Tom Kaye a national figure in policing circles

See also Police chief wants tasers for all frontline officers

February 9, 2011
The Sun Times, Owen Sound

Outgoing Owen Sound Police Chief Tom Kaye is well known in policing circles provincially and nationally from his work, and sometimes controversial opinions, as an executive with both the Ontario and Canadian associations of chiefs of police.

Kaye was vice president of the CACP and the spokesperson on the issue when the organization released a policy paper in February 2009 backing the use of Tasers. He argued then that "to date there is no evidence, either scientific or medical, that a conducted energy weapon, has been the direct cause of death, anywhere, at any time, on any person."

Kaye was asked to chair the CACP committee on use of Tasers after "a major meeting in Orillia" that looked at the issue after the widely reported death of Robert Dziekanski, a Polish immigrant who died in October 2007 after RCMP officers Tasered him several times at the Vancouver airport, and several other deaths in Canada.

"Because of his knowledge on it, his interest in the subject, that's why he was appointed as chair of the special purpose committee in order to guide and direct all policing across Canada," Peter Cuthbert, the executive director of the CACP, said Wednesday.

"He's been very, very active and well respected on the board. I mean he's not an individual who comes to the table and stays quiet and mute, I'll tell you that," Cuthbert added.

Kaye said in January he looked forward to the day when every front-line police officer would carry a Taser.

During his time on the executive of the OACP, "Chief Kaye dealt with a lot of really important issues," said Jim Couto, the director of government relations and communications with the Ontario association.

"For instance, issues of diversity and the issue of racial profiling in policing, those were issues I know during his time were very prominent and he played a really key role in developing policing to a position where we acknowledge the unfortunate existence of that particular issue, racial profiling, and working with communities to move forward," he said.

"This is going to become a growth industry," Kaye was quoted as saying in 2001 about accusations of racial profiling by police. "That's what we've seen in the United States. It's become a multimillion-dollar business for consultants to come in and try and rid your organization of racism."

He was also quoted as saying that racism in police services is "certainly not something that we're that concerned about, because we don't believe it exists."

"Chief Kaye has always been very passionate about policing and what it can do in terms of community building and the role it plays in communities, in everyday lives of people," Couto said.

"Coming from a middle-sized service like Owen Sound, Chief Kaye had a really unique impact on OACP and certainly policing in the province. He was very well respected and his work at the CACP has been phenomenal . . . He's not a guy who shies away from tackling tough issues. I think he's done a fantastic job representing us not only in Ontario but across Canada."

Owen Sound Police Chief, Tom Kaye, Appointed to the Parole Board of Canada

February 9, 2011

Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound, ONTARIO – Larry Miller, MP for Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound, would like to extend congratulations to Owen Sound police chief, Tom Kaye, on his appointment as a full-time member to the Parole Board of Canada.

Tom Kaye has had a distinguished career serving the Owen Sound community. In 1995 he joined the Owen Sound police as deputy-chief. He was soon made acting chief in 1997 and was confirmed to that position in May of 1998.

From 2002-2003 he served as president of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, and for the past seven years has been on the executive of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

Commenting on the appointment, Miller said “Mr. Kaye has been a great leader in both our community and the policing community. I would like to thank him for his years of dedicated public service.” Miller concluded, saying “I wish him all the best in his new post.”

Police chief wants Tasers for all frontline officers

To think that Tom Kaye (Owen Sound, Ontario Chief of Police) continues to hold any credibility as the chair of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police committee on tasers just boggles the mind. It's embarrassing. Where do I register a no-confidence vote? "Hadn't read up on the Firman case?" Hullo!! Dr. Michael Pollanen attributed Firman's death to "cardiac arrhythmia PRECIPITATED BY ELECTRONIC CONTROL DEVICE DEPLOYMENT in an agitated man." Could it get any clearer? A coroner's inquest isn't going to change that outcome Tom. How can the chair of a taser committee in Canada NOT have "read up on" such a significant case? That's only one of your major gaffes in this interview (see below) - anyone whose been following along can identify all of them.

Tom, you're either a) TERRIBLY misinformed or b) you think the Canadian public is REALLY stupid. If you manage to push your agenda through, the Canadian public is in grave danger. How about doing the right thing and inviting some PUBLIC DISCOURSE/CONSULTATION? I know of several very well informed people who would be delighted to participate.

See also Excited-Delirium's post from February 2009 (some of us are keeping track of this crap): Look what we have to deal with

January 26, 2011
Scott Dunn, Owen Sound Sun Times

Owen Sound Police Chief Tom Kaye said he looks forward to the day when all frontline officers carry a Taser.

Kaye made the comments to reporters after presenting a report summarizing use-of-force incidents to the police services board Wednesday.

In 2010 there were 20 incidents, generating 27 reports, when force was used by city officers to a degree that met provincial reporting requirements. Such circumstances include drawing a gun with the public present, using any weapon on a person and using physical force causing an injury requiring medical attention.

A Taser was fired twice and displayed eight times in 2010, Kaye said. Sometimes officers used a mode that shows electricity crackling in the device, Kaye said.

Tasers were never used in the "push/stun" mode, in which the weapon was physically jabbed into someone, he said.

Kaye also chairs the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police committee concerning the controversial conducted-energy weapons, which an SIU official said caused a Collingwood man's death last June.

"It's our hope that every frontline officer at some point in time gets issued with a Taser," Kaye said.

Kaye's department is now tracking the use of the Taser both when it is fired, as required by the provincial government, but whenever it is drawn, which isn't a provincial requirement.

Officers started tracking where on the subject's body the Taser's metal probes strike, "so that we can use that to refine our deployment of Tasers in the future," he said.

"So we're looking to build our business case for government by tracking all of that information."

Special Investigations Unit director Ian Scott attributed the death of Aron Firman outside a Collingwood group home June 24 to the use of a Taser by and OPP officer. The officer was cleared.

He cited Ontario's chief forensic pathologist, Michael Pollanen, who attributed Firman's death to "cardiac arrhythmia precipitated by electronic control device deployment in an agitated man." He had underlying health issues which may have predisposed him to arrhythmia, Pollanen found.

Kaye downplayed any conclusion that Tasers kill people. He said he didn't know how that diagnosis could be made because Mr. Firman was found, Kaye understands, with vital signs absent.

