A Leadership White Paper Submitted in Partial Fulfillment Required for Graduation from the Leadership Command College

Date

2018

Authors

Naulings, Sabrina

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas (LEMIT)

Abstract

Description

Despite the increasing TASER’s reputation among law enforcement, inquiries have been raised concerning the effectiveness of the devices in addition to its potential to cause severe injury and/or death. Although law enforcement use of TASERs are rapidly increasing, this study exposed that statistical data is limited in reference to school resource officers (SRO’s) and independent school districts (ISD) implementation. Perhaps a large majority of society would consider the thought of a 50,000 electrical charge penetrating a juvenile terrible and inhumane. But the reality is that the possibility of .45 caliber ammunition penetrating the human body is equally dreadful regardless of the recipient’s age. Rosenfeld, White, and Finn-Aage (2012) stated, “The prevalence of offending tends to increase from late childhood, peak in the teenage years (from 15 to 19) and then decline in the early 20s” (as cited in Loeber, Farrington, Petechuk, 2013, para. 2). Consequently, such impact affect student’s educational achievement which may drastically increase the age population of students attending secondary public schools. Society must recognize the need for innovative and effective methods for law enforcement to provide a safe learning environment on school campuses. This review will examine the need for SRO’s and ISD’s to gain approval to be afforded the options of utilizing TASER’s as an additional less lethal force option to gain compliance when confronted with aggressive behavior while protecting the educational environment. The implementation of TASER’s will provide advantages in the area of acquiescence and afford the probability of fewer on the job injuries, thus offering the likelihood of reducing worker compensation claims.

Keywords

Nonlethal weapons, Campus Police

Citation

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