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The NSW Ombudsman Bruce Barbour is currently reviewing the use of Taser weapons by the NSW police. This is the second review he has conducted. The first was completed in 2008 and related to the use of Tasers by specialist units and senior police.
While the Ombudsman found their use to have largely been appropriate, he identified some failings in the systems surrounding the use of the weapons. He recommended a two year moratorium on a further roll out of Tasers to allow these problems to be corrected. Rather than delaying any further roll out, the Government moved forward, providing Tasers to all first response police. There are now more than two thousand Tasers in use. The current review looks at what has taken place since 2008.
The use of Tasers is a pressing issue in other jurisdictions, both across Australia and around the world. If any Ombudsman offices would like to share their experiences in relation to the use of Tasers in their jurisdiction with us, please contact the Manager of the NSW Ombudsman Police Division Mr Michael Gleeson on mgleeson@ombo.nsw.gov.au.
