The North Royalton City Council recently discussed the purchase of Tasers for the North Royalton Police Department. The discussion took place at Council’s Safety Committee meeting.
A Taser, also known as a Tom A. Swift Electric Rifle, is a handheld device that incapacitates a person by transmitting a 50,000-volt electric shock, according the Britannica.com. “The Taser fires two small darts, connected to the device with thin wires, up to a distance of approximately 11 meters (35 feet). The darts can penetrate clothing and, once they make contact with the target, deliver the electric shock, which disrupts the target’s nervous system, resulting in temporary incapacitation. The Taser is not considered a firearm, because it uses compressed nitrogen to launch the darts. A Taser can also be used as a stun gun by pressing it directly against the target’s body, thereby administering the electric shock.”
The subject was placed on the Safety Committee agenda, after Ward 5 Council Representative Dawn Carbone-McDonald had continually brought up the measure, stating that there is a need for Tasers in the Police Department. She recently voted against legislation that approved the lease of license-plate reading cameras, saying that she felt that the Tasers would be a more important expenditure. “You cannot place a price and value over the protection and lives of our Police officers to ensure they are likely able to return home safely each and every day,” said Carbone-McDonald.
“I know it’s continuously brought up,” stated Mayor Larry Antoskiewicz. “I think one of the things said at the last meeting was that the Police Chief said, ‘if you want to give us the money for it . . .,’ I don’t think that there was any response there. He did say if there was a grant opportunity, he would look at it. I don’t think you can ever put a cost on safety, but to say that our officers are not equipped to handle situations is a misconception. They have a lot of different tools. Can Tasers be one of those tools – sure, but I know it’s a tool that is used infrequently, based on information from other cities. They are not used that often. I’m not minimizing that, and there is a time they come in handy, but I know that they are not used very frequently in any city. If an opportunity comes up, we will definitely look at it like we do with anything. I want to make it clear: Never will I diminish the importance of keeping our officers safe, but I also look to my chief for input. We make sure, whether it be police or fire, really, all of our departments – we want to keep everyone safe in the workforce. The police, of course, have a job risk-wise that is greatest in the city and we will always look at what we can do to keep them safe.”
Carbone-McDonald stated that “having Tasers will help efforts to recruit officers to fill open positions in our city. Many officers require this protection in considering where they would consider to work. Recruiting police officers is difficult these days and we need to hire more officers just like other communities. I have spoken with a couple of officers who recently left Cleveland for a neighboring city. They both agreed that they would not have joined that city if Tasers were not available.” Antoskiewicz stated that “in my discussions with police chiefs, a candidate has never asked if we have Tasers.” He also indicated that the subject of Tasers has never been brought up as a part of police union negotiations.
By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer