tazered teen? too much or no

[Cornhusk]

I wonder what the DIS'sers would say if it was THEIR kid getting tazed.

 

[Octoberbride03]

I wonder what the DIS'sers would say if it was THEIR kid getting tazed.

If it were mine I'd say turn up the voltage. Teach his A** a good lesson b4 I get a hold of him.

 

[pweyl36]

No question that the kid was stupid. But so was the cop. He could have injured or even killed the kid with the taser, and there were other ways to control the kid.

Well then he should of thought about. What a time out? 17mins sitting in his seat????

 

[Scurvy]

I wonder what the DIS'sers would say if it was THEIR kid getting tazed.

I certainly hope my kid would have enough sense not to go out onto the field and then make things worse by resisting arrest - especially once he's an adult, which they guy in the OP is. But if he was stupid enough to do what this guy did and the police had to resort to tasing him in order to regain control of the situation, then I'd fully support them.

 

[marcyinPA]

I wonder what the DIS'sers would say if it was THEIR kid getting tazed.

If my kid were that disrespectful to resist orders to STOP...then I would completely side with the law enforcement on this one.

Did anyone see the interview with the boy's father? He didn't seem at all phased by what his kid had done. He was smiling, and almost looked like he was laughing it off. Great example, Dad.

 

[Jennasis]

Since 2001 there have been 351 deaths. http://www.amnestyusa.org/us-human-rights/taser-abuse/page.do?id=1021202
I found another report that stated that the majority of those deaths where later attributed to other reasons but that the tasing may have played a part in it. Most of them had drugs in their system or may have had a health problem that let to their death.

351 deaths is 9 years? That's nothing.

I guess I'm in the minority. It was clear from the video that he was just happily romping around the field and no danger to anyone. I don't support him running on the field, but teenagers do stupid things . He should have been caught the old fashioned way, removed from the field and arrested. I think the taser was an excessive use of force.

The old fashioned way could have resulted in a far more injurious situation for both the kid and the officers. Broken bones, lacerations, etc.

 

[krnlmustrd]

For those of you that say you'd support the tazing of your own kid... what about if your kid had died from it? How would you feel then? Just desserts? To me, I'd be thinking that was an excessive use of a deadly weapon.

 

[Jennasis]

For those of you that say you'd support the tazing of your own kid... what about if your kid had died from it? How would you feel then? Just desserts? To me, I'd be thinking that was an excessive use of a deadly weapon.

Probably. But again, the tazing is not likely to cause death. But would you be pissed off if the officers tackled your kid and broke his arm?

Sorry...I don't buy the thought that Tasers are deadly weapons. So is a baseball or football. If you throw it just right and hit somebody just right..BAM...dead. It's happened before.

 

[Geoff_M]

I just don't think that somebody running on a baseball field is a serious enough offense to be tasered.

Straw man... he wasn't tasered for "running on the field", he was tasered for not heeding the order from the police to "halt" and/or resisting physical apprehension.

For those of you that say you'd support the tazing of your own kid... what about if your kid had died from it? How would you feel then? Just desserts? To me, I'd be thinking that was an excessive use of a deadly weapon.

I'd be no more upset then if he had collapsed and died while struggling with the police to get the cuffs on him.

 

[luvsJack]

In fact, according to this USA Today article(5.4.10), Tom Gamboa DOES disagree and thinks tasering the kid was a good idea.

http://content.usatoday.com/communi...es-taser-curbs-violence-on-baseball-diamond/1

These are not the only incidences where fans from the stands have attacked players. I've found 2 more from MLB alone.

Sounds to me like more needs to be done to prevent all these folks from getting on the field. The safety of players and coaches needs to be a top priority.

 

[pweyl36]

I don't agree that this kid or anybody else should have been tasered for running out on the field. Where is the line drawn for the seriousness of the offense?

If this kid had died, people would be lining up on the other side saying how outrageous this was.

Many people have died from being tasered.

And how do you know this? (about many people dieing)

 

[Octoberbride03]

For those of you that say you'd support the tazing of your own kid... what about if your kid had died from it? How would you feel then? Just desserts? To me, I'd be thinking that was an excessive use of a deadly weapon.

Oh Please

A taser is NOT a deadly weapon. Getting hit by a fastball pitch at MLB speed is more likely to kill you than the taser. Guaranteed its gonna hurt a hell of a lot more.

 

[luvsJack]

351 deaths is 9 years? That's nothing.

I am sure the families of those 351 people think a whole lot differently. Especially if their loved one was doing nothing more than running across a ball field.

The old fashioned way could have resulted in a far more injurious situation for both the kid and the officers. Broken bones, lacerations, etc.

This kid should have stopped when they asked him to. He made the choice not to and they had to make a choice in the force they used. He forced their hand, I guess.

It was a choice the cops made in stopping this young man, not something they decided he "deserved" or "needed". Just simply a choice that was made in the course of doing their job. All this call for the cops or anyone else to cause someone physical pain is just barbaric.

 

[pweyl36]

I wonder what the DIS'sers would say if it was THEIR kid getting tazed.

Me personal told my coworker if it was my child,I would of told him " thats what you get" My kids know better (I pray the do) I have raised my kids the old school way.

 

[Took]

I think this is a major point of misunderstanding by most people. In most police departments a Taser is primarily considered a "pain compliance" device and not a weapon. The "victim" normally doesn't have to exhibit threatening behavior in order for an officer to be authorized to "tase" someone. In the case of "Don't Tase Me Bro'!", the Florida use of force matrix authorized use of "pain compliance" techniques such as tasering if a person physically attempts to avoid apprehension. From the initial reports from Philly police officials, it would seem their policy is similar.

