Police Tasers To Have Cameras
Devices Return To Metro Police Force After Fatal Incident
POSTED: 4:54 pm CDT August 19,
2008
UPDATED: 2:31 pm CDT August 20,
2008
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Metro police will begin to use a modified Taser that will also have a cameras.
Video: New Taser Equipped With Cams, MicsThe idea is to give supervisors and others a closer look at what local police officers are doing in the field when they pull the trigger on the devices.The Taser produces 50,000 volts at the source and delivers 1,200 into each target.Officers will start carrying the weapons on Tuesday night when they hit the streets. Each Taser is equipped with a camera lens in the pistol grip and a microphone to record everything that happens."It helps the officer in claims he did the right thing. It shows on camera what the suspect was actually doing, so it helps us out in use of force issues. If somebody says, 'Hey, the officer did this,' We can look at the camera and go, 'Well, the camera says he did this,'" said Sgt. Bob Allen, who runs Metro's Taser training.A fatal confrontation between Metro police that involved using Tasers against a man named Patrick Lee in the parking lot of Mercy Lounge was a major factor in the department taking Tasers out of the hands of officers several years ago."If we strike people with the baton, strike them with our hands or use pepper spray on them because they're not complying with being arrested, this hurts them a lot less than anything we've ever used before," said Allen.Police will have video and audio proof to show if the Taser is being used properly. The Metro Police Department has 200 camera Tasers. As many as 120 could be on the streets at any given time. Popular Slideshows On WSMV.com: Slideshow: Red-Hot Redheaded Celebrity Women Slideshow: Celebrities Commit Fashion Faux Pas Slideshow: Great Weather Photos
Video: New Taser Equipped With Cams, MicsThe idea is to give supervisors and others a closer look at what local police officers are doing in the field when they pull the trigger on the devices.The Taser produces 50,000 volts at the source and delivers 1,200 into each target.Officers will start carrying the weapons on Tuesday night when they hit the streets. Each Taser is equipped with a camera lens in the pistol grip and a microphone to record everything that happens."It helps the officer in claims he did the right thing. It shows on camera what the suspect was actually doing, so it helps us out in use of force issues. If somebody says, 'Hey, the officer did this,' We can look at the camera and go, 'Well, the camera says he did this,'" said Sgt. Bob Allen, who runs Metro's Taser training.A fatal confrontation between Metro police that involved using Tasers against a man named Patrick Lee in the parking lot of Mercy Lounge was a major factor in the department taking Tasers out of the hands of officers several years ago."If we strike people with the baton, strike them with our hands or use pepper spray on them because they're not complying with being arrested, this hurts them a lot less than anything we've ever used before," said Allen.Police will have video and audio proof to show if the Taser is being used properly. The Metro Police Department has 200 camera Tasers. As many as 120 could be on the streets at any given time. Popular Slideshows On WSMV.com: Slideshow: Red-Hot Redheaded Celebrity Women Slideshow: Celebrities Commit Fashion Faux Pas Slideshow: Great Weather PhotosCopyright 2009 by WSMV.com. All rights reserved.
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