Tased While Black: Coalition to Control Tasers

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Columbia Missouri - Ban Tasers - Coalition to Control Tasers wants to get the issue on next year's ballot.

Columbia Missouri - According to connect mid missouri.com A Columbia group is trying to end the use of Tasers by police.

The Coalition to Control Tasers wants to get the issue on next year's ballot. They want to ban Columbia police officers from using Tasers by Jan. 1, 2011.

Tasers are "much more complexly dangerous weapons than people understand," said Catherine Parke, a Moberly professor and member of the Coalition to Control Tasers.

The group, which wants to take the Taser issue to the voters, says 500 people across the U.S. have been killed by Tasers.

Among those working toward a ban in Columbia is Athena Bashtel, the mother of Stanley Harlan. Harlan was killed in August 2008 when a Moberly police officer Tased him. More HERE

They should join us on December 4th to “Stop Taser Torture, blogging for Justice.” as we raise awareness and trigger a global discussion.

What We Think About Taser Abuse

Two differing views

TWB publisher says: Now that the maker of the TASER is advising police officers to avoid shooting suspects in the chest with the 50,000-volt weapon, saying that it could pose an extremely low risk of an "adverse cardiac event." There will probably be more Taser Torture victims being shot in the back and in the head."

- TWB Publisher Email me: TasedWhileBlack@gmail.com

The blue highlighted area in the adjacent target man represents the preferred target area. TASER has lowered the recommended point of aim from center of mass to lower-center of mass for front shots. (TASER Photo) TASER's New Training Targets More on TASER's new aiming guidelines

Factoid About Tasers

What's In A Name

The name stands for the Thomas A Swift Electric Rifle, an allusion to the weapon carried by the hero of early 20th century science fiction young adult novels.

Tasers fire two barbs (with quarter-inch fishhooks on the end) capable of producing 50,000-volt pulses into the targets' central nervous system.

The shock frazzles the body's electric signals, contracting muscles and incapacitating the target.

Each individual shock lasts up to five seconds, at the discretion of the shooter, allowing police to gain control of chaotic situations.

Aimed by a laser sight, the two probes have a range of 21 feet and are tethered to the gun by lightly insulated wire. Both need to strike skin or clothing to be effective.

Fabric two inches thick or more, though, can render the jolt ineffective.

Tasers can also be used without the probes, by placing the guns end directly onto a suspect's skin, and firing.

The weapons also have small microprocessors inside them that record every time an office shoots them, and how long the shocks lasted.

As the manufacturer has produced lighter and smaller pistol-shaped stun guns in recent years, police departments have purchased Tasers with increased frequency.

--H/T Bill D'Agostino

Our plan, to track all incidents of taser torture against black folks....

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Columbia Missouri - Ban Tasers - Coalition to Control Tasers wants to get the issue on next year's ballot.