Florida Student Tasered - This makes me sick

[zombie@computer]

Our uni doesnt even have campus officers. what kind of war-torn uni's do you all go to?

[nub]

Typical americans over reacting to everything, the student and the police.

I find that offensive.

No offense to you, Blink, but I hate how you think a few Americans defines all of them. Sure our country is fucked up, and I know this, and hate it. But it has a lot to do with our stupid government. Just call them typical idiots in America or something. It's much more accurate.

But, Blink--as much as I respect you since you own and run Interlopers--please do not generalize all Americans as "Americans." Because there are plenty of good people in America. The country is just in a really shitty place right now. One of which they may not get out of.

But I see tons and tons of people describe the Americans based on what the government has done when we have not taken any part in their actions. I see it all over the place on games. The most common thing foreign people who hate America say is "American ass holes invading Iraq." Like I said, the government is to blame, not us.



"Re-railing thread"


I think the cop was way outta line.

[Blink]

Typical americans over reacting to everything, the student and the police.

I find that offensive.

Fair play, apologies. And by no means do I see America as the only country with problems. The UK is a shit heap in every way possible, take my word for it.

I do know however, that if 5 cops jumped a guy at a political conference here and tasered him on the floor their would be outrage. It just reminds of that whole gung-ho "I have a weapon, let's use it" attitude.

No need.

The speaker shouldn't have continued talking either, I found that very concerning.

But oh well, it shall all be forgotten soon I imagine.

[dragonfliet]

Rubbish, you do not need to tazer a suspect that is pinned down on the floor beneath 4-5 'police officers' (just college police were they not, not even real cops?)

He could of easily been cuffed there and then, or even better, just marched straight out of the room and held until he cooled down.

Typical americans over reacting to everything, the student and the police.

The problem is his resistance. He was just being marched out of the room until he cooled down but he started fighting, then they were going to cuff him (the people on top of him) but he kept fighting and they couldn't get the cuffs on him. Should they have just sat on him and tried to dislocate his shoulder? I think the use of the taser was perfectly appropriate.

~Jason

[1447]

I think, no matter how much he was fighting, that a taser is a bit extreme. If you got 5 cops holding you, there is no possible way you can harm anyone. In my opinion, there is no "non-lethal weapon".

But if you think that's bad, you should live in Norway. If you are an immigrant and get arrested by our lovely police, you get killed. No kidding, it have happened twice the past few years. Would be better if they just had been electroshocked...

[Blink]

Rubbish, you do not need to tazer a suspect that is pinned down on the floor beneath 4-5 'police officers' (just college police were they not, not even real cops?)

He could of easily been cuffed there and then, or even better, just marched straight out of the room and held until he cooled down.

Typical americans over reacting to everything, the student and the police.

The problem is his resistance. He was just being marched out of the room until he cooled down but he started fighting, then they were going to cuff him (the people on top of him) but he kept fighting and they couldn't get the cuffs on him. Should they have just sat on him and tried to dislocate his shoulder? I think the use of the taser was perfectly appropriate.

~Jason

I've seen bouncers in nightclubs literally pick people up and take them all the way out of a club, and that's only 3 of them, maybe 4. And the person is fighting in a drunk rage the whole time.

How many cops do they need to do the same to that guy? One of them was massive!

Still think a taser was over the top.

[Dionysos]

Seriously, everybody who thinks the use of a taser was justified should think again. They used the taser AFTER they had pinned him down with 5 guys. The only thing he did then was yelling, and thats not really hurting anyone and does not justify the use of a taser. The way the taser was used was more of a punishment for what he had done before, than to get him to cool down.

Also note that even tho he seems to be a dick, and should maybe have stopped talking he did not use violence on the security people. He tried to get away, yes, but he did not get violent. When you taser someone who is already on the ground its just pure sadism, everything else aside.

[Bema]

The taser was excessive - the student a muppet. He should have stopped talking after his first question. He would have been perfectly fine if he'd done that. Kerry appeared to be absolutly fine with answering that one. But no...he had to contine in an outbusrt similar to a tantrum. When you're arrested you shut the hell up and don't resist. It's safer for you both physically and legally. You make you're objections with a solicitor present.

