Police across Australia are using tasers in situations that are inappropriate, unnecessary, and sometimes dangerous—and it's all caught on camera. A new Four Corners investigation has exposed a pattern of misuse that raises serious questions about police training and accountability.
The ABC investigation, broadcast this week, documented cases where officers deployed tasers against people who posed no immediate threat, people experiencing mental health crises, and even people who were already restrained. In several cases, the person tasered was elderly, disabled, or in medical distress.
The footage is hard to watch. In one case, officers tasered a man having a seizure because they thought he was resisting arrest. In another, a 95-year-old woman with dementia was tasered in a nursing home. These aren't edge cases or split-second life-or-death decisions. They're failures of judgment, training, and supervision.
Mate, tasers were sold to the public as an alternative to lethal force. The promise was they'd save lives by giving officers an option between words and bullets. Instead, they've become a compliance tool—something officers reach for when someone isn't following instructions quickly enough, regardless of the risk or justification.
The data backs up the concerns. Taser deployment has increased dramatically across Australian states over the past decade, far faster than overall police interactions or violent crime rates. That suggests mission creep: what was meant to be a last-resort weapon before lethal force has become a routine tool for gaining compliance.
Particularly concerning is the use of tasers against people experiencing mental health crises. These situations require de-escalation and medical intervention, not electric shocks. But officers often lack the training or patience to manage these encounters safely, and the taser becomes the easy option.
Police responses to the investigation have been predictable: most forces defended their officers while acknowledging room for improvement in training. Several states are reviewing their taser policies. Whether that leads to meaningful change or just better PR remains to be seen.
The broader issue here is accountability. Body camera footage shows inappropriate taser use, but officers are rarely disciplined unless someone dies or the media gets involved. That sends a clear message about what's acceptable.
Australia needs a serious conversation about police use of force, proper mental health crisis response, and what accountability actually means. This investigation should be the start of that conversation, not the end.
