Security

Taser Releases Safety Tests for Shocking New Shotgun (Updated)

Controversial electroshock weaponeer Taser International is quickly building up it arsenal. But the results from the safety and field tests of that new gear – well, that’s coming along much more slowly. [UPDATE: Taser has just sent over abstracts of safety trials, conducted by company consultants. Scroll down to see ’em.] The firm recently made […]

taser-x121Controversial electroshock weaponeer Taser International is quickly building up it arsenal. But the results from the safety and field tests of that new gear - well, that's coming along much more slowly. [UPDATE: Taser has just sent over abstracts of safety trials, conducted by company consultants. Scroll down to see 'em.]

The firm recently made available a shocking XREP shotgun projectile. It also introduced a new specialist shotgun (pictured) optimized for the XREP and other '"less lethal" rounds. And then there's the ghastly teaser campaign for the company's forthcoming "X3."

Danger Room looked at XREP –- eXtended Range Electronic Projectile-– before its big launch last year. The original work was carried out for the Marine Corps, which was looking for a less-lethal weapon for clearing buildings. XREP packages a complete Taser system including power supply in a 12-gauge shotgun round with a range of 100 feet. On striking, it inflicts a 20-second Taser shock cycle via some clever electrodes, immobilizing the target.

Taser has announced two versions of XREP. There's a finned round for standard shotguns, and a rifled version for the Taser X12 Less Lethal Shotgun, made by Mossberg. The X12 is customised for low-velocity rounds (like bean bags and XREP) and rifled for greater accuracy. The bright yellow color warns users that it is less-lethal only and the weapon will not accept standard shotgun rounds.

The example in the picture has an X26 Taser mounted under the barrel. While the XREP projectile is not as dangerous at close range as other less lethal shotgun rounds that rely on impact force, it's not recommended at very close quarters, so the X26 can fill the gap. ("Bean bag" rounds, shotgun rounds typically consisting of a canvas bag of shot used to subdue suspects, have been known to break ribs and cause other injuries including liver trauma, abdominal wall penetration, and internal bleeding leading to death.)

After the launch last year the XREP went into field trials; Taser International have not yet shared the results of these trials. The first things any purchaser is likely to ask are "Does it work?" and "Is it safe?" ...Taser International have not yet responded to a request for information on this. We don't even know if the XREP was ever actually used in an actual arrest.

The X3 is due to be launched at Taser's annual conference on July 27th. The company is drip-feeding information about the new weapon, with aX3 special web site revealing one new feature a day in a kind of slow-motion strip-tease.

The X3 has its own Facebook page and, worst of all, it Twitters. Presumably the agency were briefed to come up with something cute and non-threatening. Evidently they decided that the X3's image should come across less as Arnold Schwarzenegger and more as Paris Hilton, judging from these tweets:

"Check out my color screen. Like a Tele-Tubby … only a little more intense!"

"Just out of the solar radiation box. Tanning bed for TASER’s… 3 months of Arizona summer sun radiation. Check that one off!"

"Never thought I’d get so excited about the feel of a safety switch. But wait until you feel it – smooooooth."

It's not the feel of the safety switch you need to worry about so much as the feel of getting zapped by one. The most concrete piece of information we have from the press release that the X3 has something called "Rotational Pulse Drive" which allows it to simultaneously incapacitate multiple targets, making it more effective... but of course being able to shock several people at once also gives more potential for abuse. Stories, and videos, of Taser abuse are legion -- from the "Don’t Tase me, bro" incident at a John Kerry event to an officer Tasering a 72-year old great-grandmother.

One of Taser International's repsonses to the abuse problem has been the introduction of Axon, a wearable video camera systemwhich will record a cop's every move and word. Given that the X3 includes a color screen (as well as it's own GUI, apparently a first for a handheld weapon) then something like Axon may be included as standard.

This is supported by a comment by Rick Smith, Taser International's CEOin a press release, saying that it offers "exponentially increased capabilities, including vastly enhanced data, networking, and communication functionality as well as enhanced safety features."

This should help settle disagreements about tasering incidents, if the footage is made available. However, as the comments made by Danger Room readers in the two incidents mentioned above show, even when you have a video available there can be radically different views on whether Taser use was necessary or appropriate. Expect more videos and more arguments in future.

UPDATE: Noah here. Taser reps just got back to us, with four abstracts of studies that they say show just how safe the XREP is. All four studies were lead by Dr. Jeffrey Ho or Dr. Donald Dawes, both of whom are paid consultants to Taser International. Here they are:

  • Photo: TASER International*

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