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                               GARY AVERY'S BLOG

                                NOTE:   Items on this page are the responsibility and opinion of Gary Avery, J.D.,  an

                                            independent consultant to Law Advisory Group.   The ideas and opinions expressed

                                            are those of the author for which the corporation assumes no responsibility

                                                                              Dr. Avery may be reached directly at his Florida office,  (954) 785-1596

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TASERS IN SCHOOL      TASER International is allegedly settling cases that it used to fight to the finish and win.   From what we hear,  the problem is not the TASER nor the training as much as it is poor judgment by the officers using the device.   And now there is an incident in Kankakee for which the plaintiff's attorney will be more than likely trying to establish that the schools should have had a policy regarding the TASER and the Officer should have been better trained not only in the TASER and local policy but in general concepts of an SRO's duty to students.   If SROs are going to be allowed to deploy with TASERS,  a minimal set of standards for use in schools should include:       TASER  should normally be used only as an alternative to the use of deadly force.  Exceptions may be:  (a) to avoid injury to subject student or third parties;    (b) to avoid serious injury to a law enforcement officer;   (c) situations in which quick control of the subject is essential to avoid escalation, including riot.

DOGS     I continue to note that a vocal minority decries the use of highly trained animals.   In fact,  until recently,  the antagonism toward dogs kept Hawaii from adopting this modern,  non-intrusive method of effective surveillance against guns,  explosives and narcotics in schools.  What I'm hearing from school administrators is that after dogs are used several times,  the silent majority finally speaks out.  Careful analysis of cases indicates that prosecutors and school attorneys aren't fully aware of some of the nuances of earlier cases against the realities of today's school safety.   It is incumbent on the K-9 handlers to suggest to the attorneys what is happening in the legal field.    In my experience,  no attorney ever takes offense when a suggestion is respectfully presented instead of being offered as criticism.