Gisborne cop sanctioned over lost taser

Police in New Zealand have used bright-yellow X2 tasers since they were introduced here in 2010. A new model of tasers will be rolled out over the next three years, as production of the X2 will soon cease. The new model will not have a built-in camera as most other jurisdictions rely on body-worn cameras to record taser use; whether New Zealand Police will start using body-worn cameras is being considered separately. RNZ file picture of a police demonstration of the X2 taser.

A Gisborne police officer has been sanctioned for failing to promptly report a missing taser.

According to a notice published last month on the Independent Police Conduct Authority’s website, the authority oversaw a police investigation into the missing taser, which was said to have become dislodged from the officer’s holster during a disorder incident.

The weapon was subsequently picked up by a member of the public.

Findings of the police investigation were that the taser likely became dislodged due to a mechanical failure of the holster, which the officer would not have realised at the time.

However, police found the officer failed to promptly report the missing weapon and failed to follow instructions from supervisors.

Those actions breached the police code of conduct and caused avoidable delays in recovering the taser.

The officer was given a confidential employment sanction.

The IPCA said it agreed with the findings.

■  Police were unable to immediately answer how many tasers had gone missing in Gisborne over the years, but sought the public’s help during 2016 to locate one.

Police to start replacing their current taser model this year

Police will begin a three-year rollout to replace their fleet of tasers this year as the model they have used for more than a decade will soon no longer be produced.

Tasers have been used as a prevention tool by New Zealand Police since their introduction in 2010.

In an announcement last September, Deputy Commissioner Tania Kura said replacing the fleet was an important part of equipping officers to keep themselves and communities safe.

“Our officers can consistently rely on them to de-escalate violent behaviour.

“They are an effective less-lethal tactical alternative to a firearm and help achieve safer outcomes for police and communities.

“In 82 percent of incidents where a taser is presented, the presentation alone, without discharging, is enough for the situation to be successfully de-escalated.

“With our current taser fleet nearing its end of life and components of the model we use no longer being manufactured, we need to ensure our staff have the best tools available to them to keep themselves, and our communities, safe.

“While our current taser has a built-in camera, the new model does not.

“New taser devices are not manufactured with a built-in camera – most other jurisdictions rely on body-worn cameras to record taser use.

“New Zealand Police do not currently use body-worn cameras.

“The wider question of whether body-worn cameras are appropriate for the New Zealand policing environment, and what that might look like, is being considered separately.

“It’s a decision that will need to be taken carefully with the right legal consideration as well as engagement with communities and police staff,” Ms Kura said.

Axon, a taser manufacturer in Arizona, released the Taser 10 last year. It can shoot 10 probes before having to reload, for a distance up to 13m or half a basketball court; X2s shoot just 7.6m.

Axon, which says its mission is to “protect life and make the bullet obsolete”, has revived a much-opposed plan to put tasers on drones.

A controversy surrounding tasers erupted in Australia last May after the death of a 95-year-old woman who was tasered by police there.