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Stunning Debut
New weapon deployed to stun, subdue and safely restrain violent suspects
by Greg Johnson
Staff Writer

Cpl Andre Hnncock stood about 15
feel from hi.. supervisor. He was handed a
plastic knife by another member of the
police Imining unit, who told him to

charge
He didn't gel far.
Taking a few steps toward his intended
victim, Hancock was struck by two darts
fired from a M26 Advanced Taser handgun. The darts were connected to wires
that senlSO,OOO volts of electricity into the
officer. Hancock winced, SlOpped in his
tracks, and fell to the mal.
ulllerc's the initial feeling of pain and
then you freeze," Hancock said. "II's like
you hit a wall. The next thing you know,
you're dropping-you're going down,"
The dcmonstrntion Monday at the
Prince George's County Police Department Training and Education Division
showed off tlie capabilities of the new
weapon that police hope wilJ help them
make arrests of violent and uncooperntive
suspects safer for all
involved.
Capt. David C. Morris, head of the training division, said the department plans to

equip 50 sergeants in the patrol division
with a taser gun in the near future.
"It's just another less (than) lelhal 01'lion," Morris said "It reduces the risk of
injury to the suspect as well as the officers. "
Two of the taser guns were sent out on
the streets two weeks ago with units of
the Special Operations Division, though
neither have not yet been used in a rcallife situation, police officials said
Retired Sgt. Charles "Bucky" Mills,
head of judgmental training for the department, said the laser weapon has a
nearly 100 percent success rate and can
bring down even a very large person almost instantly. Each pull of the trigger
emits a five-second burst of electrical
power, but the sensation quickly passes
and recovery begins immediately.
"There is no long-lasting burning sensation, there is no long-lasting injury:'
Mills said.
Mills said a violent suspect can be
brought under control with a taser and
the suspect would not suffelO discomfort Ie
"i'l'l
associated with pepper spray or physical I
OrtgOohler!G8zel1e
I Charles -Bucky- Mills, director of Judgemental Training, Introduces the -Taser,- a
See Taser, page A-20 I weapon that shoots electricity Into suspects to stun and subdue them.

I'

watts of electricity that effectively
incapacitates a suspect by blocking brain signals telling the body
Contlnued from A·14
to move. Previous tasers lacked
this power.
injuries that can rcsull from hand"With the old (models), if you
to-hand struggles. No onc has were motivated enough, you
ever died from being hit with onc could walk right through it,"
of the new lasers, Mills said. and
MHis said.
the weapon can be used safely in
Officials with the department
the rain and against people with are aware, however, the use of
pacemakers.
ele<:tricily to subdue individuals
Morris said the department makes people nervous about the
has been considering using elec- potential for abuse.
tric lasers for a couple years. The
Greg Shaffer, chairman of the
current laser model was ap- Prince George's County chapter
proved by county police, Morris of the American Civil Liberties
said, because of the management
Union, said his organization has
devices built into the system.
been encouraged by the departA computer automntically
ment's interest in non-lethal techkeeps track of the date and time
nologies. But Shaffer said the use
of each trigger pull, Morris said,
of tasers should be limited and
and that information is stored in a
strictly monitored.
computer at the Internal Affairs
"We really feel that there needs
Division. Identification tags, conto be a strong fOCliS on the Iypes
taining the same information, are
of situations in which tasers are
ejected from the device each time
used and on the training the offiit is fired.
"If il didn't have that, we cers get before they go out on the
wouldn't be using it," Morris streets," Shaffer said.
Tasers should not be used in
said.
routine situations, Shaffer said,
In addition to features that prevent abuse of the weapon, Mills and county residents should be
said the new tasers provide 26 able to observe a demonstration
of how the deyice works.
"Given the track record of the
county," Shaffer said, "they have
to be very careful when something like this is introduced."
Mills said a departmental policy on use of the taser has been

TASER

drafted. Under tile pOliCY' tne
taser would only be authorized if
a susped is acting aggressively
toward an officer or another person. It would not be used against
people who are only refusing to
comply with police orders, he
said.
Cpt lim Estes, spokesman for
the department, said Police Chief
John Farrell is reviewing the policy and is expected to approve it
within days.
Morris said all officers would
receive four hours of training before they are authorized to carry
the weapon. A formal, written critique would document each use
of the taser, Morris said, and a citizens' oversight panel would
have full access to the critique if a
complaint related to the usc of a
taser is filed.
The department would also try
to accommodate any requests
made by civic groups for demonstrations of the device.
"We do want to sell it in a favorable light," Morris said. "We
don't want people to have the
perception that we're going Ollt
there looking to electrocute people."
Mills said the second generation of tasers are already being
used by about 1,000 departments
nationwide including Baltimore
County, Baltimore City and Montgomery
County's
special
weapons team.

