The Spectator

Shock tactics | 24 July 2010

The Spectator on the arsenal of weapons available to police officers

issue 24 July 2010

Peter Cox was on his way to carry out some landscaping work at a friend’s house in Bridgwater in Somerset when he was pulled over by police on (false) suspicion of driving his BMW without insurance. The officer in question decided that Mr Cox was acting aggressively, and pulled out his Taser gun. Seconds later, Mr Cox had 50,000 volts delivered to his groin. It is a chilling sign of how the British police have changed.

The officer discharged his weapon by accident. But at what point did England license police to draw guns on motorists suspected of traffic offences? For generations, unarmed British police have found various ways of dealing with people whom they regard as aggressive. It is doubtless far easier to point a gun at people, and requires far less training. Our officers do not carry arms because we, as a country, regard it as unacceptable to treat people in such a way.

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