Hard as it may be to imagine, dear reader, once upon a time the police managed to fulfil their obligations to society without resorting to electrocuting children. The sky did not fall. Teenage ruffians did not run amok. Life went on, much as it had before.
Changed times, of course. These days, the carrying of Tasers has become increasingly normal. And when the police are armed as a matter of course, it’s no surprise that they are increasingly likely to deploy force. Even on children.
And pensioners.
The youngest person Tasered by the police in England and Wales in 2013 was 14 years old; the oldest a menacing 82 years old.
According to police statistics obtained by the BBC, officers Tasered 37 children in 2013. That, of course, is both a small number and a deplorably high number of incidents.
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