The Cochran Firm Legal Blog

Tasers are a type of stun gun used by police since about 2000. Civilian models are also available and sold to women for self-protection. The police models use compressed nitrogen and fire darts which can penetrate up to one inch of clothing. They deliver an electric shock of 50,000 volts. They are designed to be used when a suspect resists arrest to the point where police must subdue him somehow to avoid injuries either to the suspect or the officers.

Over 70 wrongful death suits have been filed against Taser International Inc., the manufacturer of Tasers. Most of them have been decided for Taser. But in June, 2008, the company was ordered to pay a little over $1 million in damages to the family of a man who died after being hit by a Taser several times. Taser International was also ordered to pay $5.2 million in punitive damages even though the jury found the Taser to be only 15 percent responsible for the suspect’s death and the suspect 85 percent responsible.

Taser Controversy

Nationwide, over 70 deaths of people in custody have been blamed at least partly on Taser use. Much responsibility has also been assigned to each suspect’s pre-existing health conditions and drug abuse. When police make an arrest and the suspect resists, the officers have a choice of “takedown tactics”. They can use nightsticks or pepper spray, Tasers or guns. It depends on how strongly the suspect is resisting.

There have been several dozen Taser reviews and the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division conducted a year-long review in response to excessive-force complaints made against deputies. The Canadian Medical Association Journal published a review in May, 2008 that concluded Tasers could interfere with a person’s heart beat – contrary to the standard view that they only affected skeletal muscles. However, some of the data came from studies of pigs.

Medical Study of Taser Risks

On January 15, 2009, the Annals of Emergency Medicine released the results of a three-year study on connections between Taser use and subsequent health problems. The researchers reviewed 1,201 arrest cases where a suspect had been Taser-stunned during arrest. Of those, two had died:

• One had ingested a fatal amount of anti-psychotic medication
• The other was overweight, using cocaine, and had a pre-existing heart condition

Also among the 1,201 cases were three severe injuries involving two men who fell after being stunned and hit their head and a third man who sustained kidney and muscle damage. All three recovered. There were also 408 skin punctures.

Researchers found no links between Tasers and fatal heart attacks. However, these issues are not fully resolved. There can be heart problems long after the Taser use and more research needs to be done.

If you have been injured by another’s negligence you may have a valid civil case. Please call or email our personal injury law firm to schedule a free case evaluation.