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NYPD Orders Cops Not to Aim Tasers At Chest
By
John Del Signore
Published Oct 18, 2009
Modified Oct 19, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Oct 18, 2009
Modified Oct 19, 2009
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Hey, whaddaya know—shooting 5,000 volts of electricity at somebody's chest could adversely affect the heart! Manufacturer Taser International Inc. has issued a warning about Taser chest-shots, suggesting that law enforcement officers aim their Tasers at perpetrators' backs, arms, or abdomens. In response to the warning, the NYPD brass has formally ordered officers not to shoot Tasers at suspects' chests.
NYPD spokesman Paul Browne tells the Daily News, "Until the NYPD can more fully evaluate the implications of the manufacturer's newly advanced recommendation, we are temporarily adopting Taser International's suggestion." Last year an NYPD officer fired his Taser at an emotionally disturbed man waving a long florescent light bulb atop a first story awning; the man fell to his death and the officer who gave the order to Tase subsequently committed suicide.
A source also tells the News that Taser International did not actually notify the NYPD about the warning. The company has been vigorously defending their product despite repeated deaths and controversy, and some communities have banned officers from using them entirely. Earlier this month, a Florida teenager died after being Tased and falling off bicycle, and at Coachella in April, a naked wizard was Tased multiple times.
Tagged
ban
chest
heart
nyc
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police
suicide
taser
warning
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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