For the last 6 weeks, the University of Cincinnati Police Department has once again been training and issuing Tasers.
As of Monday, all the officers have been trained and equipped with the latest X26P Taser model, and they’ve been put out on the streets and sidewalks of campus.
Reinstituting Taser use was recommended last year as a best practice for the UCPD. It has been six years since the agency used Tasers.
The Tasers were reportedly removed years ago due to some “controversial” deaths related to the devices around the country Assistant Chief Maris Herold told WCPO.
“My understanding is we had a couple of controversial deaths that were related to Tasers,” Herold said, noting that all the training is meant to avoid similar scenarios from reoccurring. “Taser changed its policy. (Recommended Taser use) moved from the front portion of the chest to the back,” Herold said.
“As a police officer, you’re protecting life and liberty,” Mueller said. “The last thing you want to use is deadly force, so it’s another option we have to avoid such an incident.”