I-Team: Tasers go on sale to the public

Joe Conger
KENS 5 Eyewitness News
It's legal in 43 states and it's not considered a firearm. The personal Taser is considered an electronic control device.

The I-Team's Joe Conger took a three-second hit from a Taser.

"I felt like I was struck by a speeding 18-wheeler ... completely disabling, blinding pain," Conger said.

The incapacitation is what makes the Taser such a gem, it's manufacturer said.

"Quite frankly, it's the safest way to end that confrontation compared to other alternatives out there today," said Tom Smith of Taser International, the company that makes the devices.

The consumer model, available in metallic pink, is expected to begin shipping in April. That device, the C2, sends a 50,000-volt shock for 30 seconds. That's enough time, for a woman to escape her attacker, Taser says.

Critics say police get hours of training with their Taser, the public gets a background check and a manual for a weapon that's just as powerful.
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"This is very worrisome. There's going to be less training involved. And more voltage and less risk and consequence in the private sector for when they are being overused," said Debbie Russell of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Even local police have concerns about un-trained Taser-toting consumers being unleashed on the public.

"It's just kind of a scary situation to know that there may be a lot of people carrying them around out there," San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said.

The C2 can only be activated after a purchaser passes a computer background check.

Once fired, two small hooks impale the intended target to deliver the jolt. Tiny markers are released, like confetti, with numbers to identify whose Taser was used. The device's hooks can only be fired once. If the hooks should miss or there are multiple attackers, the C2 can be used as a contact stun gun.

If a C2 user sends a copy of a police report stating the device was used in self-defense, Taser will replace the device free of charge, Taser's Web site says.

"If somebody's going to use this, they need to be accountable, they need to know how it works, they need to be trained. We also include that material along with the device. Those are our concerns, that it doesn't get misused," Smith said.

Misuse is exactly what critics say will happen.

Research shows more than 160 deaths of individuals following the use of the stun gun.

Taser maintains no medical studies link their devices to those deaths. There are lawsuits pending against the company, even some from police injured in training exercises.

"We don't know the long-term health affects because it hasn't been on the market long enough. The studies just simply weren't done," Russell said.

The ACLU is pushing lawmakers in Austin for bans on the weapon until more independent studies are done on the Taser's effects. Taser, however, is confident its stun gun delivers non-lethal results. The U.S. Department of Justice is currently involved in a Taser effects study.

"We're trying to give people the empowerment to protect themselves. It's about protecting life. That's what we started this company for. That's what we give you," Smith said.

Taser is taking Internet orders for the C2, which starts at $299. The activation fee is $9.95.

I think a Fender Stratocaster would be a much more appropriate speaker gift, and for about the same money.

But GG, can you get a Fender in metallic pink? That's what makes the Taser gift so special!

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Originally posted by Gretchen:
But GG, can you get a Fender in metallic pink? That's what makes the Taser gift so special!

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Well, I think they do make Strats in pink. And I know that AP has a pink mastertone banjo, so maybe that would be an option as well.

"Astronaut" brand adult diapers would be another speakers gift idea!

Well I don't know about metallic Pink - but it sounds like a legal alternative for us ADA's who, unlike the elected, are evidently too irresponsible to carry a concealed firearm into a courthouse.

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Well I don't know about metallic Pink - but it sounds like a legal alternative for us ADA's who, unlike the elected, are evidently too irresponsible to carry a concealed firearm into a courthouse.

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No, Scott. That's just part of the Defense Attorney protection program. (I was going to say Defense Attorney defense program, but that would have been redundantly redundant.)

Personally autographed pictures of Scott Brumley, suitable for framing, would also be nice speakers gifts.

Only for speakers who receive exceptionally low marks.

But I like the Stratocaster idea. Particularly if it's a beat-up model like SRV used to play.

How about the DVD box set of all the You-Tube and Jackass episodes as well as all the knock off videos (ie - Frat House hazings) all staring the Tasers that I am now, here today, predicting will be flooding the i-net in no time flat.

I predict now that tasers are more affordable, and as JMH said, once they flood the internet, will pop up in our criminal cases. Actually, I'm surprised not to have seen more civilian taser incidents. I remember when the electronic stun guns first appeared in the mid-80's, lots of crooks had them.

I seem to recall being given a choice of speaker gifts at the Annual: either the ... um, card game set, the manicure set or the thumb drive. I was instructed by the esteemed director of training for the association that I was free to opt for the manicure set over the game set ... if I was something less than a manly man (paraphrasing for this family-oriented forum). Of course, I abided by his counsel; he is, after all, a lawyer and he has a title. But this new trend may set the stage for a new set of choices in speaker gifts.

"Mr. Brumley, the Association would like to thank you for your efforts in curing the insomnia of our audience. As a token of our appreciation, you may choose from our selection of tasteful speaker gifts. You can take either this lovely pink taser or this forfeited 8-liner. Or you can challenge one of our more experienced members to a game of rock-paper-scissors for an old set of dominoes."