Tasers and their use

The request was successful.

Dear South Yorkshire Police,

1. For the years financial years 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2019/20 please provide:

a. The number of officers who withdrew their Tasers.

b. The number of officers who discharged their Tasers.

c. The highest number of times a single officer withdrew their Taser.

d. The highest number of times a single officer discharged their Taser.

e. The number of Tasers reported lost, stolen or missing if any.

2. Please provide the number of each sort of Taser you have, including the shotgun variety.

Yours faithfully,

D Moore

FOI, South Yorkshire Police

1 Attachment

Dear D Moore

 

Re your request (reference number above):

 

1.  For the years financial years 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2019/20 please
provide:

a.  The number of officers who withdrew their Tasers.

b. The number of officers who discharged their Tasers.

c.  The highest number of times a single officer withdrew their Taser.

d.  The highest number of times a single officer discharged their Taser.

e.  The number of Tasers reported lost, stolen or missing if any.

2.  Please provide the number of each sort of Taser you have, including
the shotgun variety.

 

Please could you clarify the following point(s): -

 

SYP publish this type of data on the website and details can be found
below:

 

[1]https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...

 

[2]https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/abo...

 

And we submit figures on this subject to the Home Office and details can
be found:

 

[3]https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics...

 

South Yorkshire Police has received a number of similar requests to yours
in the past.

 

[4]https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...

 

[5]https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...

 

[6]https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...

 

Please forward your clarification and refined request with the data still
required to South Yorkshire Police as this request will be ‘stopped’ on
our database until this has been received.

 

Once we have received clarification, your request be considered and you
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as defined by the Act, subject to the information not being exempt or
containing a reference to a third party. In some circumstances South
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Yours sincerely

 

 

Louise Holmes

Information Compliance Clerk

 

South Yorkshire Police

Information Compliance Unit

Performance and Governance

Unit 20

Churchill Way

Sheffield

S35 2PY

 

Website address – [7]southyorks.police.uk

 

[8]http://nextgen.app.yhrn.police/sites/SYP...

 

Email - [9][email address]

 

 

 

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References

Visible links
1. https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...
2. https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/abo...
3. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics...
4. https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...
5. https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...
6. https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...
7. http://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/
9. mailto:[email address]

Dear FOI,

That you for the very valuable links. I do not consider, however, that the information they lead to answers my requests. Please provide the information I have requested.

I have a query regarding your apparently contradictory responses to two information requests.

Link 4 (Taser data ref 20201125):

https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/med...

Your response states that Tasers were fired only 5 times in 2019. I note that your response is dated 28 May 2020. This suggests to me that the figure of 5 refers to the whole financial year 2019/20.

Link 6 (annual Taser usage ref 20201405):

https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/med...

Your response states that Tasers were fired 80 times in 2019/20.

Which figure is correct - 5 or 80?

Yours sincerely,

D. Moore

D. Moore left an annotation ()

Some useful information provided via links provided. For example:

Link 1:

Between Oct '20 and Dec '20 Use of Force forms were completed 1470 times. Tasers accounted for 3.1% (54) of all 'use of force tactics'.

https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/fin...

Link 2:

Valuable information on types of Taser use: 1. drawn 2. aimed 3. red dot, 4. arching 5. fired 6. angled driven stun 7. drive stun.

'Drive stun: As a last resort, the TASER is held against the subject’s body without a live cartridge installed, and the trigger is pulled with no probes being fired. Contact with the subject completes the electrical circuit which causes pain but does not deliver an incapacitating effect.'

https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/abo...

Link 3:

Useful national police use of force statistics for the year April 2018 to March 2019:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk...

Link 4: (Taser data ref 20201125)

A response to a FOI which reveals a great drop in the number of times Tasers were fired in 2019:

A fall from 76 in 2018 to 5 in 2019 (this figure seems very low - see link 6).

The force has 435 authorised Taser officers.

https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/med...

Link 6: (annual Taser usage ref 20201405)

An excellent table showing Taser use for the years 2015 to 2020 for each of the categories identified in Link 2.

The table shows that Tasers were fired 80 times.

https://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/med...

FOI, South Yorkshire Police

2 Attachments

Dear D Moore

 

Please find attached our response to your Freedom of Information request.

 

Regards

 

Louise Holmes

Information Compliance Clerk

 

South Yorkshire Police

Information Compliance Unit

Performance and Governance

Unit 20

Churchill Way

Sheffield

S35 2PY

 

Website address – [1]southyorks.police.uk

 

[2]http://nextgen.app.yhrn.police/sites/SYP...

 

Email - [3][email address]

 

 

 

SYP Alerts offers information about local policing issues by text, email
or voice message. Sign-up now at www.sypalerts.co.uk #SignMeUp

References

Visible links
1. http://www.southyorkshire.police.uk/
3. mailto:[email address]

D. Moore left an annotation ()

In 2019/20, one officer was responsible for 17% of all incidents involving a withdrawn Taser (97/562).

There are some discrepancies in the figures provided compared to the information publicly available:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics...

Table 13: Use of CED by type and police force

2017/18 (2019/20)

Total - 451 (562)
Total non-discharge - 376 (476)
Drawn - 103 (103 - the same figure)
Aimed - 22 (47)
Red dot - 251 (321)
Arced - 0 (5)
Total discharge 75 (86)
Drive stun - 3 (0)
fired - 70 (85)
Angular drive stun - 2 (1)
CED not stated - 0 (0)

Definitions:

'Drawn - removed from holster

Red dot - the taser has a laser that allows the officer to mark the subject with a red dot. This tells the officer that they are on target and also lets the offender know they are being targeted

Arced - this aims to deter a suspect. It is achieved when the officer squeezes the trigger without the cartridge attached and the electric current flows through the end of the taser. An audible and visual display of electricity crackling across through the taser can be seen and heard.

Fired - this is when the cartridge is attached and the taser delivers an electrical charge to the body.

Drive stun - this is where there is no cartridge attached. Arcing electricity at the front of the taser is required to make contact with the subject’s body or clothing before a shock results. This requires the front of the taser to be pressed against the person.

Angled drive stun-tasers are designed to safely disable a person from a distance, yet sometimes the offender can get too close. On such an occasion, an officer can incapacitate an offender by carrying out an angled drive stun which involves activating the loaded taser close to the subject’s body and then placing the taser against another part of the body to disable them.'

https://www.cambs.police.uk/information-...