By RAELYNN RICARTE
News staff writer

Hood River County Sheriff deputies and detectives volunteered to be tased — subdued by an electronic control device — during training classes this week.

“Anybody think they can fight that?” asked Deputy Matt English, the instructor after testing was completed

“No, you definitely want to comply,” answered Detective Bob Davidson.

According to Taser International, the weapons are now being used by 10,000 of 18,000 law enforcement agencies across the United States

English said the taser has become popular with officers because it has been proven as safer for use-of-force than either a baton and/or pepper spray. Once the weapon is deployed, electric pulses cause a person to lose neuromuscular control.

Deputies and detectives found the incapacitation to be short-lived and were back in motion within seconds of being stunned. Most of the individuals who volunteered to be tased said the sensation was not painful, although it was uncomfortable.

“It definitely gave me a jolt,” said Deputy Pete Hughes. “But, by this exposure, we are better able to articulate why we use a weapon like this.”

English said the device is expected to save both law enforcement officials and suspects from serious injury. He said a deputy who was attacked several months ago is still on light-duty and recovering from injuries. He is hopeful the new weapon will prevent a reoccurrence of that scenario.

According to Taser International’s training video, a “motivated” suspect can continue to fight through pepper spray, often causing the use of force to elevate. But suspects immediately cease resistance after being tased, providing the officer with an opportunity get the handcuffs on.

“It basically locks up your nervous system,” said English.

He said human rights groups and the media have erroneously blamed tasers for causing the heart attacks and deaths of more than 150 suspects across the country.

For example, the Ashland Daily Tidings reported in 2006 that a medic attributed the death of a Southern Oregon University student to police use of a taser after he became aggressive. But an autopsy later revealed that subject had died en route to the hospital from an overdose of sleeping bills. The deputy state medical examiner determined that the man would have perished immediately if the shock from the taser had been fatal.

“The taser has gotten a lot of bad press so, as a result, it has been heavily studied,” said English.

He said opponents of the taser claim that it can kill by releasing 50,000 volts of electricity, the energy pressure in a charge. In actuality, English said only 1,200 volts are delivered directly to the body by a taser.

He said an external cardiac defibrillator typically dispenses 150-400 units of energy known as “joules,” per electrical pulse. But a taser passes on .05 to .07 joules.

English said the weapon is made to interfere with the sensory and motor nervous system, not shut it down.

“It puts out a very, very minor amount of current,” he said. “Pacemakers and implanted cardiac defibrillators withstand electrical impulses at least 800 times stronger than the taser.”

English said the Department of Defense and the Department of Justice have determined the taser is “non-lethal.” And the manufacturer has armed itself with 1,300 pages of medical reports to back up that claim. To date, no court cases have been won that show the weapon to have been the primary cause of somebody’s death.

According to an Ohio newspaper, two deaths nationwide have been blamed on use of a taser following autopsies. In 16, application of the weapon was listed as a contributing factor.

Dr. Michael G. Connor from the Mentor Research Institute

reports that 50-125 people die each year across the U.S. after being taken into custody.

English said testing on animals and more than 100,000 human volunteers showed that the taser had an insignificant effect on heart rhythms or blood pressure.

“Falling is really your biggest possibility for an injury from a taser,” he said.

The taser can cause vertigo, critical stress amnesia of the event, redness, minor skin irritations, temporary blisters and minor bleeding where the half-inch probe penetrates the skin.