Taser vs. gun mix-ups draw fresh scrutiny in wake of Minnesota killing By Tim Reid and Alexandra Ulmer
FILE PHOTO: An X26P Taser gun is shown on display at the Taser booth during the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in San Diego
(Reuters) – The company that manufactures Tasers says it has implemented design features and training recommendations to reduce the chances that law enforcement officers would confuse the electroshock weapon for a handgun when using force.
But after a police officer shot and killed a Black man in Minnesota on Sunday when, according to authorities, she mistakenly drew her gun instead of her Taser, experts said it is clear that problems persist with Taser training and the weapon’s design.
When Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, police officer Kim Potter allegedly mistook her service weapon for a stun gun and fatally shot an unarmed Black motorist Sunday, it was at least the 16th such “weapons confusion” incident in the United States since 2001.
And the victim, Daunte Wright, was at least the fourth person to have died as a result, according to data compiled by the website FatalEncounters.org and University of Colorado professor Paul Taylor, who tracks such cases.
These types of incidents are rare, experts say, although no government agency tracks the use of Taser-like devices nationwide so it’s impossible to say with certainty how many times it has occurred.
When Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, police officer Kim Potter allegedly mistook her service weapon for a stun gun and fatally shot an unarmed Black motorist Sunday, it was at least the 16th such “weapons confusion” incident in the United States since 2001.
And the victim, Daunte Wright, was at least the fourth person to have died as a result, according to data compiled by the website FatalEncounters.org and a University of Colorado professor who tracks such cases.
These types of incidents are rare, experts say, although no government agency tracks the use of Taser-like devices nationwide so it’s impossible to say with certainty how many times it has occurred.
Note
: Congress recently voted on a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA, P.L.117-2). It includes stimulus checks for individuals, expanded unemployment benefits, and funding for vaccines, state and local governments, schools and child care. The ARPA marks a huge win for the Biden administration during its first 50 days in office.
Before the ink is dry, the administration has already pivoted to the second phase of the Biden agenda: Build Back Better. While ARPA was largely a relief bill, the next phase will be about rebuilding the economy, starting with a
mult
itrillion-dollar
plan that includes infrastructure, green energy and incentives to bolster domestic manufacturing. It will also build upon the individual relief provided in the first bill and seek to make those provisions permanent and will likely be paid for by corporate tax rate increases, a repeal of oil and gas tax breaks and increases in taxes on the wealthy.
14 April 2021, 8:38 am EDT By
Check Point released an alarming report claiming that four out of ten smartphones are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. The security firm s Mobile Security Report 2021 has revealed some alarming details about the previous online attacks and other malicious hacking activities this 2021.
(Photo : Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
A demonstrator wears a mask as he tries to use his cell phone during a protest inside the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Civic Center station on August 15, 2011 in San Francisco, California. The hacker group Anonymous staged a demonstration at a BART station this evening after BART officials turned off cell phne service in its stations last week during a disruptive protest following a fatal shooting of a man by BART police.