Child Shocked by Taser Causes Investigation on Group Homes
A children’s representative appointed by the province of British Columbia has launched an investigation on group homes in the province after an incident occurred involving an 11-year-old boy being shocked by a Taser gun. Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond stated that she has made her concerns known regarding certain group homes’ use of police force in disciplinary matters with group home residents.
In the incident involving the 11-year-old boy, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had to be called when a 37-year-old employee was stabbed. When police arrived, they shocked the boy with the Taser when he was arrested. Several other incidents had been uncovered wherein police used Tasers on children ranging in age from 13 years to 17 years of age. Investigations continue into the incident to determine all the details.
If the person that was shocked with the Taser had not been a child, the incident could probably have been deemed self defense on the part of the police. However, this incident raises many questions whether using a Taser was appropriate given that the person involved was an 11-year-old child. If the police are found to have used excessive force against the child, a lawsuit could result. Turpel-Lafond stated incidents like this have occurred very frequently in British Columbia. There was no word on whether any investigations were launched regarding any of those incidents. One other important factor of this incident is the fact that there was a 37-year-old stab victim. The 11-year-old child was reportedly a suspect in that stabbing. However, if the child did not have the knife on his person at the time of the arrest, the use of the Taser could be constituted as excessive force.
