Black people are more than twice as likely to be Tasered for longer periods of time than white people, according to a damning report.
An Independent Office for Police Conduct review of cases found 29 per cent of white people involved in incidents where a Taser was used were subjected to a continuous discharge for more than five seconds, compared to 60 per cent of black people.
Of the 101 cases reviewed between 2015 and 2020, 22 per cent involved black people and they were more likely to be subjected to continuous discharge of a Taser.
The use of Tasers in incidents by police has increased by 15,000 in just three years, jumping from 17,000 in the year 2017/18, to 23,000 in 2018/19 and then 32,000 in 2019/20.
Cases the report analysed included:
- Jordan Begley, who died in hospital in July 2013 following a cardiac arrest two hours after being Tasered and restrained by police officers. PC Terrence Donnelly, had "inappropriately used the Taser by holding the trigger down longer so that it was deployed for over eight seconds, which is not reasonable use in the circumstances."
- The death of Adrian McDonald in 2014, caused by the effects of cocaine and stress of an incident that saw him arrested, restrained, bitten by a police dog, Tasered and left in a police van struggling to breathe.
The IOPC report found that eight per cent of the incidents between 2015 and 2020 involved children between the ages of 11 and 17.
In the year 2017 to 2018, 938 incidents involving children between those ages and and Tasers were recorded. This increased to 1,671 in the year 2018 to 2019 and again to 2,795 in 2019 to 2020.
Nine of the 19 black people who were subjected to use of a Taser were subjected to prolonged discharges - the longest of which was 67 seconds.
This is compared to just 18 of the 72 white people who were subject to prolonged discharges of the Taser, the longest of which was 48 seconds.
The highest number of discharges made was 12. The discharges were made against a black person, who was pursued by officers as he walked through a street armed with two knifes.
The man, who had a history of serious mental health concerns, and later said he had not eaten and had been drinking, did not comply with commands to drop the knives and threatened officers.
An officer discharged their Taser and when a man approached him, he was shot with a firearm by another officer. The report says none of the discharges appeared to be effective.
Five people complained that they had been racially discriminated by police.
One person - a 14-year-old boy - claimed he had been racially profiled and was arrested on suspicion of drug use, although was not searched for drugs. He later claimed he was racially abused on his way to custody, although the report found no evidence of that.
The report said: "Assumptions were made about drugs or weapons in three cases. One individual was assumed to have taken drugs, despite a lack of evidence to corroborate the assumptions and clear indications the person was experiencing a mental health crisis."
Concerns over officers' abilities to communicate with people with mental health needs were also raised in the report.
It identified concerns about the possible use of a Taser for compliance in 24 of the 101 cases analysed. A total of 83 per cent of those involved discharges and six cases involved prolonged discharges.
The longest discharge last for 48 seconds, and the second longest for 24 seconds. This was against a person who had ADHD and Asperger's.
The report says the officer told the person to calm down or they would use the Taser again and when the person screamed twice, the officer discharged the Taser while the individual was handcuffed and being restrained by three others.
Mental health concerns were a factor in 59 of the cases reviewed, the report said. It added that 36 of those were subjected to more than one discharge and 22 of those were subjected to prolonged discharges.
The report said: "In incidents where mental health was a factor, individuals were more likely to be subjected to multiple and prolonged discharges."
The report found that officers had missed potential opportunities to de-escalate the situation in 15 cases and issues with officers' communication was identified in 16 cases.
It found that drugs and/or alcohol was a factor in 52 cases where a Taser was used, and 36 people involved in the 101 cases were found to be in possession of a weapon at the time including knives, guns, a meat cleaver and a riding crop.
The report also looked at deaths that had occurred after the use of a Taser by officers.
Sixteen of the 101 cases reviewed involved a death, however just four inquests found that the use of a Taser, in combination with other factors, contributed to it.
The report did find that in ten cases of the 101 analysed, good practice by some or all of the officers involved in incidents was noted.
Seventeen areas of recommendation were made including to the National College of Policing and National Police Chiefs' Council to review current training on ensuring officers understand the importance of assessing the surrounding environment and any risk of individual - particularly to vulnerable people with mental health concerns and those under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
The National College of Policing was also recommended that Taser training provides officers with an understanding of race dis-proportionality in Taser use and the impact this has on public confidence.
A recommendation to the National Police Chief's Council to research and explore why officers are much more likely to draw or aim a taser at a black person was also made.
What the IOPC say
Commenting on the findings, IOPC Director General Michael Lockwood said: "There is no doubt that Tasers are a valuable tool for keeping both the public and police safe in dangerous circumstances.
“However, it is important there is ongoing independent scrutiny of Taser use so that both the police and the community can be assured they are being used appropriately.
"Clearer national guidance on the circumstances in which Taser should and should not be used and better training will improve officer safety, as well as give the public reassurance that Taser is being used only when absolutely necessary."
Mr Lockwood said that police forces "must be able to justify" the use of Tasers - particularly when incidents involve children and vulnerable people and that they must also respond to the disproportionate use of Tasers against black people.
"He added that those from black, Asian and minority backgrounds deserve a clearer answer from police about why the dis-proportionality still exists.
“Ultimately, policing has to change and be more responsive to community concern or risk losing legitimacy in the eyes of the public. These recommendations now sit with policing bodies and forces to act on.”
