More Town Cops Getting Access to Tasers

The belts of patrol officers on the East Hampton Town Police Department are about to get a little bit heavier; they'll soon be carrying a Taser.

While the shift supervisor has carried one for at least six years and all East Hampton Village Police Officers have carried them for just as long, town patrolmen currently don't pack them, but that's all about to change.

With $10,000 from the capital budget, the department has purchased 10 more Tasers, enough for at least five officers per shift to have at his or her disposal as an alternate to deadly force. All of the 42 officers in the patrol division are expected to be certified in just a few more weeks, after the completion of in-house training.

The decision to implement Tasers in patrol was made several months ago. Though the use of Tasers by supervisors has been rare, a sergeant has deployed a Taser twice in the past three weeks on calls where out-of-control subjects posed a threat to officers' safety, Police Chief Ed Ecker said.

Ecker said that he only rescinded his position against Tasers for all the officers within the past year. "I've always kind of fought it," he said. He, along with his predecessor, Todd Sarris, were concerned about liability issues and they believed crime in East Hampton wasn't at a level where Tasers were necessary.

But, the discussion has been ongoing, and while Ecker says crime has not risen to a level that caused him concern, defensive tactic instructors convinced him that there are worthwhile benefits. "Studies show it's a less lethal and injurious force," Ecker said. "Also our insurance company basically asked us to get them," he said.

Tasers, a brand name for conducted energy devices, which induce involuntary muscle contractions causing the suspect to be temporarily incapacitated, can be shot at a distance of up to 35 feet. Steel probes, attached to wire, puncture the skin or light-weight clothing, delivering up to 50,000 volts. Officers aim with a laser-beam dot and are trained to target large muscle-mass area, such as the chest or the back.

Officers are trained in techniques that range from pressure points to the firing of a sidearm, and as a situation escalates, so does the use of force. The Taser also acts as a deterrent in many situations — once a suspect sees it, they hope is they follow the officer's orders. Also, the Taser is also part stun gun.

A study, conducted by the Police Executive Research Forum, comparing seven law enforcement agencies that used conducted-energy devices with six agencies that didn't, showed a 70 percent decrease in officer injuries associated with the use of CEDs and a 40 percent decrease in suspect injuries associated with the use of CEDs.

"Often times to get compliance, somebody is going to get really hurt," Ecker said.

In fact, over the past year, the department has strived to reduce the amount of personnel time lost to line of duty injuries. In 2011, a significant amount of time was lost and there has been a steady increase in recent years, Ecker said in his annual report. Staff review of use of force incidents and risk management awareness enabled the department to drop the total number of cases from 22 in 2011 to 15 in 2012.

• RELATED: East Hampton Town Police release 2012 stats

"It's just another tool in the continuum of force," Ecker said of the Taser. "The key to this is proper training and I have every reason to believe they will be training properly."

However, there are safety concerns that have made Tasers somewhat controversial.

Even on the East End, there have been troubling cases. In June 2008, a 26-year-old drug suspect died at Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead nine hours after Southampton Town police shocked him twice during an arrest in Shinnecock Hills, according to reports at the time. Preliminary findings were that the five grams of cocaine Tony Curtis Bradway ingested were the cause of his death, not the shocks from the Taser.

The subject of the subsequent wrongful-death lawsuit, filed by Bradway's mother, was the delay in medical care for the ingested cocaine, and not the Taser, according to Newsday. Just last year, the Town of Southampton settled the suit for an undisclosed amount.

The National Institute of Justice, the research wing of the United States Department of Justice, has conducted several studies on the use of such devices.

"While exposure to conducted energy devices is not risk free, there is no conclusive medical evidence that indicates a high risk of serious injury or death from the direct effects of CEDs. Field experience with CED use indicates that exposure is safe in the vast majority of cases," one study concluded. "The risks of cardiac arrhythmias or death remain low and make CEDs more favorable than other weapons.”

Certain populations, such as small children, the elderly, those with diseased hearts, and pregnant women, are at higher-risk. "The use of a CEDs against these populations (when recognized) should be avoided, but may be necessary if the situation excludes other reasonable options," the study states.

Many of the deaths following exposure reviewed were associated with "continuous or repeated discharge," the study found. The NIJ cautions against multiple activations.

How do you feel about patrol officers in the Town of East Hampton carrying Tasers? Tell us in the comments below.