Mounties pull older Tasers

OTTAWA, June 1 (UPI) -- The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said Monday it would stop using its older model Taser stun guns nationwide until testing shows them to be up to standards.

The law enforcement agency's decision came as the British Columbia government announced Monday that testing revealed the stun guns don't meet the manufacturer's specifications 80 percent of the time, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported.

Provincial Solicitor General Rich Coleman ordered the RCMP to pull 578 Taser units from service in British Columbia.

"The RCMP will continue testing the M-26 (conducted energy weapons) in its inventory across the country. Only those confirmed to be functioning appropriately will be returned to service," the RCMP said in a statement issued in Ottawa.

The RCMP also is in the process of replacing older M-26 Taser units with the X-26 model that is said to be more reliable, the statement said.