TASER® Conducted Electrical Weapons: Physiology, Pathology, and Law

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xv

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2. Conducted Electrical Weapons: A User’s Perspective

   • Greg Meyer

   Pages 1-9

3. The Scientific History

   • Robert A. Stratbucker

   Pages 11-21

4. Conducted Electrical Weapons and Resolution of Use-of-Force Encounters

   • Charlie Mesloh, Mark Henych, Ross Wolf

   Pages 23-39

5. Nonlethal Weapons: The Broader Context

   • Peter J. Cuenca, John G. McManus

   Pages 41-50

6. Transcutaneous Muscle Stimulation

   • James D. Sweeney

   Pages 51-62

7. Current Flow in the Human Body

   • Dorin Panescu, Robert A. Stratbucker*

   Pages 63-84

8. Animal Studies

   • John G. Webster

   Pages 85-108

9. CEW Research Models: Animal and Human Studies

   • Theodore C. Chan, Gary M. Vilke

   Pages 109-118

10. Cardiac Arrhythmias

    • Derek J. Dosdall, Raymond E. Ideker

    Pages 119-131

11. Electrocardiographic Effects of the CEW

    • Jeffrey D. Ho

    Pages 133-141

12. Serum and Skin Effects of CEW Application

    • Jeffrey D. Ho

    Pages 143-151

13. Echocardiographic Effects of the CEW

    • Robert Reardon

    Pages 153-161

14. Rhabdomyolysis

    • Ronald Moscati, Samuel Cloud

    Pages 163-166

15. Effects of CEWs on Respiration

    • Donald M. Dawes

    Pages 167-178

16. Neuroendocrine Effects of CEWs

    • Donald M. Dawes, Mark W. Kroll

    Pages 179-185

17. Electroporation of Cardiac and Nerve Cells

    • Vadim V. Fedorov, Leonid Livshitz, Geran Kostecki, Igor R. Efimov

    Pages 187-200

18. Eye and Head Injuries

    • S. Robert Witherspoon, Andreas K. Lauer, Jonathan L. Marinaro

    Pages 201-209

19. CEW Effects with Illegal Stimulant Intoxication

    • Patrick Tchou

    Pages 211-217

20. Alcohol and the CEW

    • Ronald Moscati, Jeffrey D. Ho

    Pages 219-222

TASER® Conducted Electrical Weapons are rapidly replacing the club for law-enforcement control of violent subjects within many countries around the globe. A TASER CEW is a hand-held device that delivers a 400-volt pulse with a duration tuned to control the skeletal muscles without affecting the heart at a distance of up to 6.5 meters over tiny wires. If necessary, it begins with an arcing voltage of 50,000 V to penetrate thick clothing; the 50,000 V is never delivered to the body itself. Due to the widespread usage of these devices and the widespread misconceptions surrounding their operation, this book will have significant utility. This volume is written for cardiologists, emergency physicians, pathologists, law enforcement management, corrections personnel, and attorneys.

• heart
• physiology
• respiration
• skeletal muscle
• skin
• sudden cardiac death
• toxicology

From the reviews:

"It is a must-read for anyone who has contact with CEWs [conducted electrical weapons]."

"From questions about electricity and the details of echocardiography to excited delirium and exercises in case law, this book covers it all."

"Drs.Kroll and Ho did an outstanding job of combining the basics of CEWs with the intricate details without making the book unusually complicated."

"...this book has facts and answers to many of the common questions surrounding CEWs as well as specialized information for the reader who wants to know the nuanced details."

(Dr. Paul Nystrom, TASERs: Fact or Fiction, Emergency Medicine News, October 2009)

"This book does an excellent job of pulling together a wide ranging variety of information about electronic control device technology, and its use. … The information in this book is especially important for those in the law enforcement and professional communities … . if you’re serious about understanding electronic control devices, non-lethal force, and all of the other issues related to this field, you need to have this book on your shelf, and you need to be familiar with its contents." (Steve Ashley, ILEETA Review, Vol. 5 (4), October-December, 2009)

"This 457-page book … is a unique and rather fascinating compendium of science, clinical medicine, and electrophysiology. … a primer on the law related to conducted electrical weapons (CEWs). … This book is a gem; you will not find such an in-depth treatise in any other source. … a cornucopia of information, data, personal vignettes, and streetwise common sense. … most avid readers will be law enforcement personnel, toxicologists, emergency physicians, medical examiners, and of course, lawyers. … I really like this book." (James R. Roberts, Academic Emergency Medicine, November, 2009)

“Published in 2009, ‘TASER Conducted Electrical Weapons: Physiology, Pathology, and the Law’ offers a comprehensive review of the TASER devices and an overview of in-custody events … . The reader is able to travel with ease from the simple to the complex with well- written chapters that are complemented with tables, graphs, photos, and appendices. … This book would be beneficial in preparation for trials, lectures, or completion of postmortem examinations of any in-custody death.” (Ruth E. Kohlmeier, American Journal of Forensic Medicine & Pathology, October, 2010)

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