TASER® Blog

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.

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.

Today I came across an excellent story that illustrates an officer’s quick thinking and the TASER device’s ability to end a situation quickly and effectively.

Early this morning in Surprise, Arizona, an officer investigating a suspicious vehicle was grabbed by the suspect inside the vehicle and dragged by his arm outside the suspect’s vehicle for 40 yards. The suspect, pretending to be asleep, waited until the officer put his hand on his shoulder to determine if he required medical attention, and then abruptly threw the car in drive and grabbed the officer by the arm, dragging him alongside the car. By using his free hand and thinking quickly, the officer was able to pull out his TASER® X26™ to subdue the suspect and put the vehicle in park.

In many jurisdictions, assaulting an officer with a vehicle would be a justifiable use of deadly force. However, the officer chose to use his X26, quickly and safely ending the confrontation in a safer use-of-force manner.

Read the article here.

There is certainly a lot of attention being paid to the arrest in Travis County, Texas, involving the use of a TASER® device on a 72-year-old woman. It is dominating blogs, Twitter and websites all over the Internet — almost to the same level of ubiquity that the “naked wizard guy” video received after it went viral last month. Then, following yesterday’s release of the in-car video of the Travis County incident, it now has been covered by most traditional television, radio, and print media outlets across the country and throughout the world.  

One of the most balanced reports I have seen thus far on the incident was on the NBC Today Show yesterday — including the after report discussion between Erin Burnett and Matt Lauer sharing their personal views on the situation. 

While I can understand the sensational draw and the spirited debate over this incident, I am left wondering why only a select few TASER uses are covered this intensely by the media or on the Internet. It seems as if the TASER device only gets this kind of coverage when it is used in what is perceived to be a negative or controversial situation.  

There are thousands of videos where officers used a TASER device according to their agencies’ policies and it directly led to the saving of an individual’s life. But we rarely see these instances covered on a national scale.

Electronic control devices are saving lives, reducing injuries and saving precious taxpayer dollars in workman’s compensation and litigation savings in the communities across the United States that are patrolled by the nearly 14,000 law enforcement agencies that carry TASER devices.

I personally believe a life saved deserves the same, if not more, coverage than a 72-year-old who became belligerent in refusing to sign a ticket or a naked guy at a music festival. This is certainly true with the story today from Amherst, N.Y., about the 6 month-old baby who was saved by an officer using a TASER device.

We received the following e-mail yesterday from Matthew S. of Louisiana who had to use his TASER® C2™ personal safety device against a man who previously threatened him and came to his work to attack him. Thanks to the C2, Matthew is unharmed and the attacker was arrested for his actions. Here is his note:

June 2, 2009

Hello,

My name is Matthew and I purchased your C2 product last year for personal protection. On May 11, 2009 I was attacked at work by a large man (6′0, around 270 lbs). I had previously had this man arrested for swinging at me, and for threatening my life. I have two small children at home, and care deeply for my family. This man returned again to my business on May 11, 2009. I am assuming that he was returning to make good on his threat to end my life, as he had been warned numerous times by the police and myself to stay away. His previous arrest was obviously no deterrent to his return. When this man charged at me from a distance of around 25 feet, I pointed my C2 at him and repeatedly warned him to stop. When it was obvious that he would not, I deployed the TASER. He was struck by one probe in the lower stomach and the other in his right hand. This device immediately dropped this large man like a rock, and the threat was over. He did not get back up until police arrived to handcuff him again and take him back to jail.

I am thankful that I did not have to use lethal force against him, and extremely impressed with the device. I cannot put a price on my safety and that of my family. I know that in years gone by my options for defense were limited to devices that required closer contact without having to utilize deadly force. I am a law-abiding, taxpaying, all American man. Thank you sincerely for the development of this device. My young daughters are thankful that you helped their Dad come home safe.

Thanks again,

Matthew S.

Matthew, we want to thank you for sharing your story with all of us at TASER International. You may have said it best, “I cannot put a price on my safety and that of my family.”

