Taser training for sergeants: Force decision ‘incomprehensible’
13 January 2022
A West Midlands Police sergeant is backing calls for the Force to rethink its policy on Taser training amid surging levels of violent crime and assaults against officers.
Saj Ahmed said he found it incomprehensible that the Force had decided not to fund one-day refresher training courses for sergeants, effectively stripping them of the authority to carry Taser.
Saj, who has been based at Bournville Lane since his promotion in 2017, was initially trained to use the equipment in 2010 when they were brought in for non-firearms officers and has carried it ever since.
He said he fully supported the Police Federation campaign for all frontline officers to be fully trained and equipped with Taser if they requested it and said such a move had become vital for the safety and security of colleagues.
Saj said: “In 18 years of policing I have never known so much violent crime and so many people carrying weapons, especially young people.
“And what is more concerning is the apparent willingness to use violence against police officers - it is certainly the highest I have ever known it.
“And to think that rank - being a sergeant - should be an obstacle to carrying a piece of kit that has saved me from so many violent situations over the years is beyond me.
“I am not saying Taser is the answer to everything. I have been in many situations where it has been effective and if I was not in possession of it. I would have been injured if not worse and if officers did not have Taser as an option the assaults on police would be even higher.”
Saj said the Force’s decision on Taser training for sergeants was all the more frustrating because the benefits of carrying outweighed the downsides to its routine deployment.
He said: “In over 11 years of carrying Taser, I can honestly say I have only ever seen positive outcomes in my personal experience.
“I am proactive, always out on jobs, supporting and backing colleagues up, and Taser has prevented serious harm to myself and my colleagues on countless occasions.”
Saj said officers who carried Taser often found its appearance on their belt or vest was enough to prevent tense situations from escalating.
He said: “Just the mere presence of it is a massive deterrent. To put it in perspective, in 11 years of carrying Taser I have only fired it 10 times, but have drawn or red dotted countless times, which demonstrates the level of deterrent it is, without having to fully fire it.”
Saj said there had been at least three occasions in the last four years where, as a sergeant equipped with Taser, he had been able to prevent serious injury to himself and fellow officers who had come under attack during violent incidents, by deploying Taser.
He said: “This notion that training for sergeants has become a cost thing is just beyond me. Taser should not be a rank-specific thing, and safety of officers should not be compromised due to cost.
“If you are a frontline officer - irrespective of rank - and you are happy to carry and take on the responsibility to carry Taser, then you should be afforded the opportunity to do so.”
West Midlands Police Federation chair Rich Cooke wants to see all officers trained and equipped with Taser if they want to be.
He said: “As a Federation we have serious concerns about the current approach. The level of risk faced by our frontline officers of all ranks is there for all to see. We want all our frontline colleagues of any rank to be afforded the protection Taser is proven to provide. We know that in 9 out of 10 cases where Taser is present there is no violence – so we could be preventing many of these assaults or worse.
“Put simply, Taser could save an officer’s life. Sergeants are often the only officers free to support colleagues at back-up shouts, they are mostly single crewed in some of the most violent streets of the UK.
“This is the least they deserve, but to prevent sergeants who are already trained and have years of experience using the tactic from undertaking a simple one-day refresher
