Four RCMP officers involved in the Taser death of Robert Dziekanski appear to have breached recommendations on how the weapon should be used.
A 2005 report -- The Taser Technology Review Report -- by the B.C. Police Complaints Commissioner listed a number of key safety recommendations for the use of a Taser.
However, a video of the death of Mr. Dziekanski at the Vancouver International Airport on Oct. 14 suggests they were not followed.
Chief among the recommendations were that Tasers should not be used against someone who is "passively resisting"; that police should not use the Taser multiple times; and that after a Taser shock, the subject should be restrained in a way that allows him to breathe easily.
Officers, in dealing with the 40-year-old Polish man, do not appear to have followed the guidelines.
The report suggests officers approach such a suspect according to a well-thought-out plan.
"Where individuals are contained in a room, officers should use the time to formulate a plan for entry and restraint that allows them to immediately turn the person over to ambulance personnel," the report says.
It goes on to emphasize such precautions are necessary, especially if the subject appears to be suffering from a state of excited delirium -- a condition that may be characterized by such behaviour as a person "running through traffic or otherwise placing themselves and others at risk and would have to be restrained in any event."
It is not known whether Mr. Dziekanski was suffering from excited delirium.
The report states that multiple Taser shocks may have a detrimental effect on a person's pH, carbon dioxide levels and lactate levels.
"Although multiple applications may be tactically required, particularly in remote areas where back-up is distant or unavailable, the risks associated should be included in an officer's decision-making process," the report says.
The video shows Mr. Dziekanski being shocked at least twice.
The report suggests that officers may jeopardize a suspect's ability to breathe if a great deal of weight is placed on the shoulders and back for a long period of time.
The video of Mr. Dziekanski's death shows him screaming on the ground and being restrained by at least one officer who is over him.
Mr. Dziekanski's death has prompted those with knowledge of Tasers to consider the appropriateness of the officers' response.
Donald Van Blaricom, former chief of the Bellevue, Wash., police, said the officers should have made Mr. Dziekanski sit up as soon as possible after he was Tasered.
"He's down on the floor for an awful long time, and it appears that they are holding him down when he is in handcuffs because he is struggling."
Mr. Van Blaricom said the video appears to show a "vicious cycle" in which the more Mr. Dziekanski was restrained on the floor, the more he physically resisted, prompting the police to use even more force, until he stopped breathing.
Often the cause of death is cardiac arrest or asphyxia, in which the person builds up so much lactic acid that they can't breathe any longer, Mr. Van Blaricom said.
Taser-related deaths do not stem from the electrical voltage carried by the electric-control weapon but from the exhausting physical struggle that follows, he said.
Using the Taser was a reasonable option for police given that they could not communicate with him because of the apparent language barrier, he said. However, Mr. Van Blaricom did fault the police for using the Taser too quickly.
"They were able to get quite close to him, and he wasn't being aggressive towards them."
His mother, Zofia Cisowski, says the video images haunt her. She can't sleep. She can't drive a car. She can't even turn on the television.
"I am so mad," she said. "That is no good, but I am so mad at what I saw."
A memorial for Mr. Dziekanski is to be held today at a Kamloops Funeral home.
2005 B.C. TASER REPORT
RECOMMENDATION
Tasers should be used only against a subject who is actively resisting arrest or posing a risk to others, not someone who is "passively resisting."
BUT AT VANCOUVER AIRPORT
Robert Dziekanski, who did not speak English, did not appear to be resisting, and there were no other people in the area who could be hurt by his actions.
RECOMMENDATION
Officers should avoid shocking a subject multiple times.
BUT AT VANCOUVER AIRPORT
Mr. Dziekanski was shocked twice within a matter of seconds.
RECOMMENDATION
Following a Taser shock, a subject should be restrained in a way that allows him to breathe easily.
BUT AT VANCOUVER AIRPORT
At one point, four officers were on top of Mr. Dziekanski. Two officers knelt with their full weight on his neck and back.
RECOMMENDATION
"A number of force technologies, including the Taser ... have been described as 'less lethal' ?We believe this terminology has inadvertently created a mindset among users and the public that these weapons can never have lethal effects."