NSW: Police back Taser, despite Ombudsman's safety concerns
19 Nov 2008 7:03 PMBy Karen Davis
SYDNEY, Nov 19 AAP - The NSW Ombudsman is pushing for a two-year moratoriumon the roll-out of Taser guns to all general duties police, saying operating procedures are "inadequate" and must be reviewed.
The Ombudsman's report, tabled in NSW Parliament on Wednesday, analysed theuse of the stun guns by specialist police units between 2002 and 2007.
It raised concerns about the risks posed by last month's1 million roll-out of Tasers to senior general duties officers, and urged against issuing them to all frontline officers for two years.
At the time of the roll-out, NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said the Tasers were being deployed to 80 local area commands across the state todefuse potentially life-threatening situations.
On Wednesday the commissioner rejected criticisms of the plan, saying therewere "clear rules" on the use of Tasers and his officers were properly trained.
The Ombudsman's report has angered the NSW Police Association, with president Bob Pritchard saying a moratorium on any further roll-out would cost lives.
"The Ombudsman can try to spin it however he likes, but frankly this reportis a load of rubbish," Mr Pritchard said.
"Police are being injured unnecessarily because they don't have access to this critical policing equipment."
Ombudsman Bruce Barbour said he was concerned that general duties officers could start using the weapons as a matter of convenience, rather than necessity.
Tasers have been used 70 times since the roll-out, and Mr Scipione said there had not been any injuries to police or citizens as a result.
But Mr Barbour called for a two-year moratorium on any further roll-out, pending an independent review.
"Current police standard operating procedures relating to Taser use are inadequate," he said.
"There are known risks with using Tasers, and police must receive clear, comprehensive and consistent guidance to ensure safe and effective use of this weapon.
"While it may be relatively safe to use a Taser on a healthy adult, the jury is still out on their use on a range of other people who police typicallyencounter in serious situations."
Mr Barbour made 29 recommendations in his report, including greater guidance for officers on the risks of Tasers, factors to consider before deployingthe weapon and ensuring victims receive medical assessment.
He said there was conflicting medical and scientific opinion on whether stun guns could cause irregular heart rhythms, and expressed disappointment the Tasers were rolled out before his report was finalised.
"What we need to do now that decision has been taken is make sure that those who are using them are using them appropriately," he said.
In response to concerns Tasers were rolled out to general duties officers before the Ombudsman's report was finalised, Mr Scipione said he had seen nogood reason to delay.
He promised a detailed response to the Ombudsman's report, and said no decision had been made on any further roll-out of the weapons.
The Ombudsman's report also canvassed the death of a man days after being Tasered by specialist NSW police, but found he had a number of existing medical problems and it was unclear whether the stun gun played any role in hisdeath.
Mr Scipione said he was convinced there was no link, but admitted he was unaware of the man's death until he read the report on Tuesday.
"That incident has been identified to us only through the course of this particular review," he said.
AAP kdevtldj=0A