Tasers a form of torture - UN report

A lawyer leading the charge against police adopting Taser stun guns is welcoming a United Nations report that describes the 50,000-volt stun guns as a "form of torture".

Just weeks before police decide whether to adopt Tasers as a crime-fighting tool, the report has condemned their use.

The UN Committee Against Torture said it was worried by the use of Tasers in Portugal. It says the stun guns cause "extreme pain, constituted a form of torture, and ... in certain cases could also cause death".

Lawyer Marie Dyhrberg, from the Campaign Against The Taser group, said the UN committee's findings should be taken seriously by the police. "They have no agenda, and they have access to very reliable information."

A police national headquarters spokesman said the overseas report was "not especially relevant" to the New Zealand Taser trial. "But that doesn't mean we don't take any notice of it."

Police will report to Police Commissioner Howard Broad on how their 12-month Taser trial went by December 14, and he will make the final decision on their future use.

International concerns over Tasers have been growing. In Canada, three men have died in the past six weeks after being zapped, starting with unarmed Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski, Tasered by police at Vancouver airport on October 14.

In the latest death, 36-year-old Robert Knipstrom died four days after being pepper sprayed, batoned and Tasered by police.

Council for Civil Liberties chairman Michael Bott said the UN report reflected a backlash against Tasers. Tasers could be lethal if used on a person with a pacemaker or on certain types of medication.

"We still don't know the long-term effects," Bott said.

"The UN is urging caution on this, but the police are rushing into it. We need to pause and take a breath."

- © Fairfax NZ News