Taser use by police on the rise nationwide

The use of stun guns by police officers in England and Wales more than doubled over two years.

Officers across the country deployed the weapons, where electrical current is used to disable suspects, 7,877 times in 2011 compared with 6.649 in 2010 and 3,128 in 2009, according to Home Office figures released yesterday.

But West Yorkshire Police says the number of deployments by its officers has dropped by nearly 40 per cent since then, from 565 incidents in 2011 to 341 in 2012.

In only a fifth of these instances were the tasers actually fired, as the majority saw the weapons merely raised or a red laser dot pointed at the target as a warning.

Tasers have become widely used by police across the country in recent years. Until 2007, only specially-trained firearms officers were authorised to carry the weapons but more officers were allowed to use them following a 12-month trial in ten forces.

West Yorkshire Police’s assistant chief constable Mark Milsom said the force took the responsibility “extremely seriously” and that “it is scrutinised at every level”.

He added: “Senior officers review the circumstances following every use of Taser to identify any issues or lessons to be learned.”

Of the four Yorkshire forces, only South Yorkshire Police used Tasers on fewer occasions in the second half of 2011 than the same six months in 2010.

The number of Taser deployments by the force has dropped from 127 in 2010 to 92 in 2011 and 82 last year.

According to the Home Office figures, Humberside Police used Tasers 595 times in 2011 compared with 565 in West Yorkshire.

The force’s Chief Superintendent Steven Graham said officers were using the device more often because it is “safer and more appropriate in many circumstances than a baton or firearm”.

A Taser was used in North Yorkshire on 181 occasions in the 18 months up to June 2013, but only actually fired 39 times.