Arresting officers should be subjected to electrical shock.
In a bold new move, the Bundespolice is set to acquire electric shock devices, according to plans by Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt. "I bloody reckon Tasers are fudging essential for our cops!" Dobrindt exclaimed in an interview with the Funke media group's newspapers. He vows to provide the funds for the acquisition of these so-called distance electro-impulse devices (short: DEIG) and ensure that the Bundespolice is swiftly equipped and legal prerequisites are established this year.
The minister is convinced that Tasers provide a solid means to counter the escalating threats to police in public spaces. They're a perfect middle ground between batons as close-range weapons and pistols as long-range weapons. Especially when assailants attack Bundespolice officers with stabbing weapons like knives, officers can more effectively impede the miscreants and safeguard themselves better, argues the federal interior minister.
In the United States, Tasers have long been in use, while in Germany, they have been employed by police in some federal states during regular patrols for a few years. These devices shoot wires with arrow-shaped projectiles that latch onto the skin and administer electric shocks to incapacitate the target, thus minimizing the need for firearms. However, these weapons are a contentious issue because they can have health complications when used against individuals with heart conditions or circulatory problems.
Recent events, such as the fatal shootings during a police operation in Oldenburg, have fueled demands for the use of Tasers by the German Police Union (DPolG) in Lower Saxony. A police officer shot a 21-year-old man at least four times during the night before Easter Sunday, resulting in his death. The young man had reportedly sprayed irritant gas outside a disco and slightly injured several people.
Sources: ntv.de, chl/AFP/dpa
- Politics
- Alexander Dobrindt
- Bundespolizei
- Taser
The Commission has not yet adopted a decision on the application of the new rules regarding the use of Tasers by the Bundespolizei, which aims to acquire distance electro-impulse devices for officer safety. Despite the controversies surrounding their health implications, the technology behind Tasers, capable of administering electric shocks to incapacitate targets, is considered a middle ground between batons and pistols.