If you watch the whole video you'll also see the teenager is up and walking under his own power in less than a minute.

I've seen a lot of people critical of the tasering of the teenager point to news articles about people that have died after being tasered. In response, I've offered to post stories about people that collapsed and died while the police struggled to cuff them. The bottom line is that there always "risK" to both parties when someone resists arrest.

On another board someone posted a good local story about this concept. It was stated that in Jackson, WY a couple of years ago a drunk guy jumped out of the stands and streaked during a demolition derby. The event halted as police chased the guy around and then tasered him. The police defended their actions but caught a ton of heat from the local community and press. The next year at the event another guy did the same thing... but this time the cops kept their tasers in their holsters. After a while the police had the guy cornered when the guy ran full-bore into one of the officers. As a result, it blew out the knee of the of the officer that was bowled over by the drunk.

My mom used to work in a prison (as an accountant), but she said things similar to what you say about the use of tasers. They prevent more serious harm (in the long run) than they cause, especially to the officers. My impression is that most officers (especially those at baseball games) will not use "force" unless it's absolutely necessary or per their protocol. The security at the game was not a bunch of pistol-waving whackjobs--they were trying to contain a potentially threatening situation (they did not know the kid was "harmless") in the way least likely to cause permanent damage to the the perpetrator, the security, or the fans.

 

[Jennasis]

This kid should have stopped when they asked him to. He made the choice not to and they had to make a choice in the force they used. He forced their hand, I guess.

It was a choice the cops made in stopping this young man, not something they decided he "deserved" or "needed". Just simply a choice that was made in the course of doing their job. All this call for the cops or anyone else to cause someone physical pain is just barbaric.

I actually agree with you (both about how the families probably feel and about the chanting.)

However the police do not go around tazing willy nilly. Those who were tazed and survived or tazed and did not, brought it upon themselves by not being complicit. Perhaps their families anger would be better directed at the deceased for not complying with the officers.

That's like saying you're mad that your kid got shot by the cops while robbing a store. Whatever the offense, the officers gave the offender the opportunity to comply, they are always warned "comply or you WILL BE TAZED" and then they taze.

But I do agree with you the chanting was unnecessary and the guy probably did it to get a rise out of the crowd like that on the subsequent night.

Perhaps the ball parks should invest in an electric fence around the perimeter of the field like I have for my horses?

 

[eliza61]

For those of you that say you'd support the tazing of your own kid... what about if your kid had died from it? How would you feel then? Just desserts? To me, I'd be thinking that was an excessive use of a deadly weapon.

I guess I would feel the same way if he died from doing some thing equally as stupid like binge drinking at a keg party, or drag racing down I-95 and getting into an accident.

I would feel that he choose poorly and wished I could turn back time and have him make better decisions.

I would wonder why none of the millions of lessons I taught him about respecting law ESPECIALLY respecting police officers did not sink in and why he felt it was cool to fight authority.

What was that song by John couger Mellancamp? "I fight authority and authority always wins"

 

[DawnCt1]

They chased him around the field.

71% of Philadelphia, thinks the cops should have ramped up the voltage. We take our Phillies seriously folks.

Which is probably why sports fans shouldn't be in charge off a taser. That said, what did the police do before there were tasers? Tasers are referred to less than lethal force. They next step in the hierarchy of escalation of force is a GUN. There have been more than a hundred deaths as the result of a taser. Was his stupid, ridiculous prank worth a potential death sentence if no one was a risk? I don't think so. Should he be prosecuted for malicious trespass? Yes, throw the book at him. That's what the courts are for.

 

[DawnCt1]

And how do you know this? (about many people dieing)

Unlike Amnesty International, I would not recommend the suspension of tasers. I think under the right circumstances, they save lives. I recall an incidence locally of an agitated, mentally disabled teen who was about to cut her own throat. She was tased and it saved her life. However, I think that it needs to be used under the absolutely appropriate circumstances.

ser Abuse in the United States


Since June 2001, more than 351 individuals in the United States have died after being shocked by police Tasers. Most of those individuals were not carrying a weapon. Amnesty International is concerned that Tasers are being used as tools of routine force -- rather than as an alternative to firearms.

Medical studies so far on the effects of Tasers have either been limited in scope or unduly influenced by the weapons' primary manufacturer. No study has adequately examined the impact of Tasers on potentially at-risk individuals -- people who have medical conditions, take prescription medications, are mentally ill or are under the influence of narcotics. Rigorous, independent, impartial study of their use and effects is urgently needed to determine what role Tasers may have played in the 351 deaths and to determine appropriate guidelines for future Taser use.

Given the unresolved safety concerns, Amnesty International recommends that police departments either suspend the use of Tasers and stun guns pending further safety research or limit their use to situations where officers would otherwise be justified in resorting to firearms.

http://www.amnestyusa.org/us-human-rights/taser-abuse/page.do?id=1021202

 

[sunnyday123]

Which is probably why sports fans shouldn't be in charge off a taser. That said, what did the police do before there were tasers? Tasers are referred to less than lethal force. They next step in the hierarchy of escalation of force is a GUN. There have been more than a hundred deaths as the result of a taser. Was his stupid, ridiculous prank worth a potential death sentence if no one was a risk? I don't think so. Should he be prosecuted for malicious trespass? Yes, throw the book at him. That's what the courts are for.

I believe pepper spray was used. And those nifty things called billy clubs. There have been deaths associatied with both, and I'd much rather my kid get hit with a taser then beat on with a billy club by a really mad cop.

Again, it's all about consequences. Should they have postponed the game while he was running amok? There is always the "potential of a death threat" when you're doing something stupid.