MORE than 170 people have been shot by police tasers since Avon & Somerset Constabulary began using the devices three years ago.
The electronic kit is used to subdue violent or dangerous suspects, and was issued to officers in September 2007.
They were used six times at the tail end of that year, 42 times in 2008, 80 times in 2009, and on 45 occasions so far this year – a total of 173.
A number of organisations worldwide have been critical of taser use in law enforcement, with Amnesty International blaming the devices for 334 deaths between 2001 and 2008.
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