I remember the expression ‘Coke Blinked’ when they launched New Coke in the era of the ‘Cola Wars’.
Well, yesterday it seems like Taser International blinked when they announced to the public that tasers should be aimed at the shoulders, legs or arms of a suspect instead of the chest area.
Original story from the CBC here.
After hearing about ‘excited delirium’ and other reviews from the world’s “scienticians”, we now have the company admitting to ‘a slight risk of cardiac arrest when the electrified darts’ hit suspects in the chest.
What’s fascinating about this story is the reality that many officers simply aren’t arming themselves with Taser any more. There are rumours of them leaving this weapon in their locker, raising another critical question: Should the public continue to pay for something that our security forces won’t use?