Deseret News | 14-year-old boy Tasered by Salt Lake police

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14-year-old boy Tasered by Salt Lake police

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Dutch | 9:31 a.m. Jan. 13, 2009

The reason this incident occured is due to the same attitude as many of the posters on this board

ZAPPED | 10:03 a.m. Jan. 13, 2009

This kind of kid is the kind of kid that grows up to be a killer if he isn't stopped NOW and doesn't get some help. He's a BULLY, and the office had no other choice but to TASE the heck out of him. Good for the cop.

Frank | 10:12 a.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I'd never think you could heal with a tazer but those cops may have prevented/reversed some emotional scaring to the kids who were being picked on.

Comments continue below

Don'tTazeMeBro | 10:23 a.m. Jan. 13, 2009

Use of Tazer tactics likely saved both the kid and the officer some level of injury.

It never ceases to amaze me that there are still those knuckledraggers amongst us that object to the effective use of a little less-lethal force. As if the objective were a fair fight.

It's not. The objective is effecting the arrest, using the minimun level of force necessary.

Why assume the result would have been more pleasant for the kid if he were physically subdued without the use of a Tazer?

Or why require the cop to risk the injury that would have inevitably ensued, had the Tazer not been used?

The primary decisionmaker was the punk. The officer was merely following his training protocols.

Arthur | 10:24 a.m. Jan. 13, 2009

Just yesterday the courts delt with the Wedgie Killer, a man who shot a man who was picking on him. Taze a bully today, save him from being a victim tommorow!!!

David | 10:28 a.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I support the police.

Cynthia | 11:30 a.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I say TASE all the rebellious brats!!! There are too many juvenile bullies out there who could use some good TASING in order to prevent abuse of others. I also support the police. I'm tired of these spoiled brats who think they can cause chaos in our society. It might help to TASE some of their parents as well.

Michelle | 3:37 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

I think the police officer is just in what he did. People don't have respect for police officers any more. If you don't do what they ask then they will use necessary force to get you to comply. Everyone should know this already. If the boy would have left when the policeman told him to then he wouldn't have been tazed.

lucky kid | 9:16 p.m. Jan. 13, 2009

if not for the tazer.. the officer might have pulled out his gun.

I am just disgusted! | 10:22 a.m. Jan. 14, 2009

Are boys hanging out at the mall now? haha! Hopefully they were trying to pick up chicks or something! That kid just wanted his friends to see how cool he is, way to go buddy! That's what happens when you get a group of teenage boys together...there is always one who thinks that he is the coolest thing and all the others just worship his coolness. I thought the cop was pretty cool though!

Mission accomplished: Effectively, with Justice, Safely, and the right way!

To all you bleeding heart libs | 10:51 a.m. Jan. 14, 2009

Sure, the cop could've probably subdued the combative teen by beating him to a pulp, instead of using the taser, but then you ACLU-loving, criminal apologist liberals out there would be ridiculing his mistreatment of a kid. "Why didn't they just use the taser?" I can hear it now...

Spencer | 11:49 a.m. Jan. 14, 2009

Good for the cop! What did the kid think would happen when he was disrespecting and disobeying the officer? We have seen our fair share of unnecessary and unprovoked brutality, but this was no show of that. This was necessary! Should the cop of done anything different...NO! What else could he have done? If he restrained the kid without the tazor a lot more brutality would have probably been exhibited, plus the cop has to keep in mind that there is more than one kid that he was dealing with. He could have given him a warning and let him off easy, but what good what that do to this rebellious teen. This kid doesn't have respect for the law. I am sure that it wasn't all about staying at the mall either, he's just rebellious and didn't want to give the cop the satisfaction of "winning." The kid needs to learn some respect. I've always respected cops and done what they have told me because I know and understand their authority and when I am in the wrong...does that make me a wuss? Probably, but have I ever gotten zapped?

Mission Successful: Effective, Just, Simple, the right way!

