The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
From The Toronto Star RCMP public complaints commission chair Paul Kennedy stopped short of calling for a moratorium on Tasers in his final report on the forceÕs use of the stun guns. But he once again urged CanadaÕs national police force to rein in Òusage creepÓ and ensure closer oversight of the use of the weapon. As serious questions about police Taser use continue to pile up, the forceÕs top brass ought to make good on their pledge to act Òas quickly as possibleÓ on KennedyÕs recommendations. Unfortunately, the MountiesÕ half-hearted response to the commissionÕs interim report in December leave room for doubt about their sincerity. And the watchdogÕs lack of enforcement power leaves Kennedy with nothing but his bark if he is ignored once again. Kennedy concedes the RCMP has made progress on implementing some of his previous recommendations, albeit more slowly than he had expected. But the Mounties have failed to act on his primary recommendation that the bar for Taser use be raised so that officers deploy the stun guns only when people are combative or pose a risk of death or grievous bodily harm to police officers, themselves or others. In his final report, Kennedy renewed his call to reclassify Tasers immediately as an Òimpact weapon.Ó More than anything else, this measure would ensure Tasers are reserved for the most serious situations rather than deployed casually against suspects who could be brought under control by less drastic means. Kennedy also urged that Tasers be restricted to experienced officers and that reporting practices be improved. Now it is up to Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day, who asked Kennedy to conduct the review, to make sure the RCMP complies with his recommendations. Day said this week the government accepts them Òin principle,Ó but agreed with RCMP Commissioner William Elliott that Òoperational requirementsÓ would have to be considered. LetÕs hope that doesnÕt become an excuse for maintaining the status quo.
