Mounties watchdog wants less Taser use

OTTAWA, June 19 (UPI) -- The Royal Canadian Mounted Police should scale back use of stun guns and improve training, a federal watchdog's report said.

Paul Kennedy, chairman of the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP, issued the report with 12 recommendations on the electronic devices, the Ottawa Sun reported.

Among the recommendations was that only officers with the rank of corporal or higher in urban settings and constables with five years experience in rural jurisdictions should carry stun guns and they should use the weapons only when a suspect is combative or posing a risk of danger.

Kennedy also said it should be standard operating procedure for officers to seek medical attention immediately for anyone who was stunned, the Sun said.

Kennedy said reports of stun gun fired at fleeing suspects, children and elderly citizens show the device is being used too often and in inappropriate circumstances.

The RCMP issued a statement acknowledging a need for better training but didn't commit to disarming junior officers, the newspaper said.