The Carroll Police department placed an order for 13 Taser X2s and accessories six weeks ago, and received the final shipment this past week, allowing them to move forward with training officers on how to use the new electronic control devices. Sergeant Jeremiah Hoyt, who is the Taser training instructor, said these are additions and not meant to replace anything currently in use.
The six hours of instructional and deployment, or usage, training is already underway, and once completed, the officers will have these new tools added to their belts by the end of this week. Hoyt said in the past, officers were required to be tased during training, but this is no longer the case.
Hoyt said that even though it is the officer’s choice to sign up to be tased, he is expecting to see a near 100 percent participation rate. During his 20 hours of training to become an instructor, Hoyt volunteered for one deployment, where the probes are shot toward a person, and then three more times for drive stuns or contact exposures. He said there really isn’t any pain in the “five seconds of fun;” it just feels a bit surreal as your muscles tighten up. He said you kind of become suspended in time where your mind knows what it is going on, but the body just can’t respond.
He added there is another function built into each unit that may actually assist in keeping officers from having to use them.
The smart technology of the X2s will adjust so as to provide the appropriate amount of electronic stimulus to incapacitate but not harm the suspect. That technology also provides a type of built-in accountability as it releases aphids that act as tracking chips every time the Taser is fired. The serial number of the unit is reported back to the manufacturer. Hoyt said he knows people are curious about the new Tasers, and the officers will be happy to answer their questions. A video of Sergeant Hoyt showing how the Taser X2 works can be found with this story on our website.
