Meeting held over whether San Francisco police should carry Tasers
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Officials held a meeting Wednesday on whether San Francisco police officers should carry Tasers in light of the fatal shooting of Mario Woods in December.
The Police Commission gathered at San Francisco City Hall to talk about it.
San Francisco's Police Chief Greg Suhr was supposed to present his draft proposal to arm police with Tasers, but instead the San Francisco Police Officer's Association unexpectedly introduced theirs.
Union officials said if the city is going to do this, it needs to be done right and it's going to cost tax payers a lot of money.
Not knowing what Suhr had in store regarding Tasers, this morning the San Francisco Police Officer's Association came up with a preemptive strike.
VIDEO: Graphic new video released in fatal SFPD shooting of Mario Woods
A draft proposal is asking that every officer carry a Taser and be trained in crisis intervention immediately and that's not all. "We want all the radio cars in the field to have an automatic external defibrillator, an AED available if in fact an officer deploys a Taser and an individual is in need of medical attention," San Francisco Police Officers Association spokesperson Martin Halloran said.
On the other hand, it's believed the police department is proposing to train a few officers at a time.
Obviously arming every one of them in a short period will cost the city an enormous amount of money. "I believe members of government need to put their money where their mouth is," Halloran said.
The training would occur on their days off, which will mean more overtime.
The Police Commission has rejected the use of Tasers twice before, but following the Mario Woods shooting by five officers, the mayor and the police chief are once again asking that officers be allowed to carry Tasers.
VIDEO: Protesters sound off at police commission meeting over SFPD shooting
Many are speaking out against them saying when an officer is threatened, Taser or no Taser, police are always trained to use their guns. "It's enough for police to be able to say their lives were in danger, as I say their training is to use guns in such a situation, not Tasers," activist Michael Lyon said.
A vote from the Police Commission is not expected Wednesday night.
Here is full video of the San Francisco police shooting of Mario Woods that happened on Dec. 2, 2015. Warning: This video contains graphic content and strong language
PHOTOS: Demonstrators protest Mario Woods fatal shooting in SF
Click here to see all of our stories on Mario Woods
