5 officers to receive Taser award

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

Five patrol officers were honored Wednesday for saving a life in the line of duty by using a non-lethal weapon.

Waukesha police officers Joseph Strandlie, Chad Pergande, Aurelio Serrano, Kurt Gehrke and Christopher Massa received the John H. Cover Medal for Non Lethal Heroism, an award named for the creator of Taser technology, said Sgt. Gerald Habanek. Cover was a scientist with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

In 2004, 7,200 incidents were submitted and reviewed by Chief Master Instructor Hans Marrero and Taser International Inc., and only those officers involved in 74 incidents were honored, Habanek said.

First awarded in 2002, the medal is given to officers who save a life in the line of duty through extraordinary use of the Taser, Habanek said.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/wauk/may05/327150.asp


This was followed by the Mace and Pepper Spray Awards and the evening was capped off with the rubber bullet ball.

[ismnotwasm]

1. Hmm

I know a woman who is a very obnoxious alcoholic. Very obnoxious. Very sad case. I don't know all the details, but she started fighting with some police officers while very drunk and high and was tasered over 25 times. I glad she wasn't shot, but geez.

[daleo]

2. And they get Air Miles points with each tasering too.

Well, I wouldn't doubt it. An award given by the company that makes the weapon is hardly unbiased.

[Voltaire99]

3. Like handing out awards for body-stacking in Abu Ghraib

Despicable. Police should not be given "awards" for inflicting pain on citizens. This is being done to deflect criticism of tasers, which are frequently abused and sometimes lethally.

And this category of dubious honor? "Non lethal heroism."

America gets more Orwellian by the minute.

[LightningFlash]

4. For some, tasers are worse....

Much worse than any sort of death, its a torturous electrocution of the body. They had some news stories earlier for Florida....Nobody wants to go near FL when taser officers are on duty.

[rooboy]

5. The only time I want to see a taser...

is if Bill O'Reilly shoved one up his ass and pulled the trigger. Otherwise I'd rather they didn't exist.