Police stun gun can kill, secret report says (Victoria Aus)

[struggle4progress]

By Gary Hughes and Fergus Shiel
April 18, 2005

A secret Victoria Police report on the safety of controversial Taser stun guns warns they pose "immediate risks and potentially fatal dangers" to people on whom they are used.

Tasers, which send pulses of up to 50,000 volts into a person through wires connected to electrical barbs fired from the gun, were approved for use by police in November. Victoria Police and the State Government have insisted the new weapons are safe, but have refused to make public the confidential analysis, prepared by the Alfred Hospital.

But the two-part report has mysteriously turned up in the hands of the US company that makes the stun guns, Taser International, which has published it, among other research, on its website.

The report includes an assessment of the safety of Tasers by senior Alfred hospital cardiologist Arch Broughton, who says anyone on whom Tasers are used should be taken to a hospital emergency department and kept under observation for at least four hours. <snip>

http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Police-stun-gun-can-kill-secret-report-says/2005/04/17/1113676645588.html?oneclick=true

[Mnemosyne]

1. A great promotional ad...

McTaser, They're loven' it! Over a 100 killed since 2001... and counting!

Thanks struggle4.