Police come under fire for turning to Tasers

Director of Amnesty International UK Kate Allen warned that the stun guns are “not a modern truncheon” and said that only small numbers of officers should be trained in their use.

The Home Office is set to release figures today that, according to the Guardian, will show that the use of Tasers in England and Wales rose to around 7,250 deployments per year in 2010 and 2011, up from 3,500 in 2009.

Ms Allen said: “The increasing roll-out of Tasers across the UK is a grave concern. Amnesty International is worried about every bobby on the beat having a Taser on their belt – it’s not a modern truncheon.

“A Taser doesn’t just give a little tingle – it’s a potentially lethal 50,000-volt weapon and should not be spoken of as some sort of ‘natural progression’ of the standard policing kit.”

There have been a number of controversial cases involving use of the stun guns – including blind pensioner Colin Farmer who was hit with the weapon in Chorley when an officer mistook his white stick for a Samurai sword.

In April Andrew Pimlott died after being burned when he doused himself in flammable liquid and was then hit by a Taser outside his Plymouth home.

Solicitor Jules Carey, who represents a number of clients taking legal action over stun gun use, said the range and volume of weapons available to police has risen consistently since 1995, despite falling crime.

He said: “It is not merely the size of the police arsenals that are of concern to the public, it’s a general lack of confidence in police officers using the weapons appropriately, or having the judgment to assess what constitutes a proportionate response.

“Tasers are serious weapons and are not always ‘less-than-lethal’ as originally intended. They should never be used in routine policing for instance to make restraint easier.”