight the ones that do make the media coverage.

In Bay County, Michigan, sheriff’s deputies were dispatched in the early morning hours on Friday, August 7, 2009 to a retail fraud complaint. When the deputies arrived they found a Texas man sitting in the passenger seat of a vehicle holding his 5-month old niece. According to reports, the man was obviously distraught as he gave a false name, used the baby as a shield and even stated that he would, “…kill this baby, I will break its neck.” The deputies tried several failed attempts to remove the baby safely from the man. Finally, a TASER device was deployed, allowing the police officers to recover the unharmed infant and return her safely to her family.

Deputies later learned that this man was wanted in Texas for several crimes, including parole violation, and he was also wanted for numerous crimes in counties throughout Michigan. Who’s to say what would have happened if the TASER device wasn’t used, but we can at least state that everyone involved wasn’t hurt and the infant is now at home safe with her family and the bad guy is sitting in a jail cell facing felony charges.

Yesterday, Alan Frio of WSMV-TV Nashville reported on a man who was hit with a TASER device three times only to get up after each TASER deployment. In the report “Suspect Shocked Repeatedly With Tasers,” Frio questions whether the TASER device “is as effective as some believe and if a Taser keeps an officer safe.” Other media outlets rebroadcasted Frio’s report today with some like ABC News proclaiming, “TASER Doesn’t Work on Big Suspect.”

After several of us at TASER International watched the video — which incidentally is recorded on a TASER® CAM™ — it is very clear that the TASER devices worked exactly as designed. This is most evident in the fact that the suspect stiffened and fell to the ground, clearly the signs of Neuro Muscular Incapacitation.

What also is apparent is that there may be a misunderstanding of how TASER systems works and what it is designed to do.

The TASER device deploys two probes attached by a conductive wire at that suspect. The probes must make contact with the subject or with his clothing to be effective. When the two probes make contact, they then cause a subject to be incapacitated for a five-second cycle. During this five-second cycle, there is a “window of opportunity” during which officers can apprehend, handcuff and/or control the subject. This can be done during the five-second TASER application because the electrical pulses of the TASER device will not transfer to the officers unless they touch the probes or between the probes. More importantly, it’s the only time that the suspect is actually incapacitated.

After the five-second cycle, the subject can and will recover instantly. It’s akin to a light switch being on or off. It’s a matter of physics as electricity will not linger in the body. Individuals of any size are not disabled by the effects of the TASER device after the device is shut off. There is no “stunning” effect or disabling after effect.

The TASER X26 or any TASER brand device does not gain compliance from a combative suspect. Compliance is gained either by securely cuffing and controlling a suspect during the five-second cycle or if the suspect decides to give up. We have always stated that suspects can recover instantly. This is a critical part of the basic TASER training.

In other words, the TASER did what it was supposed to do.

No law enforcement tool, including the TASER device is effective 100 percent of the time. There are no magic bullets. But in the case in Nashville, the TASER X26 did exactly what it’s supposed to do — it dropped the suspect and provided a window of opportunity for officers to gain compliance

I can’t believe all the tremendous amounts of new material covered by the Master Instructor trainings, the number of media stories and the increased awareness of the TASER Foundation since the unveiling of the TASER® X3™ on July 27, 2009. So much has occurred that it’s even hard for me to keep up, but I’ll try to fill you in.

Tom and Rick Smith demonstrate the TASER X3 at last week's TASER Conference

On Monday, July 27, Rick and Tom Smith, the co-founders of TASER International, unveiled the multi-shot X3, our first new handheld TASER ECD since 2003, during their keynote address at the beginning of the 2009 annual TASER Conference. It was one of the many TASER solutions for law enforcement, corrections and military customers that were highlighted that day.

The keynote address and the launch of the X3 was covered by numerous Arizona print and television media outlets. Incredibly, the story filed by the local Associated Press reporter was picked up by more than one thousand papers around the world. In addition, writers from a couple of trade magazines attended the keynote as well, so we are looking forward to those articles in the upcoming editions. Since the launch, I’m thankful to say that the media request and TV interviews haven’t slow down. The TASER X3 has been featured and demonstrated on FOX Business Network’s “Money for Breakfast” with Alexis Glick, has been written about on WIRED Magazine’s Danger Room, and was  shown in a video post on the Engadget website. Then today, Tom Smith gave a live demonstration of the X3 to Bill Hemmer on FOX News America’s Newsroom, wrapping up an exciting week of interest and coverage.   Read more…