TASER® Blog

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.

This morning reports came in about an important TASER® X26 deployment use in Waikato, New Zealand. Police officers in Waikato effectively used the threat of a TASER X26 deployment to end a standoff with a dangerous and unpredictable suspect who had kept them at bay for three hours, brandishing sticks and threatening officers and bystanders.

The suspect, a 36 year-old half-naked male had previously threatened a jogger and was in the midst of being questioned by a plainclothes detective when he abruptly drove off in his car, dragging the officer questioning him nearly 65 feet. The suspect then abandoned the vehicle as police chased him to the Waikato River’s edge. Three hours into the standoff, the commanding officer decided that a TASER device was the best tool to end the situation safely and effectively. Although Waikato officers do not carry TASER devices, the decision was made to fly in a TASER-trained officer from Auckland.

However, just the mere threat of the TASER induced the man to cooperate. This story illustrates just what a powerful and effective tool the TASER device can be for law enforcement — even when it’s not actually deployed. Had the officers not had a TASER at their disposal (New Zealand has only had TASER devices for the past couple of years), then officers may have had to resort to lethal force. Because the officers had access to the TASER device, the situation was resolved without any weapons being deployed, the suspect was taken into custody without injury, and the officers went home safely.

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