The Phoenix City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to approve a roughly five-year contract with a private company to provide Tasers for the city’s police.
Now, close to $22 million is earmarked for new ones before their current Tasers reach the manufacturer’s expiration date at the end of this month.
Assistant Police Chief Jeff Benza said the goal is to broaden officers’ less-than-lethal options with the new Taser models, along with updates to the department’s use of force policy set to roll out in late January.
“That Level 2 use of force would get more scrutiny than it currently does,” said Benza, later adding that Phoenix PD was one of the first in the country to equip every officer with a Taser.
Despite persisting Spanish-language translation difficulties, several community members spoke to oppose the measure, urging the council to invest funds in things like youth centers.
Councilmember Kevin Robinson, who represents District 6, addressed them before the vote.
“This is an important tool,” he said. “I think it’s one we have to have. I think it will allow our police officers to be in a position to make more effective, hopefully better decisions in situations that require the use of some level of force.”
Robinson said that he hears and understands their concerns, but sees the move as providing an essential tool for law enforcement’s protection.
“They would be forced to use other force measures because they no longer have that,” said Robinson. “So I think it’s important that we understand that the current Tasers that the officers have, it’s outdated – it’s outlived its usefulness.”
Robinson said the hope is for some features of the new Tasers, like increased reach, to give police more time to better deescalate situations.
