As pointed out in the National Post last week, there are now 10 reviews or inquiries on the subject matter of the use of Tasers by Canadian police. Attention was focused on the weapon a couple of weeks ago when a video of newly arrived Polish immigrant, Robert Dziekanski, who died shortly after being confronted by four RCMP officers and Tasered in the arrivals section of Vancouver International Airport, became public.
Although there had been deaths before of persons after being shot with a stun gun, the video that went around the world showed the 40-year-old, highly stressed man not appearing to be threatening to the officers or anyone else. The video seemed to show that the unarmed man could have been subdued without having to resort to the Taser to immobilize him.
Since the graphic video became public, there are at least 10 reviews or inquiries that at least focus to some extent on the use of Tasers by police. Certainly an inquiry is warranted in B.C. where there are other issues that led to Dziekanski’s fate besides the use of the Taser. Although the 40-year-old understood or spoke no English, it appears that he was landed in this country without having had an interpreter present. There are questions as to why an interpreter or a Polish-speaking airport employee was not called in to attempt to talk to him to find out what was causing the distress that led to his bizarre behavior. Just how he was left in or managed to stay in the arrivals section of the airport for 10 hours needs to be determined. And another question that demands answers is why airport firefighters were not called when Dziekanski went into distress; they would have arrived much sooner than the outside paramedics that eventually reached the scene. All of these questions need answers as well as when and under what circumstances it is proper for police officers to resort to the use of a stun gun.
But as well as the inquiry that is proceeding in B.C., Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunwick and Newfoundland and Labrador are also reviewing policies in an attempt to determine when and if a Taser should be used. Regarding the death of Mr. Diekanski, reviews are underway by the RCMP and the RCMP Commission for Public Complaints, into the conduct of the officers who were present when Dziekanski died. In addition to these overlapping probes, the B.C. coroner will hold an inquest into the death in May of next year. And, not to be left out, lest the public think that they are not properly earning their perks, Parliament is also getting into the act. The Commons committee on public safety will hold an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Robert Dziekanski.
All of these inquiries, inquest, probes and reviews will overlap at least to the extent of the proper use of the Taser by police officers. Unless there is some genetic difference between those who are Tasered in BC as opposed to those who are hit with the weapon in Nova Scotia or Newfoundland and Labrador, there is no need for all of these inquiries and reviews into the same subject matter. Although it is almost un-Canadian to say this, despite our federalist system there is only one taxpayer. And this one taxpayer is now on the hook to pay for all of these reviews, inquiries and investigations. This is a perfect example of the inefficiency of governments that waste thousands of dollars unnecessarily in order to show that they are doing something.
As the inquiry that will be held in British Columbia will be the most comprehensive and the one with the highest profile, all these other inquiries and reviews should cease. The other provinces, the RCMP and the feds could have an input into that inquiry. But there is absolutely no need for all of these reviews that cover the same subject matter.
In a perfect world all of these inquiries, reviews and investigations would come up with the same recommendations regarding the appropriate use of Tasers by the police. But if the world was perfect we wouldn’t need police let alone cops armed with Tasers and other weapons. We are likely to see different recommendations and different guidelines which, in addition to spending all that money, would put us back to square one; no uniform policy regarding the use of Tasers across the country.
For the sake of the beleaguered Canadian taxpayer, let’s hope there isn’t a Taser death in Saskatchewan or Manitoba in the near future. The mind boggles at how many other investigations we could end up with.
