Interviewed on BBC Radio Berkshire - 30 January 2014

30/01/2014, Andrew Peach - BBC Radio Berkshire http://bbc.in/Lu9JvV
Interviewed on the lost taser in Windsor Great Park.

Thames Valley Police officer suspended over lost Taser

The weapon was mislaid as the officer left the site to attend another incident

A policeman has been suspended after losing a Taser in Windsor Great Park.

The device was lost by the Thames Valley Police officer on Tuesday afternoon as he left the site to attend an incident in Datchet.

Supt Steve Williams, head of the tactical firearms unit, said it had the potential to cause harm "if used or handled incorrectly".

An "extensive" search in the Windsor area, and a full investigation into the incident, are under way.

The weapon, which has no cartridges attached to it, is thought to have been mislaid as the officer exited the park into Bishops Gate Road.

Supt Williams added: "If any member of the public should come across this device they need to contact Thames Valley Police immediately for us to recover it, as it is an offence to unlawfully possess this sort of device."

Tasers were first trialled in 2004 and their use has since been rolled out to all forces in England and Wales.

Officers are required to take a training course before being allowed to use a Taser and they are told only to deploy them when threatened with violence.

The 5,000-acre Windsor Great Park is owned by The Crown Estate.

It started out as a Norman hunting forest, which was enclosed in the late 13th Century, and still includes a deer park.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-25953000

Interviewed on BBC Radio Berkshire - 17 January 2014

17/01/2014, Andrew Peach - BBC Radio Berkshire http://bbc.in/1j67jPn
Interviewed on BBC Berkshire on the increased use of Tasers in Thames Valley.

Charity criticises police over Taser use

Amnesty International concerned after instances of Taser use by Thames Valley police double from 2012 to 2013
Press Association The Guardian, Friday 17 January 2014 19.26 GMT

Thames Valley police announced last year that it was increasing the number of officers equipped with Tasers from 280 to 485. Photograph: Danny Lawson/PA

A police force that almost doubled its use of Tasers last year has been criticised by Amnesty International UK. Thames Valley police revealed that its officers deployed electric stun guns 119 times in 2013, compared with 61 occasions in 2012.

The figures for last year include several instances of "drive stun" usage, when a Taser is directly applied to a person's clothes or body. In January 2013 the force announced it would increase the number of officers equipped with Tasers from 280 to 485.

Amnesty International UK has called for the use of the weapons to be restricted to officers trained to the standard of specialist firearms personnel.

Oliver Sprague, a director at the charity, said: "Without urgently needed new safeguards, and at these significantly increased rates of usage, it's surely only a matter of time before something goes horribly wrong when a Thames Valley Police officer fires a Taser weapon.

"We've always said that Tasers can have a part to play in policing operations where there's a clear risk of death or serious injury to police officers or members of the public - but Tasers should be used sparingly and only by highly trained officers."

In 2004, following a trial in five forces, it was agreed to allow chief officers of all police forces in England and Wales to make Tasers available to authorised firearms officers.

There have been a number of controversial cases involving use of the stun guns - including blind pensioner Colin Farmer who was hit with the weapon in Chorley, Lancashire, when an officer mistook his white stick for a Samurai sword.

In April last year Andrew Pimlott died after being burned when he doused himself in flammable liquid and was then hit by a police Taser outside his Plymouth home.

Thames Valley Police assistant chief constable Chris Shead defended the force's use of the weapon. "Only qualified Thames Valley Police officers are permitted to carry Taser," he said.

"Taser is only considered for use in cases where it is necessary and proportionate to the behaviour the officer encounters .. These are incidents where officers are faced with someone who is threatening a significant level of violence towards themselves, others or the attending officer. Taser use is a staged process.

"On many occasions the use of the laser sight, or red dot, is enough to encourage people to comply … as demonstrated in 2013. They have only been fired 31 times."

In response to a Freedom of Information request, Thames Valley Police revealed the number of times their officers have deployed Tasers since September 2007:

2007 (September onwards): seven times

2008: 18 times

2009: 43 times

2010: 58 times

2011: 42 times

2012: 61 times

2013 (January-November): 119 times

Interviewed on BBC Radio Oxford on 17 January 2014

Eoin Hartwrigh from Appleford, Phil Gayle - BBC Radio Oxford http://bbc.in/1guSDYq
Interview with Phil Gayle on the increased use of Tasers by Thames Valley Police.

Interviewed on the JVS Show BBC Three Counties - Taser Special on 20 December 2013.

Interviewed on the The JVS Show, Taser Special.


Hear what happened when JVS held an evening of debate on the use of tasers. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01m34l8

Interviewed on Andrew Castle's Show LBC 97.3 on 8 December 2013

Interviewed on Andrew Castle's Show on LBC 97.3  on the taser use in special needs school in Plymouth.
Should MPs have a pay rise?

Andrew Castle | The Whole Show | 2h 12m 5s | 08.12.13

Police use 50,000-volt Taser on 15-year-old schoolboy with learning difficulties after being called in over 'scuffle' | Mail Online 6 December 2013

 Quoted in The Daily Mail


Yesterday Sophie Khan, a solicitor-advocate and legal director at Police Action Centre called for an inquiry. She said: 'The use of a Taser on this occasion has to be called into question. The police action may have been excessive.
'The use on children is only allowed if it is the only feasible method of restraining the child.
'It's only there if there are no other alternatives to restrain the child.
'Often officers can say they weren't aware of behaviour issues, but in this case they must have been aware.
'Using a Taser on someone suffering some kind of behavioural difficulty or disability is something the policy or guidance doesn't allow.'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2519576/Police-use-50-000-volt-Taser-15-year-old-schoolboy-learning-difficulties-called-scuffle.html

Police taser boy with learning difficulties at special-needs school | The Times 7 December 2013

 Quoted in The Times

Sophie Khan, a solicitor-advocate and legal director at the Police Action Centre, said: “The use of a Taser on this occasion has to be called into question. The police action may have been excessive. The use on children is only allowed if it is the only feasible method of restraining the child. It’s only there if there are no other alternatives to restrain the child.
“Often officers can say they weren’t aware of behaviour issues, but in this case they must have been aware. Using a Taser on someone suffering some kind of behavioural difficulty or disability is something the policy or guidance doesn’t allow.”

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/crime/article3942502.ece

http://dyslexiauntied.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/uk-police-taser-teenage-boy-with.html