"It's my understanding that if someone is already down and vital signs absent, you cannot tell in any subsequent medical examination or autopsy," that the Taser caused the death, "because there are no telltale signs on the heart muscle."

Kaye also said he hadn't read up on the Firman case and it remains to be seen what conclusions an inquest draws.

He said he knows more than six Ontario inquest juries, and six or eight others across Canada, have recommended all frontline police officers be issued a conducted energy weapon.

"I know that in the United States there are a number of their medical examiners that have made the same pronouncements.

"And in every particular case they've had to withdraw their cause of death as having been that because it's unsubstantiated."

Kaye said the national police chiefs' association position on Tasers is to wait and see what conclusion the Firman inquest produces.

Other Owen Sound Police Services use-of-force details Kaye provided:

• Guns were drawn and pointed at a subject four times, including one case in which two guns were pointed during the same arrest. Police did not fire their guns at a person last year.

• Twice a gun was drawn to deal with a vicious or dangerous animal, and twice a firearm was discharged to destroy an injured or sick animal.

• Hands were laid on subjects to gain control three times, a baton and pepper spray were used once each.

• There were 19 times no injury resulted to the subject or officer.

• None of the times force was used resulted in serious injury requiring reports to the Special Investigations Unit, the civilian arms-length police oversight agency.

Dude, don't Tase me for this one

Well, it's nice to see that someone at The Belleville Intelligencer is making a little more sense today than the editor was yesterday. I must say, though, that yesterday's editorial and today's viewpoint from City Editor Chris Malette makes the paper appear more than a little schizophrenic. Can they really have it both ways?

February 27, 2009
CHRIS MALETTE
City Editor, The Intelligencer

Not sure about you, but I always thought Mounties were a rough and ready bunch who always got their man -- not some bunch of two-bit rent-a-cops who Taser some poor schmuck to death so they can get back to their Tim's before it cools.

A simple request -- for any of my cop pals, cops who don't know me and would rather see me Tasered or any cop who may pull me over in the next little bit, please don't take any of this personally. I get along pretty well with most coppers, but this Taser business has still got me stumped.

I've followed coverage of the public inquiry into the 2007 death of Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver airport and have determined the four hapless Mounties had better not represent standard operating procedure for Tasering someone. If a few seconds of shouted commands prompts a dose of buzz juice from a ray gun, someone has to rewrite the manual.

I had a cop friend explain how you have split seconds to decide to deploy the Taser. Some are quicker than others to use it, he said. But think about the training these coppers have -- they are given instructions on how to do a quick mental checklist of the perp's behaviour before they use any manner of restraint or submission methods at their disposal.

Of course, the 9 mm deterrent is the biggie, but every-one's pretty much in agreement we don't draw on or shoot at suspects like the blue-suited pistoleros in the lower 48. But we sure have taken a shine to their handheld bug zappers, eh?

In the Dziekanski case, last December, Crown prosecutors announced that the use of force in this case was "reasonable in the circumstances" and that none of the officers would face criminal charges.

The four cops in this case gave non-English-speaking Dziekanski a few seconds to obey their English commands and when he didn't comply, they stunned him like a slaughterhouse veal calf. Swell.

One of the Mounties, Const. Gerry Rundel, said at the time, Tasers were considered safe and were on the lower end of the use-of-force guidelines, below pepper spray and batons.

He told the inquiry that he and his three fellow horsemen were called from their dinner break to deal with the unruly Polish traveller -- who'd been in transit for more than a day and trapped at the airport, confused as hell, for more than 10 hours -- and that, when Dziekanski became agitated, they felt "threatened" and feared for their safety.

Apparently, the big Pole picked up a stapler. Yes, a stapler. You know, the classic weapon of movie thugs everywhere -- a Bostich model A-200 Cop Whacker.

'Tase him, he's got office supplies!'

Crikey. It'd be laughable if it wasn't so damned tragic.

Here's a suggested game plan for this incident -- calm him down after determining if someone could communicate with him and, after the four officers working together couldn't calm him, bull rush the guy, bring him to ground, cuff him and then see if he's a little more compliant? Was that considered in this case? Nah.

Tase the guy -- not once, but twice -- and then stand around with your faces hanging out for, oh, nine or 10 minutes before medical help arrives?

The Canadian Police Association and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police came out in defence of Tasers Tuesday, declaring that every officer in the country should be authorized to carry one.

But the top cops also admitted that officers have used Tasers too often, stunned peaceful suspects, and not been transparent enough in reporting how they've used the weapon.

This all comes at an unfortunate coincidence of the trail of a Saskatchewan man into the murders of RCMP constables Robin Cameron and Marc Bourdages and the attempted murder of Const. Michelle Knopp.

No one denies cops have a tough job, have to make life and death decisions on occasion and have a variety of tools at their disposal.

But, in this case, the Mounties chose the easy, hassle-free way to bring an unruly man to heel and it cost a stranger from a strange land his life.

Fantino's act grows tiresome

February 27, 2009
MICHAEL DEN TANDT, The Standard (St. Catherines)

Julian Fantino is a big man with big ambitions. For the past 40 years he has trod the thin blue line with firmness and resolve. It's time he stopped doing that. He should be -- what's the word? Fired.

The Canadian media has always had a love-hate relationship with Fantino. Mainly it's love. Why? He's brash, tough-talking and unafraid to speak his mind. Among senior public servants he stands out like a neon sign. He's Don Cherry in a much more tasteful suit.

He is also, increasingly, an embarrassment.

Does Canada have a pressing national problem with the use of Tasers by police? Not so much. Indeed, as Tom Kaye, vice-president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, said in Ottawa this week, most police forces now agree about how the devices should be used.

THIS NATION

It's simple: In cases where a suspect actively resists arrest, and it looks as though an innocent citizen or a police officer could be hurt, the Taser is a good option. In such situations it can and has saved lives, no question.

What Canadians do not wish to see (and this no doubt includes the vast majority of police officers) is cases in which suspects are tasered when they are not fighting and pose no apparent threat to anyone. That's what happened in the case of Polish immigrant Robert Dzienkanski.

As we all know he was surrounded by four Mounties at Vancouver airport in October of 2007 and tasered repeatedly. It was caught on video. There was no preamble and there were no apparent efforts to calm him with speech or body language before he was zapped. Afterwards he died. At last count there have been more than 20 similar deaths in Canada.

