Posts Tagged ‘taser’

Phillies Fan Tasered – 17-year-old Runs Onto Field

At the Philadelphia Phillies baseball game last night, a 17-year-old Phillies fan was Tasered and became the big story of the night. This Phillies fan Tasered became the subject of YouTube videos around the world, including questions about how the weapon should be used. The Phillies fan who was Tasered may be able to turn this into a quick payday, but for the police department, it’s turning into an investigation.

What happened? Phillies fan Tasered

After running onto the field on Monday night, a 17-year old Phillies fan was Tasered by security. In the bottom of the 8th inning during the Phillies-Cardinals game, this fan jumped a fence and ran onto the field. The chase lasted about 30 seconds, with a guy wearing a Phillies fan shirt running around the field and waving a towel. A police officer shot a Taser into the boy’s back, causing him to collapse on the field. No national news cameras caught the event, but several people in the crowd caught and uploaded the Phillies fan Tasered video to YouTube.

What is the reason for the Phillies fan to get tasered?

Some people are wondering why the police used the force of a Taser on the Phillies fan that was Tasered. Police and security forces did not catch the Phillies fan, though it was only a 30-second chase. The Phillies fan Tasered was not even threatening any of the ball players on the field. The fan was instead running in circles encouraging other fans to shout and yell.

Investigation into the Tasered Phillies fan incident

The Philadelphia police will be launching an investigation into the choices officers made during the Phillies fan Tasered incident. Tasers, also known as stun guns, are at times controversial. Marketed as a “less lethal” weapon for law enforcement use, the Taser delivers an electric shock that causes involuntary muscle contractions. The United Nations Committee Against Torture has called the Taser a “form of torture that can even provoke death.” Taser guidelines by police departments usually say that the Taser is to be used only when a suspect is uncooperative and must be subdued. The question the investigation needs to ask is if the police officers used extreme force on the Phillies fan Tasered. What do you think?

See the Phillies fan Tasered video here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqtPUhYdz6M&NR=1

Article Resources

NBC Sports

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/36929673/ns/sports-baseball/

Daily Telegraph

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/breaking-news/tasers-a-form-of-torture-says-un/story-e6freuz9-1225758523986?from=public_rss