A shock to the system

Have you ever been Tasered?
Me, neither.
However, this hugh voltage force of restraint has almost become a common phrase in today's society and has sent shock waves even throughout police departments in North America.
Before going any further, it's best to find just what are Tasers.
According to a CBC News Online report, they are hand-held weapons that deliver a jolt of electricity -- up to 50,000 volts -- from up to 6.5 metres away with the shot being able to penetrate up to five centimetres of clothing. It stuns the target by causing an uncontrollable contraction of the muscle tissue. He/she is immobilized and falls to the ground --regardless of pain tolerance or mental focus.
In the same report this is what I learned: TASER stands for Thomas A. Swift Electric Rifle, from the Tom Swift series of children's novels written in the early 20th century, including Tom Swift and his Electric Rifle. The real stars of the series of science-fiction novels were potential advances in technology.
Who makes them?
The CBC report stated Arizona-based Taser International makes virtually all of the "stun guns" being used today. The company claims 5,400 law enforcement department use its immobilizers and more than 500 law enforcement agencies equip all of their patrol officers with Tasers.
In continuing, there are two main types of stun guns made by Taser: M26-- a high-powered weapon marketed to police forces to stop "highly combative individuals" and X26 -- a less-powerful model introduced in 2003. The company is developing a version of this weapon that will be marketed to civilians.
Those are just the facts, folks.
However, there have been some Taser-caused deaths, even here in British Columbia, which we'll outline in future columns.
One of the most significant was the death of Gurmit Sandhu, an autobody shop owner and father of four from Surrey.
According to the news report, Sandhu had been having an argument with his wife and he started hallucinating and yelling about snakes.
Apparently, the police, who were called to the scene, tried to subdue Sandhu by using pepper spray, but were unable to do so and that's when he was shot with Taser. Police, according to the news report, began administering CPR, and he was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Although only four people have died after police fired Tasers, according to CBC British Columbia, a police commission review found that the devices themselves don't cause the deaths -- but may pose a problem when people are in an excited drug-induced state.
The use of Tasers in certain cases seems justified, but Michelin de Strake of Lillooet, B.C., questions an RCMP constable's so-called "excessive force" in February.
According to de Strake she was holding a "welcome home party" for a friend when five RCMP officers charged through her front door at 3 in the morning. "They had Tasered my dog and he was, like, screaming, so I looked behind me and I asked, "What the hell are you doing to my dog' and he (Const. St. Amand) came up behind me and stepped on my back and Tasered me in the spine," she told the CBC News. Later, an RCMP spokesperson said the Taser went off by accident.
Amnesty International has stated that officers "might be tempted to use weapons like Tasers too often if they believe they're not lethal."

GETTING CLOSER? As a former Middle East Bureau Chief for a major news gathering organization based in Jerusalem, Israel, I have believed, for some time now, that Canada is not immune to terrorist attacks. After Thursday's devastating bombings in London, Canada's Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan admitted that security has been tightened across our nation as it pertains to Via Rail, CN and CP as well as local subway and mass transit systems, although there has been no specific threat issued. Although it's been partially ignored, Canada is on the list of al-Qaeda targets for sending troops to Afghanistan. Other nations on the November 2002 "hit list" include Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Austria. Spain, who sent troops to Iraq, became a target with 191 train commuters killed in Madrid in March 2004.

FROM THE INCOMPETENT CRIMINALS' FILE: When Nathan Radlich's house was burgled on June 4, 1993, thieves left his TV, his VCR, and even his watch. All they took was a "generic white cardboard box" of grayish white powder. A police spokesman said it looked similar to cocaine. "They probably thought they scored big," he mused. The powder was actually the cremated remains of Radlich's sister, Gertrude, who had died three years earlier.

MISTAKEN IDENTITY: "Warren Gillen, 26, was arrested for trying to rob a bank in Glasgow. Police put him in a lineup, but no one identified him. He was booked anyway after calling out from the lineup, "Hey, don't you recognize me?'"

WRONG TURN: "An alleged drunk driver who led police on a wild, midnight chase landed in jail even before his arrest. His car crashed into the jail building. "He didn't have too far to go from there," said Police Capt. Mike Lanam. "It was like a drive-up window."