Proponents of the Taser, Fantino and Kaye among them, cite numerous studies -- 150 is the number they posited this week -- that prove the device has never directly caused anyone to die. There is no reason to disbelieve this. The voltage and amperage of these devices are not sufficient to kill a person.

The cases in which people have died following tasering, in other words, involved other factors -- a weak heart perhaps, a heart murmur, a stroke brought on by intense anger, fear or stress. People can die suddenly for any number of reasons, as Fantino said this week. Hit someone hard enough with your bare hand and there is a possibility their heart will stop.

But all that misses the point -- deliberately so, it seems to me. Few reasonable people would argue that Tasers should be banned outright, any more than they would argue that police should not carry firearms. It's a question of establishing clear guidelines for their use. The RCMP, in the wake of the Dzienkanski case, has done so. And so have most other Canadian police forces.

The upshot? There is no crisis. Nationwide, we're getting to a common-sense solution. But rather than acknowledge this (as Tom Kaye did Tuesday, to his credit) Fantino spent much of his national news time picking fights with and belittling anyone who dares to disagree with him.

Critics of Tasers, Fantino said, have never walked a beat and could not even pass basic police training. Gasp! Really? And is that the new standard for public criticism of the administration of justice in Canada? That we all be police officers or retired police officers?

True, a basic fitness requirement would rule out most journalists, because we tend to be reedy, unhealthy and flabby. Too much computer time. But what about everyone else? What about shopkeepers, bus drivers and gas station attendants? What about waitresses and university professors?

Is Uncle Julian going to make us all do pushups and crunches and run laps so that we may earn the right to disagree with his eminence? Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty is no Charles Atlas, let's be honest. Is that why the Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police regularly tells his boss which laws he should write?

Enough already. Fantino clearly loves politics. It's time he pursued that full-time.

EDITORIAL: Keep politicans away from taser guidelines

Here is the DISTORTED LOGIC I am up against in my own city - the old, dusty "tasers are better than guns" argument. Today's editorial in the Belleville Intelligencer clearly shows how poorly educated the editorial staff are on this subject.

Quite coincidentally, just a couple of weeks ago, I briefly met the Intelligencer's new Editor, Bill Glisky, at a local business mixer. I followed up a few days later with an e-mail to him, to introduce him to my alter-ego (Truth not tasers) and to invite him to get together with me to talk "tasers".

I guess this is his way of saying "no thanks - our narrow minds are made up. Tasers are ... better than guns."

Today, I'm embarrassed to be a citizen of the city of Belleville.

To read some more reasoned and intelligent editorials, see, for example:

Toronto Star: Police stun guns need a high bar

Globe and Mail: Dangerously blank slates

Vancouver Sun: Police agencies wrong to shoot the messenger

February 26, 2009
BELLEVILLE "INTELLIGENCER"

Benjamin Franklin once quipped, "In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes." To this list, we would like to add two more certainties: that given a choice, getting hit by a Taser is better than getting shot and given a choice we are better off having police decide such issues than politicians.

An inquiry is currently under way in the death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski, who was stunned by a Taser at Vancouver's airport and died.

In part due to the outcry from this inquiry, Canada's main police associations have launched a vigourous defence of Tasers and declared that every officer should be authorized to carry one.

The Canadian Police Association and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police held a news conference Tuesday to outline a 13-point position paper on conducted energy weapons.

They spent almost the whole event defending the devices, and lashed out at claims they're potentially deadly. They cited two cases where Tasers might have stopped people from killing themselves.

To their credit, the police also acknowledged that Tasers had been used too often. And they conceded that the weapon has been used in cases where suspects presented no threat.

"Everybody is basically coming around to the point where they've agreed that there has to be some active resistance on people's behalf," said Tom Kaye, vice-president of the association of police chiefs.

"It's got to be some kind of assaultive, combative behaviour. There's got to be some threat to the officers or some threat to the public ... I'm not saying that's always been the case."

To help officers use the weapons more responsibly, the associations are calling for better training and for government-mandated guidelines on Taser use, training, and transparent reporting.

The police associations' guidelines dovetail with a new RCMP policy announced this month that Tasers should only be used in cases involving threats to officers or public safety. The new rules clearly set out that Mounties can't zap suspects for simple resistance or refusing to co-operate.

That makes sense to us, as does the call for better training and clear guidelines on how to use Tasers.

What doesn't makes sense are opposition critics suggesting a national review to establish guidelines before more police get Tasers. Those critics seem to be ignorant of the alternatives here -- which in too many cases is a police officer risking his own life or having to draw his gun to deal with a situation.

As bad as Tasers might be -- and clearly their use can have serious consequences -- they are still many, many times safer than guns.

Given a choice between a officer feeling the need to draw his gun and that same officer instead being able to draw his Taser, we will take the Taser every time.

Amnesty International has decried an information vacuum surrounding Tasers and wants their use limited until it sees satisfactory studies on their potential impact.

The problem is we know the potential impact of the alternative and we don't think that alternative is acceptable.

Nor do we think it acceptable for people sitting comfortably in government offices to be making decisions that can put police officers lives at risk.

The police know what they are doing -- their willingness to adjust their policies on Taser use shows that. Politicians should butt out and let them go about doing it.

My response:

Government should set standards for use of Tasers
Re: Keep politicians away from Taser guidelines (Feb. 26)

For years, I have advocated for needed changes to the way Tasers are used in Canada, after my brother was Tasered and died in 2004. In addition to maintaining a website which is sourced daily by police, government, media and ordinary people worldwide, I have also -- by invitation -- spoken to a House of Commons committee and various media on the subject.

At a time when not only our media but Canadians in general appear mostly unanimous in their condemnation of the egregious overuse and abuse of Tasers in this country, the editor chose to drag out the crusty old "Tasers are better than guns" argument.

That argument is so 10 years ago, when Tasers were initially approved for use in Canada as an alternative to lethal force.

However, in the intervening years, our police have loosened their policies to the point where today, Tasers are used not as an alternative to lethal force, but as an unpredictable weapon of mass convenience, used in a vast majority of cases where lethal force would never be considered.

When did certain death by bullet or potential death by Taser become our only two choices?

In mid-February, the RCMP finally admitted Tasers do carry a risk of death and announced the federal police force has tightened its policies.