TASERS
Prompage Cl
It was all a fake, except for the
Thser shot. The knife was a rubber
dagger. Officer Boseman is a police
computer forensic specialist who
volunteered to be an M-26 target
Sit Mills is director of judgment
enhancement training to help police
deal with emergencies that threaten to get physical and deadly.
Chief John S. Farrell ani\"ed yes-

terday just after the M-26 demonstration. He had come from the
funeral for Metro lransit Police
Officer Marlon Morales who was
shot in the face while on duty the
night of June 10.
"He was killed by some nincompoop out there," Chief Farrell said.
Nevertheless, ''The goal is to never
use deadly force," he said, and the
M-26 is a step toward that goal.
The M·26 Thser shoots out two
darts. or probes, attacbed to filaments 21 feet long. 'The instant the

probes strike the target, 26 watts
flow through to paralyze the subject
The paralysis from a 5-second pull
on the trigger lasts between 30 seconds and one minute. Officer Mills
said.
"It doesn't hurt," said Cpl. Tim

Estes, police public information officer, who volunteered to take a 26wan shot. "But you just can't do
anything."
The probes penetrate only one·
quarter inch into a subject's skin.
The electronic jolt works even if it

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DlDO,5Jli
JUN 21, 2001

MARYlAND

Tasers touted
as alternative
to deadly fire
By Arlo 'Nagner
'!'ME .,... _oGTlJ'I RIES

Waving a knife m"erhis head as be
dashed forward, John Boseman was
able to take only two steps before
Prince George's County Police Sgt.

Charles Bucky Mills pulled the trig_

" It doesn't hurt. But
you just can't do

anything. "
- Cpl. Tim Estes
gerofhis new Taser M-26 for a split
second.
The knife-wielder fell immediately, before reaching Sgt Mills. He
lay on the mat in Prince George's
police headquarters in Landover for
10 seconds, long enough for officers
to grab hold and restrain him.

"" TASERS, page C2

sticks into a layer of clothing, even
a ballistics vest, Sgt. Mills said.
."It will get 99 percent oCthe people down," Sgt. Mills said, then
demonstrated how it might be used
to stop blockades.
Five officers, arm-In-arm,
kneeled on the mat. A probe was
attached to the outer arm of the two
officers on the end. One touch ofthe
'laser trigger and they all fell on
their faces despite Sgt. Mills urging
to "fight it as long as you can."
The 1hser shock will not interfere
with pacemakers, but will stop drug
addicts who often seem to be
lIIUIluoe to pain, Sgt. Mil.ls said.
After two years of study, Prince
George's police bought IS of the
5370 Thsers. They have been ready
for use in the bolsters of patrol sergeants for two weeks. So far, not one
laser has been fired on duty. The SO
patrol sergeants transfer the electronic guns as they change shifts.
The Thsers also shoot out a confetti that lists the exact minute, hour
and day of the shot. The information
will be helpful as police prepare
reports of the incident, and if subsequent investigations of police
behavior are conducted.
In effect, the lasers are a last
resort. All 1,420 police employees
have been trained in the last year to
try to talk subjects into peaceful
surrender, Chief Farrell said.
From the first, officers have been
trained to ha..-e their firearms ready
to stop subjects who are intent on
violence, to protect innocent
bystanders and to protect themselves. Gradually, less violent
weapons are being used.
Prince George's is the SOOth
jurisdiction in the fUltion, including
the Baltimore dry pollce and fairfax County pol ;"t> and sheriff's
office, to employ tne Tasers. Sgt.
Mills said the Mon£8omery and Baltimore county police are evaluating
the Thser.
The Tasers will supplement,
maybe eventually replace, the pepperball shots that Prince Georg!"'s
police have used since Novem'Jer
when all other efforts fail to defuse
potentially violent situations. The
pepperballs, used IS times in eight
months, sting the flesh and eyes.
For the last eight months, Prince
George's police have also used the
WRAP Restraint 21 times on subjects, frequently suicid31, who physically resisted. The canvaslike cushions prevent subjects from kicking
and striking.
The effort to reduce the use of
deadly and lethal force is slowly
succeeding, Chief Farrell said. Violent police contact is "at a IS-year
low," he said.