Is the generalization of the electric pulse pistol desirable?

• After the announcement of the abandonment of the "throttling key" as a technique of arrest, Christophe Castaner must receive the union representatives of the police this Thursday and Friday.
• The Ministry of the Interior is studying the wider use of the electric pulse pistol (PIE).
• The national police have had these weapons since 2006, but their use has exploded in ten years.

The solution is "under study". Questioned this Wednesday morning on Europe 1 , the Secretary of State to the Minister of the Interior, Laurent Nunez, neither confirmed nor denied the coming generalization of the electric pulse pistol (PIE) in the ranks of the national police . The day before, the newspaper  Le Parisien  indicated that the ministry wished to extend the endowments of this weapon of category B, better known under the name of “Taser”, of the name of the manufacturer who markets the most widespread model.

A solution that would make up for the disappearance of the so-called "strangulation" interpellation technique announced on Monday by the tenant at Place Beauvau. This question was to be on the menu of meetings planned between the Minister of the Interior Christophe Castaner and the police unions this Thursday and Friday. What are the advantages of this pistol and what concerns are raised by this generalization? 20 Minutes  takes stock.

Constantly increasing use

In France, the national police, like the gendarmerie and the prison administration, have been equipped with this type of pistol since 2006. Some municipal police have been so since 2010. "These PIEs are used essentially to control or arrest dangerous people or uncontrollable, alcoholic or under the influence of drugs, details Thierry Clair, union delegate Unsa police. The cartridge ejects two hooks which hang on the individual and create an arc of circle which diffuses an electric discharge of 50,000 volts at an intensity of 2 milliamps. This has the effect of blocking signals from nerve fibers. "

The use of this weapon is conditional on obtaining an authorization after a compulsory training of two days. “During this training, the police themselves received an electric pulse pistol. It allows them to assess the effect of the weapon they will then use, ”added the union official. If the increase in PIE endowments within the police is envisaged, the use of these pistols has already been widely democratized for ten years.

In 2010, the NGO Acat (Action of Christians for the abolition of torture) listed 288 uses. In its annual report released on Monday, IGPN, the police, counted 2,349 shots of electric pistol in 2019, an increase of 715% in nine years.

Benefits but poorly documented effects

If, in the United States, its use is even more widespread, it is also the cause of death every year. In 2018, according to the Reuters news agency, 49 people died after receiving a PIE hit. In France, according to the IGPN, only one death was recorded in 2019, which recalls in its report: "The use of safety techniques in intervention or of the electric pulse pistol does not however provide a direct link between these uses and death, which can be caused by an exogenous cause. "

In its annual report published this week, the IGPN attributes a death "during police missions" to the use of the Taser for the year 2019 👇https: //t.co/kPjt8FluBd pic.twitter.com / Ys8cX6Gv5b

Because this is one of the fears formulated today by Acat, the NGO fighting against torture: “We have many questions concerning the use of this weapon on people in a state of delirium, under the worsening of alcohol, drugs or suffering from mental disorders. There are very few studies or documents on the incidence of an electric shock for these specific cases. But the impact on heart rate is a concern, ”points out Marion Guémas, head of the association's police and justice programs.

A risk that police officers fully appreciate, according to Thierry Clair: “The advantage of the Taser is that it avoids direct physical confrontation. But the risk exists if the individual arrested has a cardiac history, for example ”. A risk that is difficult to evolve for the police force in operation, all the more so when the affected person himself does not know that he is carrying a cardiac pathology.

A framework to be specified

Pending further clarification from the ministry, the police unions are making certain recommendations. "After the disappearance of the choke technique, the generalization of the Taser would be a lesser evil. But we ask that its use be taught from the initial training in a police academy and a softening of the employment framework for PIEs, ”said Frédéric Lagache, general delegate of the Alliance union.

For Marion Guémas, if the generalization of PIE is activated, it must be accompanied by additional equipment: “A few years ago, these pistols were equipped with an audio and video recording triggered as soon as the weapon was out of his case. Then this model was abandoned. If the endowments increases, it is necessary to return to this recording device ”

In a very comprehensive report published in 2016 and entitled “Order and strength”, ACAT warned: “The ease of use of the Taser should not obscure its potentially dangerous nature. The authorities must remind the police that in the event of abuse, its use may be qualified as torture and lead to the conviction of the perpetrator. "

Society

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