Pretty quickly it turns out. James Yeager TASERed three of his students to find out. They had to complete a simple course of fire as fast as possible after being zapped. The first two guys did very well. The last guy was definitely a little shaken.
Video here.
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Good post.
James
… and even shaken he did very well.
Wow…I’m amazed. I thought Tazers disabled you for much longer than that. Good stuff.
All three of them were more or less immediately back into the fight. Very nice.
Two questions:
1. Why are they reloading with their gun pointed into the air?
2. Why do they turn around like that?
Having learned much of my practical shooting skills from IDPA, both of these things freaked me out a little bit and looked like safety violations, but clearly these guys are in a controlled (and presumably safe) environment.
I always said those things were stupid. People are usually curious to see what it feels like to get tasered. Yeah it hurts, but only for a few seconds. That’s not a deterent. I’ve never met someone who wanted to get shot to see what it’d feel like. If the battery dies, you have no way of knowing until you try to use it. It’s highly improbable that your pistol’s ammo will go bad without you noticing. Also, if you were to pepper spray these guys, they would have trouble seeing the target, much less shooting it. Not so with the Taser, as this video shows.
I would think that recovery would be reasonably fast for those whom the Taser did not kill. Don’t overlook the fact that Tasering sometimes results in death for the Tasered person. In fact, I believe Taser lost a lawsuit recently in this connection. Ah, yes: here it is.
I heard that the Taser is not able to go through anything “thick” like a leather jacket. Is it true ?
If it is, then taser is really one hell of an unreliable defense weapon.
Vak, I have not used one, but it must have some limit for penetration.
I can said that my friend accidentally tasered himself a few years back while wearing heavy winter clothing. His taser went off inside his jacket and the only thing he felt was warmth.
Taser like mace won’t phase some people. To others it can cause death.
@Joshua
When you go to combat training schools like the one that is offer by James there is no 180 degree firing line. Like real combat there isn’t a firing line. As long as the four rules is enforced, safety is enforced. Notice those guys didn’t sweep anyone with their pistol.
1. All firearms are always loaded.
2. Always keep a firearm pointed in a safe direction.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
4. Always be sure of your target and know what is behind it along the bullet’s trajectory.
US Army Room Clearing / Dynamic Entry. Yes they are using real explosive and bullets.
http://rpginn.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=684&Itemid=39
Just a few thoughts from a LEO who has been both Tased and Sprayed
Yes you can recover quickly from the Taser, but if the probes are connected well like they were with these guys, all you have to do is cycle the unit again if they start to move and the process repeats. I will keep cycling the Taser until you do what I’m telling you to do which is stop resisting.
In regard to Matt Groom’s comment: “if the battery dies, you have no way of knowing until you try to use it.” The Taser has a visible read-out regarding battery life and you can check it whenever you want. As long as you’re properly checking your equipment before each shift, chances are you’ll be fine. (I’m not suggesting that you not be prepared for the worst case scenario, just merely clarifying a bit. I try to avoid carrying un-reliable equipment.)
In regard to his second comment: “If you were to pepper spray these guys, they would have trouble seeing the target, much less shooting it.” This is true but only to a point. When I was sprayed as a part of my training, I could function properly for a short time and actually had to physically fight off an attacker. It wasn’t until later that I had trouble seeing. Food for thought.
But all that to say, I’m not going to be Tasing or Spraying a would-be attacker who is armed. That’s a deadly force scenario. I’ll be presenting my pistol or shotgun or whatever.
Contrary to popular belief, the Taser and Pepper spray are not alternatives to deadly force. They are merely various tools within the use-of-force continuum. You wouldn’t use your pistol to stop someone who is passively resisting by lying on the ground, and you wouldn’t go hands-on with someone who is armed. You escalate and de-escalate your use of force depending on the circumstances and the Taser and Pepper Spray, like the baton, give you some more choices.
Fen left a comment….
“Contrary to popular belief, the Taser and Pepper spray are not alternatives to deadly force. They are merely various tools within the use-of-force continuum.”
That certainly is true so far as a trained law enforcement officer is concerned.
“Yes you can recover quickly from the Taser, but if the probes are connected well like they were with these guys, all you have to do is cycle the unit again if they start to move and the process repeats.”
The TASER models sold to civilians have a 30 second charge, and that is only with new, fully charged batteries. It is very possible that a criminal attacker will not give in before the juice runs out.
“The Taser has a visible read-out regarding battery life…”
Only on military and law enforcement models. Stuff sold to the general public does not.
The comments you are responding to, Fen, are from civilians who do not have access to the type of equipment you use on a daily basis. Everything they said about TASERS concerns the equipment they have access to, and everything they said about those electric toys is completely true.
James
James,
Thanks for your response showing some interesting perspectives I’d not considered. I’m definitely more familiar with what I use as a LEO.
Fen.
There *IS* one thing the civilian TASERS have that law enforcement versions do not.
I have heard that the C2 model comes with an MP3 player in the handle!
James
James, LOL, too true!
I was tased as part of Police Explorer’s and everything i learned from that experience is that the taser itself was not designed to keep you down after it has been used, it was designed to stop you in your tracks and give the user time to either get away or subdue the individual. In my opinion, this makes it a much for effective weapon in an “up to the minute” media driven world.