I know, I know, it did not look good at all. In fact, it seemed foolish to the lay observer. I would ask you to consider the cops’ point of view.

They have most likely been trained that the TASER (click here for their website) is for subduing “aggressive and/or combative individuals.” That means people who do more than disobey verbal orders, but not so much that they are a threat to life. It doesn’t look pretty, but is actually considerably easier on the suspect than prior methods.

So this genius refuses to leave when his time is up. No big deal. Then they attempt to escort him out, one cop on each side. Fine. Then he decides to physically struggle, and that struggle lands on the ground.

Every cop knows that once you are on the ground, the threat to your safety has gone up exponentially. The TASER, while hated throughout the anti-cop world, is a humane and quick way to dispense with an aggressive suspect. There are no long-lasting effects in the VAST majority of cases, and its effectiveness is untouchable.

So before we hang those cops out to dry, remember that before we had the TASER, the only choice would have been to beat him silly in front of all those cameras with a wooden baton. Then what would people say?

What if the suspect had eventually produced a firearm and used it? Then I think the pundits would ask why on earth the cops did not TASER the man. I doubt they would be congratulating the cops for not using that horrible TASER. We can’t win for losing.

I say follow the officers’ directions in the first place and you won’t get hurt. Why doesn’t anyone ever blame the suspect for these situations? Why is it always the cops fault? What are your thoughts?