Little more than a week later, while announcing a joint Taser report from the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the Canadian Police Association, police conceded the weapons have been incorrectly used, but proceeded to attack the weapon's critics.

What we are left with is a palpable credibility gap and a disconnect between what Canadians want and what police would impose.

That is why now is precisely the right time for government to step in and mop up this mess. The need for stringent nationwide policies and oversight measures has never been so great.

Police officers do have a difficult job and they deserve nothing less than clear, unequivocal guidelines.

You opened your editorial with a quote from Benjamin Franklin about the certainty of death and taxes, and so I close with another quote from Franklin: "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."

EDITORIAL: Show us that Tasers save lives

February 26, 2009
The Province

The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the Canadian Police Association issued a joint position at a Parliament Hill news conference Tuesday on the use of Tasers.

The groups' position called on all officers nationwide to be authorized and trained in the use of this weapon, calling Tasers "a valuable use-of-force option available to police to reduce the risk of injury or death."

Julian Fantino, the Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police, told reporters that "Tasers save lives," and that 150 studies worldwide prove "there is no direct link in any case" between the use of a Taser and a death.

When asked to reveal the studies, Chief Fantino offered the glib response that he had no intention of doing the media's homework.

Sounds a lot like the tobacco industry in the 1970s, doesn't it?

Here are some questions for the nation's police departments to consider:

If Tasers save lives and if Tasers are safe, then why are they so controversial?

What evidence is there to support the argument that Tasering someone saves lives?

And finally, why would the two largest police organizations in this country come out with guns blazing on the Taser issue at the same time as the Braidwood Inquiry is looking into the safety of these weapons?

There probably is a place for Tasers in the law-enforcement arsenal, but more study has to be done to determine what that place might be.

The Braidwood inquiry is a big part of that study.

For the police to come out now and boldly suggest more Tasers are needed is, at once, bullying, egregious and insensitive.

EDITORIAL: Police agencies wrong to shoot the messenger over Taser policies

February 25, 2009
Vancouver Sun

Little more than a week after the RCMP made some welcome changes to its Taser policy, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the Canadian Police Association had an opportunity to follow suit and show that they, too, are willing to be flexible in light of the public's reasonable concern about the use of conducted energy weapons.

Instead, one representative of the two national police agencies decided not only to stand his ground on Tasers, but to lob a few insults at the media and the public at a press conference announcing the release of a joint document on Taser use.

The agencies maintain that Tasers pose no threat to the public, and that the weapons have helped to save lives. That might be true, but there are legitimate questions about Tasers given the more than 20 people in Canada who have died after being zapped.

Instead of acknowledging as much, the police chiefs chose to attack reporters, saying that "inaccurate and incomplete information is circulating in the media."

Exactly what information that is isn't clear, though Tom Kaye, vice-president of the CACP, did say that the media took a recent statement by RCMP Commissioner William Elliott out of context. Here's his statement in full:

"The RCMP's revised [Taser] policy underscores that there are risks associated with the deployment of the device and emphasizes that those risks include the risk of death, particularly for acutely agitated individuals."

Elliott made this comment, which is abundantly clear and which was made without qualification, before the Commons' standing committee on public safety.

Kaye didn't provide any evidence as to how it's been taken out of context, but did suggest, inexplicably, that the statement had been clarified "to us" -- that is, presumably to the police chiefs. But he didn't bother to explain what the clarification was.

Nevertheless, the chiefs continued on the offensive, with Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Julian Fantino suggesting that 150 studies have proven there exists no link between Tasers and death.

Despite not being able to name a single paper when asked for citations, Fantino nevertheless ramped up the rhetoric by telling people to "do your own homework."

And if that weren't enough, he launched into an adolescent attack on Taser critics, saying "So much of the misinformation and miscommunication is driven by people who have never walked in our shoes, have never faced those situations and could never pass recruitment training."

The chiefs' arrogance and unwillingness to consider any opinions but their own extended even to the medical profession, as they defended the use of "excited delirium," a condition dropped by the RCMP because it's not recognized by physicians.

If there are any bright spots in all of this -- and there are precious few -- it's that the chiefs did agree that there needs to be adequate training and guidelines regarding Taser use. And by the end of the press conference, Kaye admitted Tasers may have been used on peaceful subjects and that that shouldn't have happened.

That's a hopeful admission. But given that it came towards the end of an all-out assault on Taser critics, the real lesson from the press conference is that the chiefs will brook no questioning of their methods, even when the questions are fair and reasonable. And even when they come from the people who pay their salaries.

British Columbia Police Association supports national position on Taser use

VANCOUVER, Feb. 24 /CNW/ - The British Columbia Police Association, (BCPA), supports the joint position on Taser use announced today by the Canadian Police Association, (CPA), and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, (CACP).

Describing the Taser as a "vital tool that protects the lives of police and the public" BCPA President Tom Stamatakis notes that the 2,500 members of the 12 police services across B.C. that he represents "support the use of the Taser within clear guidelines".

"The Taser is an effective intermediate compliance tool that reduces the need for police to rely on higher levels of force, and we believe most members of the public would agree with that," adds Stamatakis.

"The BCPA also joins with the CPA and the Chiefs in stressing the need for greater public awareness about the use of force options that police have, and the factors that we take into account when deciding which one to use," he adds.

"The vast majority of incidents that our members are dispatched to are resolved without having to use force to gain compliance but when any level of force becomes necessary, there is risk", he noted.

The Taser, known generically as a "Conducted Energy Weapon", (CEW), fires darts and electrically 'shocks' subjects into submission. Its use was recommended by a coroner's inquest and it has been in use by the Vancouver Police since September, 2000.

It is currently authorized for use by all police services in British Columbia as well as sheriffs and corrections staff and has been used effectively and safely in the vast majority of cases.

For further information: Tom Stamatakis, President, BCPA, (604)312-7737

All officers need Tasers, police associations say

To see how Canadians *really* feel about this, be sure to click here and read the COMMENTS! Nice to see it's not just us.

February 24, 2009
CBC/The Canadian Press

Canada's two main police associations defended the use of Tasers on Tuesday, saying all officers should be equipped with stun guns because they save lives and there is no proof they have been directly responsible for civilian deaths.

