Too quick to Taser?

Are local police too quick to use their Tasers?

Tasers have been used locally to end violent standoffs and subdue suicidal people, but a Seattle Post-Intelligencer review found they're also being used routinely in far less threatening situations -- including against juveniles, pregnant women and people who have already been handcuffed.

King County sheriff's deputies have fired Tasers at a teenager who ran after not paying a $1.25 bus fare, a 71-year-old man who was arrested for drunken driving and refused to get into a patrol car, and a partially deaf man who couldn't hear deputies ordering him to stop, reports show.

Some civil rights advocates argue Tasers are being drawn too quickly and in cases in which such extreme force isn't necessary. They worry about potential abuses as more officers rely on the tool to subdue people who they say pose no serious threat to themselves or others. ...

Related stories illustrate how, despite local cases where potentially questionable Taser use contributed to a growing "catalog of pain and complaints," police swear the stun devices have saved lives and reduced injuries.

A P-I story from earlier this year explained just how Tasers work, if you're interested.