Deputies feel the pain of learning to use 3 new Tasers
The Sheriff's Office recently purchased three of the weapons, which fire eight-second bursts of electricity.
By JAMIE JONES
Published May 30, 2003
[Times photo: Brendan Fitterer]
Sheriff's Cpl. Robert Haugh collapses in pain from a one-second jolt from a Taser gun.
The Taser gun fires 50,000 volts of electricity intended to immobilize a suspect in less than half of a second.
LAND O'LAKES - He stood in the middle of an old trailer, wearing black dress shoes and khaki pants.
He paused, breathed in, clenched his fists.
He didn't necessarily want to take "the ride," but he was ready.
He looked over, gave a slight nod.
And then the 6-foot-4, 225-pound deputy shouted in pain and collapsed on the ground.
Sheriff's deputies laughed as Sgt. Brian Prescott picked himself off the floor.
"I think a first-grader could have arrested me after that," said Prescott, supervisor of training for the Pasco County Sheriff's Office.
Prescott, along with 15 other deputies, howled, cursed and moaned as they experienced a new weapon that they will soon use on suspects in Pasco County.
The Sheriff's Office recently purchased three new Tasers, guns that shoot bulletlike darts and deliver 50,000 volts of electricity in eight-second bursts. Deputies call it "the ride." Tasers cost about $499 each.
The Land O'Lakes and New Port Richey jails have had one Taser each for about 16 months. The Sheriff's Office Tasers will be used by the Street Tactical Operations and Patrol unit, three groups of deputies who target trouble spots across the county.
On Wednesday, about 20 deputies on those units learned how to use the Tasers. They practiced shooting, learned about safety, heard that the weapons could be fired at distances up to 21 feet.
They learned that a suspect will recover from a Taser in about 20 to 30 seconds, but could continue to experience trembling or vertigo. Additionally, the Taser can penetrate clothing, such as leather jackets.
Deputies were not required to get zapped, although most stepped toward the gun voluntarily. They tucked a probe into their belts and another in a shoe and experienced a one-second burst.
For suspects, darts will penetrate their skin, and they will receive a jolt for eight seconds.
The Taser records when it fires, and with each shot, the gun releases a confetti of paper that can identify which Taser fired.
Prescott said the guns will provide deputies with another option when they encounter violent suspects. The Taser is to be used only when other methods fail - such as verbal commands or pepper spray - and when a deputy is otherwise unable to control a violent suspect.
If a suspect is armed, deputies will pull their Glock .40-caliber weapons, not the Tasers, Prescott said.
Sheriff's officials said the Tasers do not cause death.
However, reports show that a few suspects have died after being stung by Tasers, although most were using drugs at the time.
Last year, a Windermere man died after a Winter Garden police officer shot him with a Taser a dozen times. Authorities said that the man was on prescription painkillers, and they think the combination of electricity and drugs could have been fatal.
Doctors have said that stimulant drugs, such as cocaine, speed up the heartbeat, and an electric shock at the wrong moment could cause the heart to stop.
Sheriff's deputies said they will use the weapon with caution, saying they did not enjoy the sensation of the gun.
"If any of you guys accidentally shoot me with that in the field, you're dead," Deputy Kris Wendel said.
- Jamie Jones covers crime in Pasco County. She can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6245, or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6245. Her e-mail address is jjones@sptimes.com