"We reiterate that to date, there is no evidence, either scientific or medical, that a conducted-energy weapon has been the direct cause of death anywhere, at any time, on any person," Chief Tom Kaye, vice-president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, said in a news conference in Ottawa.

The Canadian Police Association and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, representing chiefs and rank-and-file officers, said the public has been subjected to "inaccurate and incomplete" information on electrical stun guns and they want to dispel some myths related to their use.

The bottom line is that [conducted-energy weapons] saves lives," said Charles Momy, president of CPA.

"They certainly enhance public safety and officer safety. It is our position that all police officers should be authorized to carry CEWs," Momy said, adding that officers should also be provided with regular and adequate use-of-force training.

The associations say the weapon should only be used if there's a threat to the police officer or a threat to the public.

"There has to be some active resistance on people's behalf. It's got to be some kind of assaultive, combative behaviour," said Kaye, who is chief of the Owen Sound, Ont., police force.

The device should not be used in passive-resistance cases, said Kaye. He acknowledged that police may have used it in those types of cases in the past.

"They may have allowed it be used more as a compliance device. We're suggesting that that's not correct," he said, adding that there needs to be a better job done of reporting and tracking the use of the device.

Taser target died at airport
Police use of Tasers generated intense public concern after Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski died at Vancouver International Airport more than a year ago. An RCMP officer hit Dziekanski with a Taser shortly before his death.

British Columbia called an inquiry that has been looking at the use of Tasers and the circumstances surrounding Dziekanski's death.

Kaye wouldn't comment on the Dziekanski case or whether he believed a Taser was responsible for his death. He pointed out, however, that there have been 150 studies and reviews around the world, none of which, he said, suggest anyone has died from being zapped with a Taser.

Kaye raised the "in-custody death syndrome," in which people who have been pepper-sprayed or just held down by officers have died in police custody.

However, in 1989, a Canadian study found that stun guns induced heart attacks in pigs with pacemakers. Ten years later, an American study concluded that weapons delivering a jolt weaker than Tasers increased the risk of cardiac arrest in people with heart conditions.

In July 2005, a Chicago medical examiner ruled that the death of a man in February 2005 was the result of being shot with a Taser by Chicago police.

Media reports said it was the first time a death had been linked directly to a police stun gun, although the medical examiner said the victim also had a lot of methamphetamine in his system.

RCMP policy tightened
Earlier this month, RCMP Commissioner William Elliott told a House of Commons public safety committee that the force had revised its policy on the use of stun guns.

He said the new policy "underscores that there are risks associated with the deployment of the device and emphasizes that those risks include the risk of death, particularly for agitated individuals."

But Kaye said the commissioner told him those comments were taken out of context.

Kaye also said the public is being led to believe that the weapons are used on a regular basis.

According to 2007 statistics, there were 3.3 million police service calls in Canada, with 800,000 that involved a "criminal occurrence," he said. Of those, 98.5 per cent of the individuals were taken into custody with no force being used, he said.

Of the remaining cases, 0.8 per cent involved the use of a Taser, said Kaye, although he did not know how many of those situations involved drawing or deploying the weapon.

"You get some idea of how rare it is that police officers actually have to use any of the use-of-force options that they carry," he said.

Police release national position on conducted energy weapons

THE TIME IS NOW FOR A TOTAL MORATORIUM ON TASERS IN CANADA. THE NEED HAS NEVER BEEN SO URGENT. THIS IS A NATIONAL DISGRACE!!


February 24, 2009
Media Release
Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police

OTTAWA, ON – Canada’s two national police associations, the Canadian Police Association (CPA) and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP), have issued a joint position document supporting the use of conducted energy weapons (CEWs) by police within clear guidelines from governments and accountability from police agencies. The associations also stress the need for greater public awareness about the various use of force options available to police in Canada and the factors that police take into account when deciding which one to use.

Police from across the country met in late January to develop the position document at a workshop organized by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

Chief Tom Kaye of the Owen Sound Police Service and a CACP Vice-President is positive about the outcome. “We drew upon the best expertise in the country and agreed on key points that we think could evolve into a framework for all police in Canada.”

Officers from the RCMP, Ontario Provincial Police, Sûreté du Québec and municipal police agencies across the country, as well as police training specialists, researchers and technical experts met at the Ontario Provincial Police Headquarters in Orillia. OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino, who hosted the event, delivered opening remarks.

“Conducted energy weapons help police save lives,” said Charles Momy, President of the Canadian Police Association. “These weapons enhance public safety, and officer safety. We maintain that all police officers should be authorized to use CEWs and provided with sufficient and recurring training on the use of these weapons and other use of force options. All officers need to understand and be competent in the application of force at all levels as set out in the use of force model.”

The conducted energy weapon, known by its trade name Taser, delivers a series of electrical pulses that temporarily incapacitate an individual. This allows law enforcement officers to apprehend violent or combative subjects, including those threatening to harm themselves, without using lethal force. Today’s position document has been developed by the CACP and CPA to clarify the position of Canadian police with respect to the need for and appropriate use of conducted energy weapons, as well as the risks associated with this and other authorized forms of force used by police in performing their lawful duties.

The position document on CEWs can be found on the websites of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police www.cacp.ca and the Canadian Police Association www.cpa-acp.ca.

The CPA is the national voice for approximately 57,000 police personnel serving across Canada. Through the CPA’s 160 member associations, CPA membership includes police personnel serving in police services from Canada's smallest towns and villages as well as those working in our largest municipal cities, provincial police services, members of the RCMP, railway police, and First Nations police associations.

The CACP is national in character. Its interests and concern have relevance to police at all levels including municipal, regional, provincial and federal. The Association is dedicated to the support and promotion of efficient law enforcement and to the protection and security of the people of Canada. Through its member police chiefs and other senior police executives the CACP represents in excess of 90% of the police community in Canada.

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For more information, please contact:

Chief Thomas J. Kaye, O.O.M.,
Owen Sound Police Service
Vice-President, Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police
Tel:(519) 376-9812 ext 215
Text Box: Pierre Collin, CPA Communications Officer
Tel.: (613) 231-4168 / Cell: (613) 299-6516
Email: pcollin@cpa-acp.ca

Access to Tasers should be 'expanded': report

February 23, 2009
ctvbc.ca With a report by CTV British Columbia's Leah Hendry

As the Braidwood inquiry continues, a new report on Tasers from Canada's police chiefs is about to be made public. CTV News has learned it will recommend police across the country have "expanded" access to Tasers, and establish new guidelines on when they should be used.

