Town of Berlin Will Get Tasers

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(cross-posted from Vermont Watch, here; edited third to last paragraph below the fold due to coding problems)

According to an article within today’s Times Argus (Thursday, June 7, 2012; front page, top with continuance on page A6), during its meeting held earlier this week the Berlin Select Board has decided to purchase four (4) Tasers aka Electronic Control Devices (ECD’s) as well as related equipment for its police department (here; via Times Argus; article behind paywall):


BERLIN – Select Board members haven’t yet seen a policy outlining when they should and shouldn’t be used and don’t know precisely where the money to pay for them will come from, but they did agree this week to buy four Tasers for their seven-member police department.

The unanimous decision met with some resistance during a brief discussion that began with a polite request from a concerned resident and ended with a spirited lecture from an unexpected source.

Long-time resident Paul Irons and Dan Stein, an ORCA Media Inc. videographer who took a seat in the audience after running out of tape following the board’s protracted discussion of Berlin Pond Monday night, both urged members not to pull the trigger on the stun gun purchase.

[…]

Since it is related to the above, what follows are excerpted minutes of the May 7th Berlin Select Board meeting during which a Taser presentation was provided (here; via PDF):


Town of Berlin

Municipal Office Building

108 Shed Road

Berlin, VT. 05602

Regular Select Board Meetings

lst &  Monday of Each Month

Monday, May 7, 2012

6:30 PM

Selectboard Members: Brac-il Towne, Chair; Roberta Haskin, Vice Chair, Ture Nelson, Secretary; Pete Kelley, and Craig Frazier. Present: Jeff Schulz, Town Administrator; Patti Lewis, Town Treasurer. All items are unanimous unless otherwise noted.

APPROVED MINUTES

Brad Towne called the meeting to order at 7′:00 p.m.

[…]

Electronic Control Devices – Lt. Faulkner

Chief William Wolfe, Berlin Police Dept., stated that he would like to equip the Police with electronic control devises (tasers). He stated that it would significantly reduce injuries to ofñcers and the public. Chief Wolfe stated that tasers are a safe alternative to pepper spray, which cannot be used effectively at the Central Vermont Medical Center. He stated that three ofñcers have been injured while on duty in the past month, two of whom were injured while on duty at CVMC. Chief Wolfe introduced Lt. Todd Faulkner, Hillsdale, New Hampshire Police, as the representative of Taser International, an expert witness for the Court of Appeals, and a twenty-two year veteran Police Ofñcer. Lt. Faulkner stated that he has conducted Taser training for many years and has worked with over 100 police agencies in New England. He stated that tasers are the most medically tested weapons system that law enforcement carries today. Lt. Faulkner stated that electronic control devices are not risk  but the likelihood of injury is small. He stated that the device is constantly internally registering when it is used and how much, and how long it is used. Lt. Faulkner stated that this data is downloadable to be used as evidence. He stated that the taser uses very low current that disrupts the bodies nervous system so the individual cannot control muscle use. Lt. Faulkner stated that the taser device uses a pulse current not a constant current. He stated that the weapon comes with different cartridges in 25 feet and 35 feet for law enforcement use. Lt. Faulkner stated that the taser is used for 5 seconds at a time. He stated that the training for taser use consists of an online class setting, followed by policy reinforcernent and training drills with a qualified trainer. Lt. Faulkner suggested that the Town set up Capital reserve íimds for the maintenance and replacement of the Tasers as they are equipment that will need to be maintained and will wear out. Chief Wolfe stated that he would like to buy three tasers for the department at $950 per unit. Craig Frazier asked if the Chief could approach Central Vermont Medical Center to see if they could help offset the cost of the units? Chief Wolfe stated that he could explore that route. He stated that VLCT has a policy that the Town could use as a model, and he is also looking at Lt. Faulkner’s policy regarding tasers. Jeff Schulz asked the Chief to provide the Board with copies of those policies.

[…]

View (embedded) archived video of the May 7th Berlin Select Board meeting (available via Vermont Watch, near bottom of post), here.

Related article: Berlin police chief puts in plea for Tasers (via Times Argus; April 21, 2012; article behind paywall), here.

Find out more about Tasers (via an informational slideshow of mine on the subject of Montpelier, Vermont and Tasers), here.

7 thoughts on “Town of Berlin Will Get Tasers”

  2. One of the smarter things taser has done is hire policemen to make their pitch.

    Chief Wolfe introduced Lt. Todd Faulkner, Hillsdale, New Hampshire Police, as the representative of Taser International,

    Kind of a uniform blessing from the officer/salesman’s PD dept and town.

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  4. This puts the pressure on mental health advocates to make sure they don’t get to use the Tasers in the new Berlin psychiatric hospital.

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