Tasers Aren't Lethal???

I'm getting quite upset with the underlying dishonesty of the claim that "Tasers aren't provably lethal".

Not only does it smack of purchased science, not unlike the tobacco lobby's "Tobacco Institute" studies that claimed that tobacco smoke was harmless.

The ongoing case of Robert Dziekanski is another example.

While I might be willing to accept that we do not really understand why people die after being hit by a taser, I do not think that it is reasonable to claim that there is no evidence. Mr. Dziekanski himself is evidence of lethality, as are several other people who died in custody after being tasered in the following weeks.

I do not claim that Tasers should be banned. I do, however, argue that the policies around the use of tasers should be as strict as those surrounding an officer's use of conventional firearms.

A bullet is in general not lethal - unless it goes through the right organs. A Taser may not be "generally lethal" either, unless it happens to disrupt some yet to be fully understood part of the nervous system. Given the recent spate of 'in-custody' deaths, I think it is most reasonable to relegate the taser to the "last resort" status of firearms. Clearly it is far more dangerous to the suspect than a few bruises.