Man dead after being stunned by Taser in Winnipeg

[sameasyou]

Not to worry, if the cops are asked what happened they won't remember the exact details.

[Donald]

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/07/ ... nipeg.html

Teen dies after being stunned by Winnipeg police Taser

Winnipeg police investigate the death of a man who had been stunned with a police Taser. (CBC)

A 17-year-old boy who died after Winnipeg police officers fired a stun gun at him Tuesday refused to put down a knife when ordered, police said Wednesday.

Two citizens flagged down police officers about 4 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, saying they were following someone they had seen stealing property from a vehicle in the 1100 block of Notre Dame Avenue.

Officers located a suspect in the land behind a house in the 800 block of William Avenue, near Arlington Street.

The man was "brandishing a knife," police said Wednesday, and refused to obey repeated commands to put the weapon down. One officer deployed his Taser.

The teen was in critical condition when he was admitted to hospital and died shortly after.

The cause of death has not yet been determined, police said. An autopsy is being conducted.

Larry Crisostomo, who lives near the area, told reporters he saw eight officers and a couple of paramedics working on a man on the ground.

"All I saw was a bunch of cop cars, ambulance, fire truck. They were all huddled around some guy trying to revive him, and they had to give him the paddles," said Crisostomo.

'An electronic control device was used on a male by one of our officers,' said Winnipeg police Const. Jacqueline Chaput. (CBC)Other witnesses said they saw someone being chased down the lane just before police arrived, and some reported he was wielding a knife.

Winnipeg police have been using Tasers since September 2006, but this is the first time there has been a death related to their use.

Police said they would release more information on the incident Wednesday afternoon.

[niss]

What kind of cops cant get a pocket knife away from a little kid?

[Dex]

Self defense or not, this is another example of many that tasers kill. Need to reassess how its used and train the officers.

[.300 Weatherby Mag]

Maybe the kid should of done what was asked of him.

[Dex]

Maybe the kid should of done what was asked of him.

He would be alive today had he listened to the police wouldn't he? A little obvious don't you think?

[joco]

How about a bit of pepper spray to disorient then take his knife?

How about admiting that when they signed up as cops they very well knew that it is a hard and dangerous job?

How about a US company trying to introduce the taser technology via a wrist band for airline pax?

FWIW I live in famous Caledonia. Don't get me started on cops...

[Dash-Ate]

[Sheila]

The people who lived in front of the house where this happened were not told anything by the Police. No wonder they said on tv, "we're scared."

The fact about the person had a pocket knife is not the issue. The issue is the taser can kill people, why are they being used so frequently? This other witness on the news said he was tasered several times in the past and he wasn't carrying a knife. Sounds like they are tasering even when they are not threatened.

[Donald]

If you want to even the playing field, you could buy your own taser:

http://store.womenonguard.com/-strse-Ta ... gories.bok

Available in pink, black, blue, leopard print, red, silver, and camouflage.

All for only $350-380, some even double as a contact stun gun.

[mcrit]

I'm sure the cops know that it is a dangerous job when they sign up, but the tacit understanting is that when they place themselves in danger it is to protect the victims of crime, not the criminals. For all those who said, "Why didn't the cops try and take his knife away without shooting him?", I would urge them to try and do just that sometime. If they are willing to wrestle a knife away from someone, then they should feel quite free to offer advice on the subject. If they aren't willing to try it, then they should head back to their desk job and kindly shut up.

[Changes in Latitudes]

I'm sure the cops know that it is a dangerous job when they sign up, but the tacit understanting is that when they place themselves in danger it is to protect the victims of crime, not the criminals. For all those who said, "Why didn't the cops try and take his knife away without shooting him?", I would urge them to try and do just that sometime. If they are willing to wrestle a knife away from someone, then they should feel quite free to offer advice on the subject. If they aren't willing to try it, then they should head back to their desk job and kindly shut up.

Exactly! If you are going to yield a weapon in the vicinity of law enforcement, you had better be prepared for some kind of force. Perhaps the taser and physiological effects on humans needs to be studied more closley...but...force is to be used in my opinion when things like this happen.

[Epsilon]

When I did my use-of-force training for a law enforcement agency, i was taught that a knife is considered a deadly weapon, therefore, when you are threatened seriously by someone wielding a knife, the use of deadly force is authorized.

Of course, the use non-deadly force (taser, stick, pepper spray) is always preferable and better for everyone, but if the attacker gets injured/killed in the process, he is responsible for wielding a knife in the first place.

[EastCoaster]

I'm liking the comment from cbc.ca... gotta love Paulbee.

"Here's a better headline:
Canadian Public Demands Answers from Mother Regarding Her Knife-Wielding Deliquent Son"



For god's sake.. since when did avcanada become populated with such morons... I have friends that are police officers and protect and serve every single day. Why in the hell should they have to take away a knife from some punk with nothing to lose???? They have kids to go home to at night!!! I am disgusted with those of you who feel that the job of a police officer should involve taking a knife away from someone that wants to hurt them. They have guns and batons and tasers for a very good reason. Do what the officer says, and you will not get tasered.

And for the record... If those of you who actually believe in this bullsh!t that police shouldn't have tasers and we don't need to listen to them, be very careful where your aviation career takes you or you could end up in jail for spitting bubblegum on a sidewalk... or even worse... you could end up in jail for disobeying a police officer.

I get it that not all police officers deserve respect as some are plain and simple a$$es and there has been some REALLY bad decision making in regards to using tasers in the past, but this case is every bit justified!

[niss]

For the record i was being sarcastic.

[mcrit]

Wasn't sure on that niss.

[LH]

Any idiot knows that whereever you find one bad or crooked cop, you can expect the rest to be exactly the same. It's just like pilots too. They have been found drunk on the flightdeck of airliners and you can bet that the vast majority of the rest in the pilot world are exactly the same, but they just haven't been cought yet, that's all. You don't have to be Albert Einstein to make that connection either.

[BoostedNihilist]

Any idiot knows that whereever you find one bad or crooked cop, you can expect the rest to be exactly the same. It's just like pilots too. They have been found drunk on the flightdeck of airliners and you can bet that the vast majority of the rest in the pilot world are exactly the same, but they just haven't been cought yet, that's all. You don't have to be Albert Einstein to make that connection either.

Heavy dose of sarcasm?

But seriously, one bad apple you know...

[joco]

.. since when did avcanada become populated with such morons...

Since Wed Nov 02, 2005

Why in the hell should they have to take away a knife from some punk with nothing to lose????

That's their job.... Pepper spray is used from distance and quite effective and it does NOT kill.

Do what the officer says, and you will not get tasered.

Have you seen the video from YVR? The officer asked for permission to use it before they entered the room. That's where the problem is. The officers use it too easily.

...that police shouldn't have tasers ...

...

You don't get it: it is about that the taser is NOT as safe as the cops believe. It is NOT as safe as TASER INC claims!

Your mileage may vary....

[North Shore]

Geez, poor little thief can't even break into cars and disobey the police these days without getting tased...what is the world coming to?

My sympathy, however, to his family.

[Nark]

That's their job.... Pepper spray is used from distance and quite effective and it does NOT kill.

Back up there partner. Pepper spray doesn't effect everyone the same. Also I can tell that you have never been pepper sprayed because you would not offer it as a solution to this problem.

If I am standing downwind from the suspect where do you think that pepper spray is going? Do you think I have the opportunity to reposition myself? What if I don't.

Let's say that the police didn't have a taser in this case. I'm willing to bet that their glocks would be drawn.



Let some asshole take a step towards me with a knife. "One shot. One Kill." isn't just a silly little saying we have in my parts.

[invertedattitude]

I've been against Tasers in many other cases, but if this kid was asked several times to put the knife down and did not comply, then to me it was perhaps justified, at least more so than in past cases.

[ronjeremy]

..

[tellyourkidstogetarealjob]

Agreed.

[joco]

Ok, some of you have good points, especially the one of the officer being downwind.... reminds me of trying to pi$$ against the wind... I was 5 (or so) when I discoverd that it does not work.

HOwever most comments are based on "poor officers, what else could they do?".

But we still have not addressed the core problem: Tasers are advertised as being harmless and yet they KILL. That is the problem!

Right after YVR there were 2 Ottawa force cops showing how harmless the tool is... one tasered the other on camera. I wonder what if it would have gone wrong on camera...?