Police use of tasers is growing, despite the alarming number of related deaths - 500 in the US since 2001.
Almost as bad are taser-related injuries like the brain damage a young Florida woman suffered when her head slammed into the pavement. Video here: http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/experts-say-troopers-use-of-taser-on-woman-raises-questions/1215998
Out of hundreds of deaths involving tasers, 90% of victims were unarmed and many shocked multiple times, says Amnesty International. But although many taserings are excessive, police are usually cleared of any wrong-doing.
Among state and local departments, taser regulation varies widely, so there's urgent need for national guidelines. The recent killing of Brazilian student Laudisio Curti in Sidney sparked an outcry for taser control in AU, even though it has a reported 494 fewer taser-related deaths.
There's no excuse for America‘s lax attitude on this issue.Tell the US to Tighten Restrictions on Taser Use NOW!
We, the undersigned, are shocked by Amnesty International’s report of the number of taser-related deaths in the US, and we believe use of tasers by law enforcement is often excessive and avoidable.
Even more disturbing is Green Left’s (AU) report that injuries and deaths related to taser use are being suppressed by industry intimidation, according to allegations (some listed below) made by the report linked here.
http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/50558
“Taser Iternational (TI) is a multinational company that sells about US $100 million of Tasers a year. TI’s 'market' depends on growing use of Tasers by police and other security firms.”
“TI has waged a legal war, including lawsuits and lobbying, to try to prevent medical examiners from ruling that Tasers contributed to the causes of death. In 2008, under pressure from the company, a US judge ordered that the word 'Taser' be removed from the autopsies of three men, who all died after being shocked with the stun gun.”
“A US cardiologist whose studies found that a healthy individual could die from a Taser discharge, and risk of death increases with each tasering or with drugs or adrenaline in the blood, was asked by TI to reconsider his media statements, and was offered funding. He refused.”
We request investigation into the above allegations, along with development of strict national guidelines for taser use, based on medical information and information regarding taser-related deaths that has not been suppressed.
Thank you for you immediate attention to these serious concerns.
