After the video recording released a few days ago in which one can clearly see the last moments of the Polish immigrant’s life, it appears that the police officers involved in the tragic death at the Vancouver airport have violated recommendations in a 2005 report.
The report issued in 2005 by the British Columbia police complaint commissioner has clearly stated that the Tasers should only be used on individuals who pose a threat to others or are actively resisting arrest. The report was also clearly indicating that there shouldn’t be multiple shocks and the victim shouldn’t be restrained in any way that would restrict its breathing.
Of course, the video clearly shows the police officers doing exactly the opposite, when an interpreter would have been more than enough to calm Mr. Robert Dziekanski down.
TASER International issue statement
TASER International has recently issued a statement regarding the mid-October quarrel between Dziekanski and the police officers at the Vancouver airport.
"Historically, medical science and forensic analysis has shown that these deaths are attributable to other factors and not the low-energy electrical discharge of the TASER(r).” said Tom Smith, Founder and Chairman of the Board of TASER International, Inc.
"Cardiac arrest caused by electrical current is immediate. The video of the incident at the Vancouver airport indicates that the subject was continuing to fight well after the TASER application. This continuing struggle could not be possible if the subject died as a result of the TASER device electrical current causing cardiac arrest.
Study on Taser use
A study was conducted in early October by William Bozeman, the lead investigator and an emergency medicine specialist at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, in order to evaluate the safety of the Tasers.
The electric gun invented in 1969 by Jack Cover and labeled as TASER (an acronym for Thomas A. Swift's Electric Rifle) is currently used by the law enforcement agencies, especially in United States and Great Britain, and fires darts that release a 50,000 volt electric charge which temporarily paralyses the target.
Despite being adopted in order to decrease the police officer and suspect injuries and deaths, the Tasers have drawn constant criticism from human rights organizations like Amnesty International as it was believed that the of Taser use could inflict serious injuries.
The medical experts studying the case pointed out that if the Tasers are used on normal subjects they can be safe, but the electroshock could inflict some important changes in the heart rhythm or it may cause injuries to those subjects who are under certain medication.
On the other hand, the reports released by the police departments show that, since the Teasers were introduced in use, the number of deaths caused by incidents with firearms have decreased.
Bozeman’s study concluded that in 743 cases the use of the Taser didn’t cause any injuries and in the rest of the cases the subjects suffered only minor cuts, abrasions and contusions.