Nova Scotia report warns against taser use

David Parker — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:20:37 +0000

A standard taser, used by police. Source: http://unambig.wordpress.com/2009/03/27/

The Nova Scotia government released a report last Friday on the use of tasers by police officers. The report described a state known as ‘excited delirium’, created by a taser shock, in which a person is considered at the risk of sudden death. The report warned that any attempts to restrain someone exhibiting signs of excited delirium is very risky. “The state is a medical emergency,” said Dr. Stan Kutcher, an expert in adolescent mental health at Dalhousie University, speaking to the Globe and Mail.

The report did not satisfy the lawyers of Howard Hyde, a Dartmouth man who died in custody 30 hours after being tasered by police. According to the recommendations, police should try to de-escalate a situation as much as possible. If that fails, then they should use physical restraint if necessary, as quickly as possible. Kevin MacDonald, Hyde’s lawyer, said, “from what I can see, the police [handling Mr. Hyde] felt that they were doing just that by using the taser.”

Police use of tasers has been responsible for other deaths in Canada, including Robert Dziekanski, a man who was tasered to death by police at the Vancouver airport last year.

Citizens denounce criminalization of black youth

Asaf Rashid — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 20:28:18 +0000

HALIFAX – On Tuesday, June 16, Operation Wake Up host Asaf Rashid interviewed Keslyn Adams and El Jones, both members of the Black Inspiration Network Nova Scotia (BINNS), a citizen’s group that is organizing a march and rally against the criminalization of black youth.

BINNS cites numerous recent examples in the Halifax region of racism, including recent expulsions of black youth from local high schools, as well as an incident at the Dartmouth Sportsplex.In these cases, numerous black youth were rounded up and sent to the police station. The reason for the police actions remain unclear.

Keslyn Adams is a mother of one of the expelled youth, and El Jones is a King’s College professor and poet. They discussed the racist treatment within the justice and the education system towards young black community members.

Jones and Adams also spoke about their hopes for the future, and how we can find inspiration in this situation, as the name of their group suggests.

The march and rally will take place on Saturday, June 20th, at 2 pm. Participants will gather in the Halifax Commons, then march down to Gottingen street, past the police station, and up to the George Dixon Centre, where there will be a community barbecue, including entertainment for the whole family.

To listen to the half hour program, including a poem by El Jones entitled ‘War against Black Women’, Click on the link below.

*** Click here to download the audio file ***

Program length 31 minutes. High quality mp3, variable kbps.

Music:

KRS-One – Sound of the Police

Dead Prez – Police State.

Operation Wake Up! » police

Nova Scotia report warns against taser use

Citizens denounce criminalization of black youth