Earlier in February, the RCMP set out new rules for Tasers, stating they can only be used against suspects who are a clear threat.

While the RCMP appears to be stepping back, Canada's police chiefs appear to be encouraging their use.

One Vancouver city councillor says changing the way Tasers are deployed should wait until after Braidwood is done.

"This is not something we want to use like a toy," said George Chow. "I think we really should be careful. I don't see us rushing into training everyone for a weapon that's not that useful, or if it is useful, should be used in limited circumstances."

Right now, the number of municipal and provincial officers who are armed with and trained in the usage of Tasers varies from force to force.

Some provinces ban them among frontline officers and restrict usage to supervisors or tactical team members.

In B.C., where most of the policing is done by the RCMP, our solicitor general says all police forces need a similar policy.

"Our effort is to ensure that they have the tools but they have specific conduct in the deployment of those tools," said John van Dongen.

The worry is that the police chiefs recommendations are just a guideline.

It's actually up to the individual police forces to set Taser policy.

"I'm going to let the RCMP and I'm going to let each police force make their rules for their own practices. Policing is really a local, municipal question," said Peter Van Loan, the federal public safety minister.

Which means Canada could end up with a mish-mash of different policies.

Police psychologist and former RCMP officer Mike Webster says if Taser use is expanded training needs to be entirely revamped.

"If expanding their training means it includes crisis intervention training and having a greater understanding of populations at risk and includes people in crisis, then it would be a good thing. But if it simply means getting more Tasers and using them in more situations and lowering the bar, that would be ridiculous," he said.

The report is expected to be released tomorrow. {February 24, 2009}

Calgary - Chief backs use of Tasers

February 24, 2009
KRISTA SYLVESTER/ METRO CALGARY

With the fate of Taser use possibly hinging on a national report released today, Calgary’s police chief stands firmly behind use of the police tool.

With recommendations being released today by the Canadian Police Association of Chiefs and the Canadian Police Association, two Calgary aldermen have thrown their support behind the notion of all front-end officers carrying Tasers and Calgary police Chief Rick Hanson agrees.

“Absolutely, they should have Tasers; Tasers save lives. There is still not one single documented case where the cause of death is the Taser. It hasn’t been proven,” Hanson told Metro yesterday. [TRUTH NOT TASERS SAYS: That's pure bullshit! This guy has not done his homework and is simply repeating Tom Kaye's INCORRECT information!!]

“We need the tools to deal with those violent people … the Taser is one of those tools,” he added.

Calgary-Buffalo MLA Kent Hehr agrees the Taser can be an effective police tool, but he wants stricter guidelines in place, much like the ones the RCMP put in place earlier this month.

About 900 Tasers are in use by law enforcement agencies across the province.

Support grows for stun guns

February 23, 2009
By RENATO GANDIA AND KATIE SCHNEIDER, SUN MEDIA
The Calgary Sun

City officials say every Calgary cop should be equipped with Tasers in battling criminal activities, as the release of new national stun-gun guidelines looms.

Ald. John Mar and Ald. Diane Colley-Urquhart, who both sit on the Calgary Police Commission, are agreeing with a new set of recommendations by the national association of police calling for better access to the stun guns.

The report, to be released tomorrow by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the Canadian Police Association, suggests all police across the country to be trained and eligible to use Tasers and calls for new rules governing when to use the weapons.

Both Colley-Urquhart and Mar says they're big supporters of Calgary police being able to use Tasers.

"We have the strictest protocol at the Calgary Police Service, of any service across the country," said Colley-Urquhart, adding she'd rather see officers use their Tasers in extreme circumstances than shoot somebody with a gun.

Calgary Police Association president John Dooks also welcomed the report's recommendations, saying front-line officers should be equipped with the stun guns that he said are essential, life-saving tools for the force.

"It's a good idea -- they are definitely a valued tool and proven to be an asset to officers on the front lines," he said.

Of the Calgary Police Service's 1,700 members, 1,100 are front-line officers, but only 400 stun guns are used.

Mar says the recent developments have not been discussed at the commission's meeting, but he believes Tasers are an excellent law enforcement tool.

Theoretically, he'd like to see every Calgary cop armed with the weapon but he's concerned about the cost.

Dooks said the new guidelines and training being proposed in the report are a positive step.

"I think we need the funding to get more," he said, adding the Calgary Police Association has always been open to more training of the devices.

Though the RCMP said earlier this month it would only use Tasers in instances where officers or the public are under threat, not when suspects are being merely resistant, Dooks said the federal force is simply changing policies to be in line with what has already been practised in Alberta for years.

Controversy over the use of stun guns exploded when Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski died after being hit with a Taser at Vancouver International Airport in 2007.

Expand police access to Tasers: New report

I'm speechless. Thankfully, fellow blogger Excited-Delirium ISN'T. See:

Look what we have to try to deal with…

"No links, no studies, no findings" = BS

‘Tasers make officers safer’, eh?


February 21, 2009
By Janice Tibbetts, Canwest News Service

OTTAWA — Canada's police chiefs and front-line officers will call Tuesday for all police nationwide to have access to Taser stun guns, in a report that will set new national guidelines on when the controversial weapons should be used.

The study, to be released by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the Canadian Police Association, will also assert all officers should receive training in using Tasers, Canwest News Service has learned.

The number of municipal and provincial officers who are armed with and trained in usage of the guns varies from force to force, with some provinces banning them among front-line officers and restricting usage to supervisors or tactical team members.

The call for expanded eligibility follows an announcement last week from the RCMP that the national force has reined in the use of Tasers, saying they should only be used on suspects who pose a danger to police or the public.

The guns have been blamed for more than 20 deaths in Canada.

The report Tuesday is expected to reinforce the police position that Tasers have saved lives and they are a safer alternative to using deadly force to subdue a subject who is believed to be dangerous.

The two police organizations commissioned the study last year, in the wake of the high-profile death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski, who died in October 2007 after RCMP officers Tasered him several times at the Vancouver airport.

In a position paper last month, the Canadian Police Association called for all front-line officers to be equipped with Tasers, but the organization has pulled back from its stance because it would suggest that forces should rush out and buy the stun guns for the country's 64,000 officers.

