PHOENIX—Stun gun maker Taser International said Friday it will offer police a pump-action Taser shotgun that will allow officers to knock out people from as far as 65 feet away.
The Taser/Mossberg X12 LLS almost doubles the range of the company's X26 model pistol. It uses a special pump-action shotgun developed by O.F. Mossberg & Sons, Inc. and a wireless stunning device folded into the shell.
Taser spokesman Steve Tuttle said the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based company started working on the shotgun with the U.S. military in mind. But he said the company decided the weapons would find a niche with police SWAT teams.
"Distance equals safety, and you want to have that extra cushion between you and the attacker," Tuttle said.
The Taser shotgun could be a gentler way of stopping people than firing beanbags or other projectiles, he said.
"You're really throwing a major league baseball fastball at somebody, with the beanbag round," Tuttle said. "You're causing some significant injuries."
Taser plans to field test the weapons starting in February at selected police departments and sell them at the end of 2008. Tuttle said the company hasn't published the price, but said the shotguns would be less expensive than the X26.
It doesn't have any agreements with the military to manufacture the shotguns.
Amnesty International, which claims that people have died as the result of Taser weapons, criticizes Taser for adding more weapons to its product line.
"The company just doesn't get it," Dalia Hashad, director of Amnesty's USA Program.
"We're seeing people die after the use of this weapon, and instead of stopping and asking why they're dying and what we need to do about it to stop these deaths, they're coming out with new and more aggressive weapons," Hashad said.
Taser insists that its products are safe. The company says that 63 wrongful death or injury lawsuits against it have either been dismissed or judged in its favor.
Even if they work well, Taser's reputation will determine whether some police agencies buy its new shotguns, said John Gnagey, executive director of the National Tactical Officers Association in Doylestown, Pa.
"There are a lot of departments that are not comfortable with the Taser," Gnagey said. "They won't even allow their officers to carry it."
The Taser shotgun shell will pack the same electrical punch as the Taser X26 pistol that's currently used by thousands of police agencies around the country.
But unlike the X26, it won't be attached to wires. When someone is hit with a shell, a 3-volt battery will send electrical pulses into the person's body for 20 to 30 seconds.
The shotgun is specially made for Taser by New Haven, Conn.-based Mossberg. It is designed to carry five additional rounds and the barrel has greater rifling than a typical Mossberg shotgun to allow a more precise shot. It doesn't have laser sighting, but it does allow officers to attach their X26 pistol with laser sighting to the barrel.
Tuttle said the shotgun should be used to knock out a specific target. He doesn't think it would be used to randomly disperse crowds.
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