DRAW A TASER, FILE A REPORT

Police officers who zap people with Tasers should file reports whenever
they do so, the way they must file reports when they draw their guns, and
receive training on when to use them.

A new study by the Canadian Police Research Centre reviewed many smaller
reports to find there's no provable connection between Taser zaps and
deaths in custody. At least 44 people have died in custody in the U.S. and
Canada since 1999 after being hit with electrical charges, the study found,
but many of them had pre-existing health conditions.

The study also found that, in most cases, if the police who zapped them
hadn't been armed with "conductive energy devices," they probably would
have used their guns instead.

Still, the study left questions open about the connection between CED
deaths and something called "excited delirium." It's not an officially
recognized medical condition, but there's anecdotal evidence that people
deep in the throes of drugs or mental illness can be dangerously excitable.

Ontario police must file reports to explain why they draw their guns on
duty, so there's a record of why guns are used. The same regime should
apply to CEDs such as Tasers.