RT Article
T1 Situational and ecological predictors of conducted energy weapon application severity
JF Canadian journal of criminology and criminal justice
VO 64
IS 1
SP 99
OP 126
A1 Systema, Victoria A.
A2 Laming, Erick
A2 Pohl, Ethan
LA English
YR 2022
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1795989750
AB Despite being touted as a “less lethal” use-of-force option, conducted energy weapons (CEWs) do pose some risk of injury to civilians, and thus warrant empirical examination. CEWs provide users with multiple use modes constituting various levels of severity; yet apart from the work of Somers and colleagues, almost no research exists investigating these levels of severity. Further, research findings on the impact of suspect resistance on CEW deployment are somewhat mixed. We contribute an innovative application of environmental criminology in a Canadian setting by exploring situational and ecological predictors of CEW application severity, with special attention being paid to reasons cited for CEW use and the impact of subject resistance level. Using all 393 Ontario Provincial Police CEW-related use-of-force reports over a two-year period, we find probe deployment to be the most common level of CEW application severity, irrespective of subject resistance level, and even when officers and subjects are in close proximity to one another. Application of CEW for the purpose of effecting an arrest is consistently the strongest predictor of CEW application severity without any mediating effect of subject resistance level or presence of a weapon. The impact of applying CEWs for the purpose of effecting arrests on CEW application severity is partially mediated by lighting visibility. Results are discussed.
K1 Conducted energy weapon
K1 Conducted energy device
K1 Taser
K1 Use of force
K1 Environmental Criminology
K1 Rural policing
DO 10.3138/cjccj.2021-0019