More South Cumbrian cops to use tasers
Last updated at 13:24, Thursday, 05 November 2009
SPECIALLY trained police officers are to be issued with Tasers as part of a 24-hour response team throughout South Cumbria from early next month.
Police hope the devices – which use an electrical current to temporarily disable a suspect –– will help fight violent crime and reduce injuries to police officers and members of the public.
Barrow has been singled out as a key area for an increase of Taser response officers within the county.
Speaking at Tuesday night’s Police Question Time meeting at Forum 28 in Barrow, Inspector Paul Telford, of Cumbria Constabulary Firearms Operations Unit, announced the use of Tasers as a response option will come into effect in Barrow on December 10.
Insp Telford, who gave a demonstration of the Taser at the meeting, said: “If officers have to protect themselves, others or a subject, against the use of violence or threat of violence of such severity they need to use force, the Taser offers a much less harmful response option than a baton strike.
“As a result of 12 months’ worth of Taser outside firearms, we looked at where it had been authorised, we looked at where there was demand, where we were failing to get Taser resources to in time.
“Those areas were where there was the greatest prevalence of violent incidents and that was Carlisle, Workington, Whitehaven and Barrow. We are bolstering our Taser capability in Barrow by giving it to officers, who aren’t firearms officers, who are routinely patrolling in Barrow so they’re available much sooner when there is an incident.”
“It has to be authorised for deployment, every incident, authority is requested from the force inspector who is basically a firearms silver commander. The criteria is, where he has reason to suppose that the officers might have to protect themselves or others at incidents of violence that are so severe they need force.”
Inspector Geoff Steele, of Barrow police, said: “We have about half a dozen staff in the area that use them, the intention over time is to issue them to more people.
“We have an approach to violent incidents where our major aim is to protect the public and protect the individuals involved.
“We want to use as little force as is necessary, and we want to be proportionate every time. Before we get to the stage of using things like PAVA sprays and Tasers, we would still try to solve problems by talking to people and using all the traditional methods. We only use these tools where we really have to, to protect the public. They are tools used to reduce the injuries that can be caused.
“When all we had were truncheons, having physical fights with people could result in lots of injuries, when you are struggling with somebody in difficult situations it could be easy for people to be injured.”
On Tasers, Inspector Steele added: “We only use it when it is appropriate and when all other options are not appropriate and we are using them to reduce the amount of injuries or harm caused, not to increase them. The officers that used them are all highly trained.”
When asked if plans to increase the use of Tasers were a response to an increase in violent crime in Barrow, he said: “I don’t think the figures bear that out. We have had a slight increase in violent crime but that is against a back drop of a decrease in the last few years. We should be able to reduce the amount of violence involved by using these tools. If people respond to verbal instructions then that is what we will use.”
First published at 13:11, Thursday, 05 November 2009
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk
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