Police are too quick to grab for Taser's power, say critics

Tasers have been used locally to end violent standoffs and subdue suicidal people, but a Seattle Post-Intelligencer review found they're also being used routinely in far less threatening situations -- including against juveniles, pregnant women and people who have already been handcuffed. King County sheriff's deputies have fired Tasers at a teenager who ran after not paying a $1.25 bus fare, a 71-year-old man who was arrested for drunken driving and refused to get into a patrol car, and a partially deaf man who couldn't hear deputies ordering him to stop, reports show. Some civil rights advocates argue Tasers are being drawn too quickly and in cases in which such extreme force isn't necessary. They worry about potential abuses as more officers rely on the tool to subdue people who they say pose no serious threat to themselves or others. "We have a problem with the rush to tase and ask questions later," said Sheley Secrest, with the NAACP's Seattle chapter, who has fielded several complaints, including one from Otis. The NAACP wants stricter policies. Amnesty International released a report today saying police nationwide are abusing the stun guns, and more than 70 deaths in Taser incidents raise questions about whether the devices are safe -- though the company that builds them insists they are.  [more]

• Pictured above:  Valinda Otis was three months pregnant -- and in handcuffs -- when a King County deputy used a Taser on her in September.