Diesel | 1:54 p.m. Jan. 14, 2009

Taser guns should only be used when lives are in danger. The big tough manly officer had no right to use a taser on a 14 year old boy. If it was my child I'd sue.

Lethal Force | 3:14 p.m. Jan. 14, 2009

Rephrase: lethal force should only be used when lives are in danger. Non-lethal force was used here appropriately.

Mccleod | 3:49 p.m. Jan. 14, 2009

I hear a lot of people saying "Agressive Stance?"
If you don't know what the Author meant by this your an idiot.
The kid was obviously putting up a fight. Not just standing funny. Moron.

re: Diesel | 3:57 p.m. Jan. 14, 2009

And if it was your kid and you sued you'd most likely get sued by the victim your kid was bullying around.

awsomeron | 4:05 p.m. Jan. 14, 2009

Necessary Force is Justified in all cases. Arm Chair QB's and their Fat Rolls aside. Lots of people are dead because the person coming at them was just a kid.

Danger is the matter of the moment, a person in dangers point of view and other factors.

Taser do not or very rarely kill. What they do, do is STOP aggressive action NOW.

Go and try to fight Crime with an oh God Loves you and a Bleeding Heart.

If you stop it you can then treat the person, deal with the problem, which may be in and of its self manner. You can bring charges, you can also drop charges.

What is important is keeping order. Laws must be enforced this is just simple marketing logic. People do not go where there a problems or where they a scared to go for what ever reason.

When people flee a troubled inner city, they do not go back here to shop and go down memory lane.

suzyk | 4:21 p.m. Jan. 14, 2009

Maybe he'll think twice before disrespecting the order of a Police Officer. Some punk trying to be tough. You play..you Pay. The Officer was in the right. Good for him.

RedShirt | 8:15 a.m. Jan. 15, 2009

We should give the Mall cops cattle prods. That way when they have these small herds of kids running around out of control, they can round them up!! Yee ha!!

Alex Trebek | 12:52 p.m. Jan. 16, 2009

I think Rodney King wishes they had tasers back in 1991... This kid got off easy.

Captain Crunch | 7:24 p.m. Jan. 16, 2009

reading the comments on this story have made my faith in people go even lower than it was. scary that so many people like this exist~!

Buzz That Kid | 2:48 p.m. Jan. 17, 2009

The taser is for the officer's safety as well as the person who it is being used on. They either taser the kid or go hands on with him. The effects of the taser go away almost immediately. If you go hands on there are many ways that that particular scenario could end. Best case scenario without the taser is that the cops wrestle him to the ground and get cuffs on him without anyone getting injured. But maybe this kid is big and strong and grabs for an officer's gun and gets shot. When the taser is used safely injuries are usually very minimal to none. Anyone who has been show with a taser will probably never fight again because it hurts like heck. The bottom line is this. Parents should teach their kids to respect police officers and to follow their orders. If you fight the law, the law wins, and you end up in jail with a couple of marks from the taser prongs. Without the taser, the fight could result in injuries and sometimes death.

LOTS OF LOVE | 3:33 p.m. Jan. 17, 2009

I think its all bogus. The kid had it coming to him and the police are wimps for needing to take that action. All in all I'm glad the punk got a shocking!

Are you serious? | 4:35 p.m. Jan. 17, 2009

Re: Not sure about this one. Are you trying to suggest the officer just walked up and unloaded a tazer on this kid? Have you had to confront a 14- year old intent on bullying another kid lately? I am willing to bet the bully already had his aggression up, and when the officers tried to talk him down he got even more defiant. Words for this kid probably just made his aggression worse. The didn't shoot him, right? Well done. This kids' parents need to try the word "no" once in a while...

Dalton | 2:54 p.m. March 17, 2009

personally, i dont really like cops because they go after everything they can. when i was 13 years old i got in trouble for curfew and when they took me home they did the drunk test on my mom and gave her a ticket for being drunk in her own home. its like cops have a quota. but i have to agree with this one. if he was going to assault the cop then he got what was coming. the other choices could have been better but somebody could have been hurt.

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