Tasers have killed at least 500 Americans

Ethan Miller / Getty Images / AFP

Ethan Miller / Getty Images / AFP

TAGS: Crime, Health, Accident, Gizmos, USA, Police

The Taser, the non-lethal law enforcement weapon that is meant to incapacitate criminals without causing great harm, has killed at least 500 people last decade. The real number of casualties might be even higher.

In the period between 2001 and early 2012, the stun-gun Taser devices used by law enforcement across America have claimed the lives of 500 people.

Amnesty International, the worldwide advocacy group that condemns torture and human rights violations, delivered the news this week with a report released Wednesday. In it, they reveal that the recent death of a Georgia man who died as a result of a Taser blast puts the body count brought on by the device at 500 in barely a decades’ time.

Despite being branded as a non-lethal alternative to firearms, hundreds of Americans have died from Taser blasts.

On Monday this week, law enforcement responded to a call of a drunk and disorderly person in Houston County, Georgia. When they arrived at a bar, the man in question, 43 year old Johnnie Kamahi Warren, was already on the ground. According to the local Dothan Eagle, a sheriff’s deputy still deployed blasts from a Taser gun on the man. Twice. He died moments later and now the officer who fired those shots is being investigated, all while on paid administrative leave.

Warren is number 500 on the list of Taser-related casualties, and Amnesty International says that number is too high to warrant a wake-up call this late in the game.

"Of the hundreds who have died following police use of Tasers in the United States, dozens and possibly scores of deaths can be traced to unnecessary force being used," Susan Lee, Americas program director at Amnesty International, writes in a press release. "This is unacceptable, and stricter guidelines for their use are now imperative."

Over the last decade, hundreds of others like Warren have died either directly or as a result of Taser blasts. Law enforcement continues to use the tools, however, and many feel that often that’s a decision that could be avoided.

In a 2008 report titled USA: Stun weapons in law enforcement, it was revealed that 90 percent of the Taser casualty cases studied involved a victim that was unarmed. Droves of Americans are left dead by Taser blasts every year and in many cases it is revealed that they posed little threat to the officers responsible.

One victim that was executed in 2009 by Taser was only 15 years old. Another person twice that age was victimized that same year by Tasers, but it took 19 blasts from trigger-happy cops to kill that man.

Another recent victim, Billy Walters III, was shot by Tasers in a separate Georgia incident. He was intoxicated when cops arrived, and although he repeatedly told them “I give up,” they acted by firing several blasts into the man.

Walters was hanging from a ledge during the assault. He fell and was later rendered paralyzed.

"Even if deaths directly from Taser shocks are relatively rare, adverse effects can happen very quickly, without warning, and be impossible to reverse," Amnesty International’s Lee adds. "Given this risk, such weapons should always be used with great caution, in situations where lesser alternatives are unavailable."

Even with this warning and countless others, however, Tasers continue to be a routine weapon used by law enforcement. After a 2008 incident that left a 17-year-old boy dead after a Taser attack, a federal court ruled that Taser International, the maker of the guns, did not provide adequate warning or instruction to the Charlotte Police Department responsible for the death, and that proper knowledge could have prevented the casualty from occurring.

A federal jury said that Taser International should compensate the family of the slain boy to the tune of $10 million. The manufacturer is planning on appealing that decision.

"I'm glad the verdict was in our favor, but we're definitely not celebrating," the mother of slain Darryl Wayne Turner told the Associated Press last year. "It cannot bring back my son's life. Hopefully, it will help others in the future dealing with Tasers."

A year later, however, the body count continues to rise.

Amnesty says that between the states of California, Florida and Texas, around 200 people have been killed by Tasers in the last decade in just those three states.The website Truth…Not Tasers put a figure of North American Taser-related deaths at 682 last year.

http://rt.com/usa/news/500-taser-law-enforcement-503/

Views: 39

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

tjdavis posted photos
14 hours ago
tjdavis posted a video

The UK Has Just Reached It's Boiling Point - Ricky Gervais

Ricky Gervais - Frustration still there a year on.Nicholaswatt reports what he has been told by a parliamentary veteran, who warns: "'My constituents feel th...
14 hours ago
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Terrorized on a 3 Day Weekend

 We had a holiday weekend coming up. My ex, whom I was sharing custody with was off for her…See More
17 hours ago
Sandy posted videos
yesterday
Sandy replied to Sandy's discussion Sick sci-fi sex fantasy written by Epstein's first benefactor people say inspired his twisted island... before author's SON ended up arresting him
"Interesting. I always thought he was still alive. Probably given some plastic surgery and a witness…"
yesterday
WIllow is now a member of 12160 Social Network
Thursday
Burbia commented on Less Prone's video
Thumbnail

Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans - Outrage AI Parody Song

"Props to Schottenstein on his foray out of the woods that was DEI and wokeness. "
Thursday
Burbia replied to Sandy's discussion Sick sci-fi sex fantasy written by Epstein's first benefactor people say inspired his twisted island... before author's SON ended up arresting him
"One of the theories floating around was Hilary Clinton's brother Hugh, was the one…"
Thursday
Sandy posted a discussion
Thursday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Wednesday
Less Prone favorited Sandy's video
Wednesday
Less Prone favorited tjdavis's video
Wednesday
Less Prone posted a video

Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans - Outrage AI Parody Song

AI Parody Music Video poking fun at the online hysteria surrounding Sydney Sweeney's American Eagle jeans campaign.✅ Blue jeans✅ Blonde panic✅ DEI gone wild✅...
Wednesday
tjdavis posted a video

How "Free" P*rn Sites Really Work (and Who Runs Them)

Excerpt from This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von #559 Laila MickelwaitFull Episode: https://youtu.be/9J7187j4PO4?si=2GUNymssKJpe6nEvFind Theo Von:Website: https://...
Wednesday
tjdavis posted a blog post
Wednesday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Tuesday
Doc Vega commented on Ragnarok's video
Thumbnail

Charles Manson Talks About The Global Elite

"I've had my account with YouTube terminated before over bullshit excuses because they…"
Tuesday
Doc Vega commented on Ragnarok's video
Thumbnail

Charles Manson Talks About The Global Elite

"Remember, though he makes his points, this man used the Beatles White Album as his own manifesto of…"
Tuesday
Sandy posted videos
Monday
Sandy posted a photo
Monday

© 2025   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted