Tapsearch Com EditorRock out with your Taser out
September 21st 2007 00:23
National Review has a piece by a police officer defending the Taser cops.
He gets it all wrong, though:
Those aren't "the questions" at all. They're not even really questions. Of course the police had every right to stop him and to make him comply -- he was disrupting an event, the organizers requested the police intervene and his erratic behavior raised the possibility of Sen. Kerry being in danger.
The actual question is, once you've got someone face-down, surrounded by five or so cops and half-handcuffed, is it reasonable to use a Taser instead of manual force to get the other hand in the cuff?
With a 7-foot-3 weightlifter hopped up on PCP and trying to hurt the cops, absolutely. But by my viewing of the video, the answer in this case is no. He was physically resisting, but he was pulling away rather than violently striking the officers. I could have supported it if they'd Tased him earlier in the confrontation (the police report contends he pushed a couple of cops when they initially grabbed him), but it seems a little ridiculous at that point.
And this argument is at least feasible, but I don't really buy it:
If five cops can't prevent a not-particularly-buff college student from getting up with his hands free, we need better training. Though admittedly it is hard to bring someone under control without hurting him.
And as I've said every time I've posted on this, the kid had it coming. I enjoyed hearing him scream. But procedurally, I don't think the cops made the right decision.
He gets it all wrong, though:
Now the questions arise: Did the police officers at the University of Florida have a lawful reason for wanting Meyer to stop his diatribe and retake his seat or leave the auditorium? If so, did they use reasonable force in trying to make him comply with their demands?
Those aren't "the questions" at all. They're not even really questions. Of course the police had every right to stop him and to make him comply -- he was disrupting an event, the organizers requested the police intervene and his erratic behavior raised the possibility of Sen. Kerry being in danger.
The actual question is, once you've got someone face-down, surrounded by five or so cops and half-handcuffed, is it reasonable to use a Taser instead of manual force to get the other hand in the cuff?
With a 7-foot-3 weightlifter hopped up on PCP and trying to hurt the cops, absolutely. But by my viewing of the video, the answer in this case is no. He was physically resisting, but he was pulling away rather than violently striking the officers. I could have supported it if they'd Tased him earlier in the confrontation (the police report contends he pushed a couple of cops when they initially grabbed him), but it seems a little ridiculous at that point.
And this argument is at least feasible, but I don't really buy it:
If Meyer had been able to get to his feet and flail his arms has he had earlier, the dangling handcuff could have caused serious injury to the officers or any of the spectators nearby.
If five cops can't prevent a not-particularly-buff college student from getting up with his hands free, we need better training. Though admittedly it is hard to bring someone under control without hurting him.
And as I've said every time I've posted on this, the kid had it coming. I enjoyed hearing him scream. But procedurally, I don't think the cops made the right decision.
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