Police brutality is one of the leading causes of death today and one of the issues that have been debated for a long time. Primarily, this brutality includes the use of excessive force to apprehend or, in other instances, to control subjects who, in some cases are criminals and in others mistaken identities. There has been an increasing need to manage the issue of brutality to ensure that there is a less-lethal application of weapons to avoid police caused deaths and also to ensure that there is a reduction in aggression from the public towards the police departments all over the country. In that sense, most quarters have severally suggested the use of conducted energy weapons, most times referred to as Tasers, to subdue and neutralize subjects (Reyes, 2017). There is a need, therefore, to address the use of these energy weapons and to assess their various effects, both positive and negative, with a look into their effectiveness in security maintenance.
Safety and Security
Mostly, there has been a worrying trend of accountability and professionalism within the security forces not only in America but also across the world. This concern has been raised by the emergence of various cases of unruliness among police officers in the virtual city. The cases have been ranging from police brutality, arbitrary arrests as well as deaths emanating from the brutality meted by the police towards the members of the public. For instance, there were 996 cases of fatal police shootings in 2018 in the USA alone, which increased to 1004 cases in the following year. In the year 2020, there have been reports of 429 civilian deaths resulting from police shootings ( Stevenson & Drummond-Smith, 2020 ). It is essential to consider that there are also cases where there is the use of buttons as well as other crude measures to apprehend subjects that have raised concerns about the safety of civilians.
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While it is the police officers' responsibility to protect and serve civilians, the police have been notably seen to cause harm in most instances. In line with such acts, there have been increasing worries of the police brutality taking a discriminatory trend by appearing to cause divisions among people of different races, thus evoking aggression and violence among these groups. The number of black people for instance, who were shot dead in 2020 by the police, is 88 out of the 429 fatal incidences. The rate of the black civilian shooting stands at 30 people in every one million group of the entire population, which is a significant number ( Stevenson & Drummond-Smith, 2020 ). This fact shows that the use of guns and specifically, live bullets to manage crime or police situations is wanting and needs review.
On the other hand, while it is vital to protect the civilians from the police and brutality, it is crucial to protect the police from criminals. Between 1980 and 2014, here was a yearly average of 64 officers who were feloniously killed while in the line of duty (Reyes, 2017). These acts against law enforcers in different cities and states in America have raised the critical discussion of the need and right of the law enforcers to protect themselves and where the limit lies. As a result of this discussion, there have been considerations of using situation-specific weapons, and that includes the use of conducted energy weapons to control criminals as well as attackers. In the global state of information survey of 2019 on these less than lethal weapons, 81% of the responding officers claimed the need to increase access to the weapons indicating positive response towards the use of the weapons among the law enforcers ( Stevenson & Drummond-Smith, 2020 ). However, the virtual police, despite the need to introduce these weapons, should address the various risks or benefits of making an informed decision on the use of restraint against usage.
The Positive Effects of the CEW
Primarily, the CEWs are considered to be usable in both long and short ranges, which suggests that the subject can be neutralized from any distance. Most officers prefer weapons that can be used in any range as situations on the ground differ in terms of aggression shown by the attacker. Being usable from a long-range indicates that the officers will be able to stop criminals who are on the move or who require to be neutralized before they harm their victims or even to themselves in cases where the criminals want to shoot themselves to escape justice. The CEWs like the Tasers or the stun gun could, therefore, act as an alternative to the arms, which can neutralize at whatever range. Considering that the CEW can be used 15 feet away, it is more effective than the use of a button, which requires one to be very close ( Gramling, 2017 ). It is also more effective and safer for an officer as compared to apprehending a violent subject. This fact is especially in cases where the gun or the button cannot be used. For instance, in the presence of a child or in crowds, which could disperse the group making it impossible to apprehend the subject.
The weapon is less painful as compared to the gun or the button and is likely to cause fewer injuries. The button in cases where officers have used it is possible to create the breakage of bones. The use of guns is likely to cause a lot of pain as it penetrates the body and lodges inside, causing wounds that take long to heal. For example, some individuals have had to live with bullets lodged in their bodies as it is a health risk to remove them. In contrast, other victims have become immobile after being shot in critical musculoskeletal areas. The Tasers or stun guns only lodge in the first layers of the body below the skin with the aim of reaching the nerves causing an impact that only lasts for 15 minutes (Reyes, 2017). Subjects can recover from the slight electrocution without medical intervention.
The use of CEWs does not require a lot of resources in training. This fact indicates that officers can be trained on the use of these weapons without taking much time. The guns are also easier to train with, as they do not need ample open space. It is essential to consider that the CEW produces little or no sounds, which suggests that they are friendlier to the user and the individuals the environment ( Gramling, 2017 ). The weapons are also less expensive than the guns as there is no use of bullets.
Disadvantages of CEW
Essentially, there is a need to consider that the use of Tasers or stun guns is likely to cause unforeseeable harm and even death. More than 1000 deaths have been reported in cases where subjects were stunned. In these cases, the use of Tasers and stun guns were considered the number one contributing factor. The use of these weapons could be fatal if shot at the chest. These suggest the need for training in the right places to lodge the Tasers like the stomach and neck ( Stevenson & Drummond-Smith, 2020 ). These weapons are harmful to the health of the subjects as they are likely to cause cardiac arrests resulting from the shock. In other cases, the CEWs have registered failure while in use, causing the inability to apprehend the target. In most of these cases, the officers have had to use guns, which has, in many instances, caused fatalities.
Further, the use of these weapons could cause degeneration of brutality by causing excessive use even in instances where their use is unwarranted. For example, nine out of ten subjects who died as a result of the use of Tasers were unarmed, and in other cases, they were found to have had neurological and mental illnesses ( Childers et al., 2020 ). Hence, there is an indiscriminative use, while officers are trained to exercise restraint in some cases that do not require force. The weapons in these instances were misused.
In conclusion, the use of conducted energy weapons is critical as it seeks to improve safety in the police department. Also, the virtual police department needs to assess both positive and negative effects of the use of these weapons to make an informed decision. One of the ways to control brutality and enhance the safety of both civilians and officers is to introduce the CEW, also referred to as stun guns or Tasers. However, there will be a need to put measures such as training and reinforcement of ethics and regulation of use to control cases of misuse or failure. These measures will ensure that the law enforcers are prepared to deal with unique cases such as apprehending a criminal in a group.
References
Childers, R., Chan, T., & Vilke, G. (2020). TASER Conducted Electrical Weapons. In Clinical Forensic Medicine . Springer, Cham. (pp. 279-312).
Gramling, J. (2017). Protecting the protectors: Violence-related injuries to hospital security personnel and the use of conducted electrical weapons. Routledge.
Reyes, B. A. (2017). The Impact of Conducted Energy Device Policies on Citizen Complaints against the Police. Routledge.
Stevenson, R., & Drummond-Smith, I. (2020). Medical implications of Conducted Energy Devices in law enforcement. Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine , 101948.
