Quote:
Originally Posted by Tmall
Why not just beat them unconscious with a club? Or burn them with a torch until they give up?
You could hold their head under water until they stop struggling. There are so many ways to possibly be killed, why use a silly taser to potentially kill an innocent until proven guilty man?
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This version of the technology gives greater range and potential reliability, so it could well be used as a substitute for a firearm. That means a small chance of killing someone with a "less lethal" alternative, rather than filling full of lead.
The Taser has become a tool for generating compliance, rather than subduing a suspect, in no small part because it is of limited usefulness in many situations. Its extremely short range and tethering to the launch mechanism mean that it must be used in situations when physical force may actually be the preferred method for subdual.
This could be used in a situation where the suspect has a weapon, in which it would be ill advised to attempt either a physical take-down or to use a Taser. I can think of several incidents in Toronto over the last few years, in which this sort of thing would have been ideal. There was a guy who was shot for rushing police with a kitchen knife, in a narrow apartment building corridor. This device could well have saved his life.