And Blink is right - if anything like that happened in the UK the cop would probably be out of a job by now. Armed police officers can't even fire their guns without being suspended whilst the whole event is being investigated.

[ChopperDave]

Well, I wonder if the fact he got charged with resisting arrest the night before, and so the cops in the forum were more "on edge" so to speak when he started throwing his tantrum.

I do agree that the taser was a bit excessive, but you can't honestly expect to resist police and come out unscathed -- that's just stupid. You don't comply, you get hurt, that's just how it is. I think it'd be way smoother though if they just used chloroform. No pain, guy's out cold, you just pick him up and carry him out.

Typical americans over reacting to everything, the student and the police.

Yep. But the thing is, this is how Americans react, not "an" American. When we gather in groups, most of the time we all act like a bunch of shitheads. How else would our country function?

[Mango]

The tasering was excessive, man-power alone could've forcibly removed him. The real issue in my eyes, is that police are becoming more reliant on tasers if a suspect won't comply immediately, or as in this case, is already restrained. I've read numerous accounts of police brutality and (what I percieve) as excessive force. It seems that quite a few cops don't want to take the risk these days, and would rather let the taser do the work.

It seems that an atmosphere of police omnipotence has emerged in certain areas of America, and that the resultant attitudes and behaviours of the police more closely match that of a prison guard than a servant of the people. However, it's less about true omnipotence (for only the service itself can accomplish that, rather than an individual), and more about unnaccountability and the belief that life for policemen is similar to in a warzone: they face danger from many sides, and feel ironically that they're victimised by a rancorous society that must be held in check by any means necessary.

Because of this whole War on Terror, it is easy for policemen (especially on Homeland Defense) to see themselves as the 'last line of defense' and some policemen have a supreme egoic reliance upon the apparatus that is being constructed through the federalisation of the police.

In a time of war individual liberty (in the largest case) suffers - this has always been the case, and I presume that as a trend it is probably more likely than the reverse. With America fighting enemies who're a mixture of the physically real and phantoms, both domestic and foreign, do not expect positive change for freedom. In fact, if I were a betting man, I would back quite the opposite.

[Mango]

Wheelchair-Bound Woman Dies After Being Shocked With Taser 10 Times

Might as well throw this one in, since it just passed my eyes as I posted. Obviously a similar situation: she shouldn't have been doing what she did, therefore deserved what she got.

Ah what the hell: Retired NYPD officer says cops used Taser on his teenage son

[Dionysos]

I totally agree Mango, as usual, good analysis imo Even if the implications arent as pleasant.

[rb_lestr]

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=3ec_1190097717

Second video.

[dragonfliet]

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=3ec_1190097717

Second video.

Ahahaha. "They're going to try and kill me."

Guy is a lunatic.

Anyways, to address Mango's points:
1) the lady in the wheelchair.
It's unfortunate that the woman died and no, I wouldn't say she "deserved" to die, but I don't condemn the officers using the taser to disarm her. I don't expect them to try to go at a woman waving a knife at them, and I fully allow them to use what is appropriate to try and disarm the situation as safely as possible. An investigation into the one guy using it 9 times should certainly happen (seriously, 9 times?) but the use of the taser in the first place is not uncalled for.
2) The article with the teen being tasered is too brief to really discuss. Their family doesn't think it was needed, he wasn't cited with resisting, but no real description of events is given, so I couldn't say either way.

As to how it relates to this case: I still think the cops were completely justified using a taser on this guy. It was used once, for a short duration, and after lots of warning and the guy failed to comply. A taser being used in short amounts on a young man actively resisting is not going to be any more harmful to him than someone trying to force his arm behind him, which could very easily result in a dislocated shoulder, etc. I still believe that he brought it on himself and the officers acted correctly in handling the situation.

~Jason

[firedfns13]

But there really wasnt that big of a deal, sure he was loud and obnoxious, but he didnt even at least ask one question.
Its bullshit that your rights are revoked just because you walk into a federal building. If anything, your rights should be more so there than anything else, as thats basically what our government was erected to protect.
I dont think this obnoxious person needed to get tasered at all.