Rather, all officers should be trained and eligible to use the weapons, says the pending report. The document contains only guidelines because rules on Taser use are set by individual governments and forces. Police are also expected to compare Tasers to other weapons and examine research on whether Tasers are deadly.

There are almost 600 police forces in Canada and 73 use Tasers, according to the Edmonton Police Service website.

Policies on usage vary widely. In Edmonton, for instance, about 400 of 1,400 officers are trained to use the guns.

In Saskatchewan, the police commission decided last July to put a moratorium on authorizing Tasers for front-line officers in the province's 14 municipal and First Nations police forces, pending further study. In Ontario, Taser usage is restricted to supervisors and tactical squad members.

Owen Sound Police Chief Tom Kaye, the chairman of the committee that has written Tuesday's report, has denounced the "hysteria" against Taser use and promised the document will educate the public about the value of the guns.

"Nobody, anywhere has ever been able to link one of these devices to anybody dying, ever," Kaye, also-vice president of the Canadian Association of Police Chiefs, told the Owen Sun Times two months ago.

He has also said the new RCMP policy that curtailed usage reflects practices already in place in most provinces.

RCMP Commissioner William Elliott said last week his force recognizes stun guns can case "risk of death, particularly for acutely agitated individuals."

Taser shocks have been blamed for causing an acute and dangerous medical condition called "excited delirium."

Taser use report out next week

Tom says: "In Ontario, assaultive, combative behaviour has to be present, there has to be a threat in order for you to be Tasered." He is so full of shit. Just last week, a 22 year old man was tasered in the Ontario city where I live for "resisting arrest." There was no mention of "assaultive, combative behaviour." I'm working on getting in touch with the guy to find out what happened and I will keep you posted.

Tom Kaye has a biased and slanted view on tasers - he's just another brainwashed taser fanboy. Be sure to also click on the "Tom Kaye" link at the bottom of this post and you'll see what I mean.

I don't expect to be surprised next week. After all, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (of which Tom is Vice-President) wouldn't want to do or say anything that might jeopardize the big sponsorship money they receive each year from Taser International!!

February 20, 2009
MARIA CANTON, OWEN SOUND SUN TIMES

Owen Sound Police Chief Tom Kaye says a national report on Taser use will be released early next week and will include recommendations and guidelines for police forces across the country to consider.

Kaye, who was appointed head of the conductive energy weapons committee last August, says the report won't be delayed by the fact that RCMP Commissioner William Elliott acknowledged last week before a House of Commons public safety committee that Tasers can kill, especially those who are "acutely agitated" -- a rare admission from the head of a police force.

"We're just finishing off the final wording of it and it should be released publicly next Tuesday," Kaye said Thursday.

"It's a position paper and it has been adopted by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the Canadian Police Association. The joint release will come out through those two organizations representing some 60,000 police officers in Canada."

Kaye is also the vice-president for central Canada for the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

The city's top cop says media reports about the RCMP restricting Taser use to situations where the only other option is lethal force are erroneous.

Instead, he says the RCMP last spring tightened their Taser use policy to be more in line with the provinces, including Ontario, which have more stringent guidelines on when the devices can be used.

"The RCMP's policy on the use of Tasers was considerably different than all of the provinces -- they were using the Taser in cases of non-compliance up until June of last year," he said.

"In Ontario, assaultive, combative behaviour has to be present, there has to be a threat in order for you to be Tasered. The RCMP raised the bar on when they can use conductive energy weapons."

In Ontario, only supervisors and tactical team members carry Tasers, while in the RCMP front-line officers are authorized to carry them.

Last June, the RCMP amended its conductive energy weapon policy to read that Tasers "must only be used where it is necessary to do so in circumstances of threats to officer or public safety.

Letter to the Editor: stun guns an effective policing tool

If only I had the time to fully respond to this load of crap!! This guy's obviously bought the company line - lock, stock and barrel.

Repeating the mantra of the brainwashed that the taser is a "less dangerous option than a firearm", he asks and answers the following question: "Does the deployment of a CED have the capability of avoiding serious bodily harm and/or death to all involved parties that might otherwise have led to the use of a firearm? Without a doubt -- yes." I would counter with a question and answer of my own: "Does the deployment of a CED have the capability of CAUSING serious bodily harm and/or death to ONE OR MORE involved parties that might otherwise NOT HAVE LED to the use of a firearm? Without a doubt -- yes."

January 7, 2009
Owen Sound Sun Times

Editor:

Recently, there have been many points of view expressed across the country, the province and the Owen Sound area regarding the pros and cons of Tasers.

Conducted Energy Devices (CED) are recognized by the global policing community as a valuable tool and a less dangerous option than a firearm. The CBC News study has identified pre-2005 models of the X-26 Taser that were recommended for re-testing. As a result, some police services have taken the step of testing those particular models. Currently, the X-26 Tasers deployed by the Owen Sound Police Services are a newer production line of this device and therefore were not part of the recommended re-testing. As well, it should be pointed out that the name Taser is a registered trademark name and although more popular than other such devices is still only one type of CED marketed throughout the world for military, law enforcement and, where permitted by law, civilian use.

Police officers are required to respond and intervene in a variety of situations involving the risk of violence, injury or death to members of the public and the police. Often these situations require immediate intervention, where the condition and emotional state of the subject is uncertain.

Police officers require a range of use of force options, often referred to as the use of force continuum, which include verbal commands, negotiation, physical restraint, intermediate force options, and deadly force. CED's are one such intermediate force option, which have been successful in reducing injury to officers and violent subjects as compared to other use of force options, including lethal force.

As a front-line supervisor with over 22 years of policing experience, what I can personally attest to is that next to the introduction of the semi-automatic handgun, the technology of the CED, has been potentially one of the top use of force options that have been made available to front-line policing over that time period. Any officer who has or will be forced into a potentially life-threatening situation should be permitted to utilize this device to assist with the peaceful resolution of the situation.

During my career, I have been critically shot in the line of duty, been forced to discharge my firearm in order to protect myself and have had immediate family members who are in the policing profession discharge their firearm in order to protect themselves and others. These are split second decisions that are made by front-line officers across the country on a daily basis. They are never taken lightly. Anyone that would express the thought that it is better to potentially have a loved one shot with a firearm versus deploying a CED has possibly missed why the device was introduced in the first place. Do firearms have the potential for taking a person's life when discharged? Absolutely! Will this affect the loved ones of the person(s) involved as well as the officer(s)? Unfortunately yes -- and it will for the rest of their days.