In March of this year I had the pleasure of being present when Dutch National Police announced a one-year pilot program that would place TASER® devices with eight special tactical law enforcement and arrest teams throughout the Netherlands. After thorough training from 34 newly anointed Dutch TASER® Instructors, the program commenced last month. Naturally, with this being the first deployment of TASER devices in the Netherlands, there was a lot of curiosity surrounding TASER® technology.   

Yesterday, that curiosity was satisfied as the pilot program’s first field use provided an example of how TASER devices can help save lives. A man in the town of Woerden had his life saved when the use of a TASER prevented him from inflicting serious injury upon himself. Officers were able to temporarily incapacitate the man’s muscles using a TASER® X26™ — thereby disarming him and diffusing the dangerous situation. 

We’re pleased that the Dutch National Police have adopted the life-saving technology of TASER and we congratulate them on a job well done in helping advance the mission of TASER International — to protect life.

Law enforcement officers often encounter individuals attempting to harm themselves with deadly weapons at all hours of the day. Situations like these require officers to think and react quickly while utilizing their specialized communications skills. Just recently, a woman in Providence, RI, tried to take her life only to be saved by police officers using a TASER X26 electronic control device. Incidents like this illustrate how TASER devices can be used by law enforcement to safely and effectively end potentially deadly situations.

Check out the full story here: Providence Police use TASER to Save Woman

Last month, I received an e-mail from Officer Justin Golder from Hellam Township, York County, Pennsylvania, describing the life-saving use of a TASER® device.  Officer Golder was dispatched to a domestic incident where a father and son were involved in a violent altercation and the son was threatening to harm himself.  As Officer Golder descended into the basement of the home, he found the son sitting with a knife pressed to the center of his chest.  The officer engaged the distressed man in conversation, trying to determine how best to help him and dissuade him from harming himself. 

After nearly 20 minutes of talking to the individual, the son became increasingly agitated and tried to push the knife through his clothes and into his chest.  Realizing the threat of the situation, Officer Golder waited for the exact moment that the man looked away and deployed his TASER® X26™, effectively immobilizing the son and preventing him from harming himself.  The son was then safely taken into custody to receive the necessary medical treatment.

Thanks to Officer Golder’s patient communication, quick decision-making, and the TASER X26, the son is alive today. 

After a decade of providing TASER devices to law enforcement, life-saving accounts such as this one still make most everyone at TASER International pause and remember exactly why we do what we do.  Thank you Officer Golder, for sharing your story with us.

If you are like me, you have probably seen quite a few news stories that portray TASER devices in a negative light.  It’s unfortunate, especially when you consider that our company’s mission is to Protect Life.  We have the privilege of receiving many stories submitted by officers in the field  that illustrate just how effectively TASER devices can be used to do just that.  I would like to share one that was sent to me by an Officer in North Carolina who used his TASER device in a life-saving capacity. 

A few weeks ago, in Macon County, North Carolina, Trooper Rico Stephens of the North Carolina Highway Patrol responded to a radio call about a child being attacked by a large dog.  Upon arrival, Trooper Stephens found the dog, upwards of 90 pounds, dragging the seven year-old child by the neck.  Assessing the situation, Trooper Stephens realized it would pose undue risk to the child and bystanders to attempt to shoot the dog with a firearm, so instead, he drew his TASER X26.  In one more attempt to free the child, the officer threw objects at the dog to get it to release the child.  That did not work, so Officer Stephens deployed the TASER and the dog was immediately incapacitated.  After the five-second cycle was over, the dog fled, leaving the child behind to be taken in for medical treatment.  In his report, Officer Stephens indicated that without question, the child would have died had he not been able to quickly incapacitate the dog with the TASER.

Stories like these often never make it to mainstream media.  There is a lot of misinformation about our products out there and, some days, it feels like I spend all my time trying to counter the misinformation.  So, I find it particularly refreshing to hear real-life stories from police officers who are using our devices to save lives and create safer communities.