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13 September, 2019

Commissioner invites views on Tasers in North Yorkshire

Julia Mulligan is asking whether you think police officers on North Yorkshire’s streets should routinely carry Tasers.

This survey has now closed

The county’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner wants to know the views of members of the public on any wider roll-out of the electric ‘stun guns’.

They can act as a deterrent to those acting aggressively, keep police officers a safe distance from danger and reduce the risk of harm to themselves and the public. But they can also have an impact on community engagement with the public less comfortable interacting with more armed officers.

The decision on their deployment is ultimately down to the Chief Constable but, ahead of that being made, the Commissioner wants to know whether people feel greater investment in the devices is the right thing to do, and if communities would feel safer.

About 40% of uniformed frontline police officers in North Yorkshire carry Taser and, last year,  a Taser was used 226 times to manage an incident, being fired on 38 occasions.

Julia said

“The use of Tasers, and whether we should equip all officers with one, has been in the national spotlight following the tragic death of PC Andrew Harper in Berkshire.

“While North Yorkshire remains the safest place in England to live, work and visit, we face challenges just like anywhere else. Making sure our police officers have every resource possible to keep them safe, so they can keep us all safe, is hugely important to me which is why I want to know what people think about a wider deployment of the devices.

“Please have your say on this important issue.

“The online survey is available now at www.telljulia.com and will remain open until Sunday 29 September. If you don’t have access to the internet, please call my office on 01423 569 562 and my team will record your feedback.”

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