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Originally Posted by jar_e
Did you read the CBC link? They state that...
Which kinda contradicts your NPR link....
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Yup, it does, but I figured I'd post articles on both sides of the debate for balance. From what I've read, which is more than just those two articles, it's not absolutely clear either way, hence why I chose alternate views. However, from what I've read and based on the stats, there is definitely cause to be cautious with excited delirium subjects. One of the problems with this and any research on Tasers is that Taser Inc. themselves are one of the main sources of research, and they are hardly unbiased.
Edit:
The CBC article also states:
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All medical staff are trained how to handle patients who are acting agitated and they can usually be talked down from their state, he says.
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I think in the Vancouver case it would have been feasible to quarantine the guy in that area of the terminal he was in and bring in someone with medical training (a paramedic) who might have been able to non-violently defuse the situation, which would have produced a better outcome than tasering the guy. Based on the evidence I just don't see where the guy posed a clear and immediate danger, especially over the the course of the multiple hours that this incident took to unfold.
There's also evidence to suggest the airport's emergency response protocol put up political and bureaucratic barriers that blocked the paramedics from responding earlier, so this is another area to assign blame.
Certainly there's enough blame to go around in many directions, and it was the failure of the entire system that lead to the guys' death. But the Tasers were the final link, and depending on your bias, the ultimate cause. It is relatively well known among emergency responders that there may a link between taser use and the increased likelihood of negative outcomes with excited delirium subjects, so I think greater prudence should have been exercised. If the officers involved were not aware of this link, that is a failure in the system itself.