The Use of Stun Weapons in Us Law Enforcement
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‘LESS THAN LETHAL’? THE USE OF STUN WEAPONS IN US LAW ENFORCEMENT Amnesty International is a global movement of 2.2 million people in more than 150 countries and territories who campaign to end grave abuses of human rights. Our vision is for every person to enjoy all the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. We are independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion – funded mainly by our membership and public donations. Amnesty International Publications First published in 2008 by Amnesty International Publications International Secretariat Peter Benenson House 1 Easton Street London WC1X 0DW United Kingdom www.amnesty.org © Amnesty International Publications 2008 Index: AMR 51/010/2008 Original language: English Printed by Amnesty International, International Secretariat, United Kingdom All rights reserved. This publication is copyright, but may be reproduced by any method without fee for advocacy, campaigning and teaching purposes, but not for resale. The copyright holders request that all such use be registered with them for impact assessment purposes. For copying in any other circumstances, or for re-use in other publications, or for translation or adaptation, prior written permission must be obtained from the publishers, and a fee may be payable. Cover photo: A police officer aims a Taser at protesters opposing the demolition of 4,500 public housing units, City Hall, New Orleans, 20 December 2007. © AP/PA Photo/Cheryl Gerber CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW...............................................................................1 2. BACKGROUND .........................................................................................................6 2 (I) CED PRODUCTS in us law enforcement ................................................................6 2 (ii) Sales of Tasers to the public ...............................................................................8 2 (iii) Pain and psychological impact of electro-shock weapons.......................................8 2 (iv) Concern about the low threshold for use of CEDs in US law enforcement ................9 2 (v) Review of US policies on CED use .....................................................................12 2 (vi) General safety concerns regarding CED use: recognized risk factors.....................13 2 (vii) People suffering from seizures .........................................................................15 2 (viii) Guidelines developed by police standard-setting bodies.....................................16 3. REVIEW OF DEATHS FOLLOWING USE OF CEDS ......................................................20 3 (i) Scope and methodology ....................................................................................20 3 (ii) Deaths in US police custody .............................................................................21 3 (iii) Profile of the death cases (circumstances, age, race and ethnicity) ......................22 3 (iv) Concerns about police use of force....................................................................23 3 (v) Coroners’ findings: excited delirium ...................................................................26 3 (vi) Medical examiners’ findings linking Taser shocks and deaths...............................27 3 (vii) Industry challenges to medical examiners’ findings............................................28 3 (viii) Medical concerns about adverse effects from Taser shocks ................................29 3 (ix) Product liabilty and/or wrongful death lawsuits filed in Taser-related cases............31 3 (x) Observations on autopsy reports reviewed by Amnesty International.......................32 4. OVERVIEW OF SAFETY CONCERNS ARISING FROM AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL’S REVIEW OF DEATH CASES ......................................................................................... 35 4 (i) Temporal link between Taser application and cardio-respiratory arrest .................. 35 4 (ii) Multiple or prolonged shock ............................................................................. 37 4 (iii) Heart disease................................................................................................. 40 4 (iv) Strikes to the chest......................................................................................... 41 4 (v) Impact of other restraints ................................................................................. 43 4 (vi) Deaths of individuals suffering from seizures or other medical conditions ............ 45 4 (vii) Deaths from secondary injuries........................................................................ 48 5. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.............................................................. 50 APPENDIX A: CASE STUDIES ..................................................................................... 56 1. Cases where coroners and medical examiners found Tasers caused or contributed to deaths (autopsy reports reviewed by Amnesty International)......................................... 56 2. Other cases where coroners and medical examiners are reported to have found Tasers caused or contributed to deaths................................................................................ 68 3. Cases where medical examiners mentioned Taser as a possible factor or noted a temporal link but exact role in death undetermined or could not be excluded ................ 72 APPENDIX B: SELECTED DATA ON USE OF CEDS BY US LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS ................................................................................................................................76 Deaths by state ....................................................................................................... 76 Counties with most deaths following use of CEDs BY US LAW ENFORCEMENT ............. 77 Law enforcement agencies with most deaths following the use of CEDs......................... 77 Deaths following use of CEDs on armed individuals..................................................... 78 Number of CEDs shocks........................................................................................... 78 APPENDIX C: MEDICAL AND SCIENTIFIC STUDIES ON CEDS........................................79 Human studies ........................................................................................................82 Lack of definitive safety testing of effects of CEDs on people with pacemakers, children, the elderly and pregnant women................................................................................83 Wake Forest study of injuries from Taser use in real-world situations.............................85 Justice Department study .........................................................................................86 APPENDIX D: DISTRIBUTION AND DEPLOYMENT OF TASER, STINGER AND OTHER PROJECTILE CEDS .....................................................................................................88 PREFACE Methodology This report contains the findings of a review by Amnesty International of deaths following CED use in the USA from June 2001 to 31 August 2008, some 334 cases. Amnesty International’s sources included a review of autopsy reports in 98 cases and other materials, including media reports, information from families of the deceased or their attorneys, reports of official investigations and other data. Amnesty International also reviewed policies and practices on CED use by US law enforcement agencies and guidelines issued by standard- setting bodies. Dr Sidsel Rogde, a professor of forensic pathology from Norway, co-reviewed autopsy reports for the organization and provided valuable insight and advice on aspects of forensic pathology. The Omega Research Foundation, which researches the global trade in military, security and police equipment and its impact on human rights, provided technical advice as well as information on transfers and deployment of CEDs to countries worldwide contained in Appendix D. Terminology In this document, use of the word Taser refers to one of more products of TASER International under the TASER® trademark. Other CED technology is also on the market, including products under the Stinger® trademark. The concerns documented in this report apply to all such weapons. This is a revised edition of the report launched on 16 December 2008. ‘LESS THAN LETHAL’? 1 THE USE OF STUN WEAPONS IN US LAW ENFORCEMENT 1. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW “This case may be the most unnecessary death I have ever had to investigate” Coroner Dr Randolf Williams, speaking about the case of 21-year-old Baron Pikes, an unarmed man who was shocked repeatedly while in police custody in Winnfield, Louisiana. The first six shocks were administered as he lay handcuffed on the ground and failed to get up to walk to a police car. He was shocked again in the squad car and died before reaching the station. Cause of death was given as “cardiac arrest following nine 50,000 volt electro-shock applications from a conductive electrical weapon”. Thousands of US law enforcement agencies use Tasers: dart-firing electro-shock projectile weapons which can also be used close-up as stun guns. Tasers are among a class of weapon commonly described as “conducted energy devices” (CEDs).1 They work by delivering a high voltage, low current, electrical charge designed to disrupt the central nervous system and cause uncontrolled muscle contractions, temporarily incapacitating