Does the deployment of a CED have the capability of avoiding serious bodily harm and/or death to all involved parties that might otherwise have led to the use of a firearm? Without a doubt -- yes.

Currently, the Police Association of Ontario (PAO) which represents over 32,000 police and civilian members supports the e of CED's as an occupational health and safety measure to reduce injury to members of the public, violent subjects and police officers; we support standardized training, reporting and accountability of the use of CED's; as well as the deployment to all front-line police officers after having received the approved training.

The public does require more information both for and against the use of such devices. At the same time the media needs to report with the same enthusiasm on the positives of how such devices can actually defuse situations and save many more lives on a weekly basis across the entire country when police officers are faced with potentially life-threatening situations.

In the meantime, police officers across the province will await the recommendations from the Canadian Police Research Centre on the safety of CED's for both police and the public and will continue to do the job that they have been sworn to uphold.

Bill Rusk
President
Owen Sound Police Association

Owen Sound tasers tested, chief says

IS THIS GUY FOR REAL???????? Can he REALLY be the vice-president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the CHAIR OF THE NATIONAL TASER COMMITTEE CURRENTLY WRITING A BEST PRACTICES POLICY FOR THE DEVICES??????? Will he recommend that all police "MANUALLY LOOK AT" (whatever the hell that's supposed to mean) their tasers to ensure they are "working properly"?????? God help us all.

December 18, 2008
Posted By MARIA CANTON, SUN TIMES STAFF

The city's police chief says he has complied with a provincial request asking all police services in Ontario to test their Tasers to ensure they are working properly and to submit a stun gun inventory list as soon as this week.

"We manually looked at ours to ensure that they are working properly and we reminded all of our supervisors that there is a protocol that they have to follow," Tom Kaye said Wednesday.

"We check our (Tasers) every day. These are devices that need to be maintained and that is something we do on a very regular basis. We followed through with the request the day it was made."

The Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services last week asked Ontario police services to conduct tests in response to a CBC report that found one Taser model, the X26 model made before 2005, was firing more electricity, up to 50 per cent more, than was specified by the U. S.- based manufacturer Taser International.

The report sparked a national debate on Tasers and prompted many forces, including the RCMP in several provinces, to take their conductive-energy devices to independent labs for testing.

None of the weapons tested were found to be working improperly, according to Kaye, who is also vice-president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the chair of the national Taser committee currently writing a best practices policy for the devices.

There are about 2,000 conductive-energy devices being used by police forces in Ontario. That list is yet to be broken down by model. Owen Sound Police Services has four Tasers, two X26 models and two M26 models, which are carried only by sergeants.

The provincial request does not require police services to report back to the province that they actually tested their Tasers, something Tony Brown, a spokesperson for Community Safety and Correctional Services, says they felt was an unnecessary step.

"It is the ordinary responsibility of police services to make sure their equipment works properly. We have every confidence they will carry out the examination and testing of Tasers as requested by the ministry," Brown said Wednesday.

"The request was made in view of some reports that indicated that there may have been issues with the older Tasers."

The province is also conducting its own review of Taser use and according to Brown, a report should be released early in the new year.

More than 20 people have died in Canada after being jolted with a Taser, which can deliver up to 50,000 volts of electricity. However, many of the deaths have been attributed to "excited delirium," a heightened state of distress in which a person acts agitated, violent, tends to sweat profusely and is seemingly impervious to pain. Often, the victim's heart begins to race and eventually stops.

The city's police force plans to replace its older model Tasers in the new year.

Letter to the Editor: Kaye should test tasers

December 13, 2008
Owen Sound Sun Times

Editor:

Is Tom Kaye for real? According to the news I've heard, including this very story (in the Sun Times), several people's deaths have indeed been linked to the use of Tasers.

So either he's clueless or the Canadian public is being horribly misinformed by the news media.

And then he says that emotion and humanity have no place in the setting of public policy -- well, if there's no humanity in public policy I'd say we're in a really bad way.

I also find it shocking that he has no plans to test the four Tasers Owen Sound police have, especially considering that two of them are the questionable models that may be dangerous. How much effort would this take?

I guess he'd call me hysterical, but as a mother of two young men (fortunately law-abiding) I would rather my sons be shot in the leg with a real gun than Tasered in an attempt to subdue them.

This story was a real headshaker. I had to reread it a couple of times to make sure he said what I thought he said.

Pretty scary stuff.

Stephanie Mordeen
Wiarton

Letter to the Editor: Police Commission needs to step in on taser issue and test stun guns

December 13, 2008
Owen Sound Sun Times

Editor:

There is an old saying : "None are so blind as those who WILL not see." One need only look as far as Owen Sound Police Chief Tom Kaye for a prime example. No sooner had an unbiased CBC study of Tasers come out that indicated older models often fire overcharged voltage, than Kaye was out defending Tasers once again, including Owen Sound's older models which were the subject of the study. He stubbornly refuses to test this city's Tasers. So what is wrong with this man? It's one thing to adhere to one's belief, but to do it blindly is sheer folly.

All B. C. law enforcement agencies and its RCMP, the N. B. police forces, and many other municipalities think testing is a good idea. One can only wonder if Kaye is totally unmonitored by the Police Commission in this city -- where are they on this issue?

For Kaye to suggest that there has not even been a "casual" relationship between the deaths of 25 Canadians after Tasering is blind pig-headed nonsense, to put it bluntly.

To accuse myself and others of relying on emotion and compassion is self-delusional on his part, not that I mind being tarred with the brush of compassion. By the way, tell that to the widows and children of those who died after being Tasered, be it from excited delirium or not.

The fact of the matter is, without the Taser, and with common sense and some psychology, these deceased would still be alive today, and probably getting help for their problems, or be incarcerated if that is applicable.

It is well time that Chief Kaye opens his eyes. We are not some deep southern backwater and we do not appreciate being treated as such. I urge the Owen Sound Police Commission to sit down and talk to Chief Kaye about close-mindedness and willngness to listen to the opinions and advice of others -- be they cops or JUST civilians. Who knows, he might just see the light.

Tim Thompson
Annan