Taser weapon - Murder Charge

[#1]

A serving police officer, has been charged with Murder, having used his taser.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/11/07/dalian-atkinson-taser-death-serving-police-officer-charg...

Apparently, the person it was used against, suffered cardiac arrest... and died in hospital later..

Sounds a bit "far fetched" to me... the charge, I`m talking about.... if the guy had "survived" would he ( tthe police officer ) been charged with "assault with a deadly weapon"   ? ? ?    or  just  "assault"  , but I don`t think I have heard of any police office who has been trained, and used, a taser, being charged with any of these "crimes" before... 

Certainly, if the charge is "proceeded with"... and later on is "proved"... then I think there will be an outcry, in support of the police using the "weapon"...  but also an outcry from those who have "suffered" the "indignity" of being tasered, bringing their own charges of assault, etc.

however... this does bring in to question, the "power" of these taser things... and maybe they should be "turned down a couple of notches.."...50,000 volts is a heck of a lot of volts to sting someone with... I should thin that 10, 000 would be enough for most situations... but even that, "could" potentially, set someone off into "cardiac arrest"...

Murder  ?  hmm.... not so sure......

[#2]

So has he been charged with err, being charged. 😂

Doubtful he will get much support from the brass hats and probably only sympathy from his mates which is why so many in the force (so I have been told) are reluctant to be armed with the real thing.

Not knowing the full story here but I suspect he was well justified in using it. 

P.S.. Just read the link.... so no more comments from me on this. 😯

[#3]

So the Police are issued with a weapon of sorts ( the police in most countries carry guns )  on the understanding that if he uses it he may be charged with murder...   A taser would not be my weapon of choice as you have to get quite close to dangerous person to use it,  and if they are wearing too many layers of clothing it may not work.  This is where the Police on the sharp end need to set out their case and get some backup from the backroom top brass who are now politicians who are  insulated from everyday Policing which can include being called to a violent offender in the wee small hours when the top brass are all tucked up in their cosy beds.. 

If the top brass do not back this officer up then Police morale ( which is rock bottom anyway after the way the courts continue to loose them down ) will go down even more...  I know someone will pop up and call me all sorts of xenophobic racist bigots,  but I do wonder how this would have panned out if the 'victim' had been white and not had such a high profile.  We need to start a movement called 'white lives matter'....

[#4]

Not knowing all the facts in this case it can be difficult to comment but the charge does see odd.

If he used the Taser in accordance with his training why has he even been charged ? There is clearly something else going on here.

Whilst the police must be held to account they must be getting fed up with the constant criticism they get when dealing with difficult situations.

It similar to the climate change protests....the police arrest protesters as they are causing an obstruction then told by the courts that's illegal and those arrested might be able to claim compensation.

The problem could easily be solved if every single policeman in the country took 2 weeks holiday at the same time, leaving the top brass to deal with any problems.

I guarantee that would lead to real changes !

😁

[#5]

Makes you wonder what the point of being armed is if they end up being charged for "crimes" when dealing with criminals using such things... 🤔

Are the cops supposed to look up a crim's medical history before deciding whether or not to safely subdue them with a taser while they're probably being attacked in the process or the person involved refuses to calm down and be arrested in peace?

[#6]

Maybe if the policeman had a degree the outcome would have been different, he could have debated his way out of trouble and not needed to use his taser to subdue a strong and seemingly healthy guy who wanted to do him and others harm..

[#7]

Quote from the linked article in the OP;

"This decision was made following a careful review of all the evidence presented to us by the Independent Office for Police Conduct following an investigation."

We don't know the circumstances but the CPS must think either there is evidence of a crime to prosecute, or not doing so may be construed as a 'cover-up'.

IME some coppers can be confrontational in their attitude or have a different tolerance threshold, so maybe this is an example of that, which may have lead to the cop being 'trigger-happy'.