The TASER 10 has 10 probes that can be fired independently to improve accuracy and effectiveness.Axon
The Los Angeles Police Commission unanimously approved a yearlong pilot program to test the Axon’s new Taser 10 at its meeting Tuesday morning.
During a presentation, LAPD Deputy Chief Marc Reina told the oversight body that the new model is an improvement over its predecessor, the Taser 7, in several key ways. The older Taser shoots two barbed darts on a wire up to 22 feet long. The Taser 10 has a range of 45 feet and 10 metallic prongs instead of two. Each prong can be fire individually to give officers better control and accuracy, Reina told the Los Angeles Times.
Initially, the devices will be rolled out at the four divisions with the highest rates of Taser use: Southeast, 77th Street, Central and Hollywood. Each division will receive about 200 Taser 10s, and the officers who are assigned the devices will receive two hours of additional training.
Reina said the department hoped to gather data over the coming months to help determine whether to switch permanently to the Taser 10s.
The 800 devices would cost the department about $3 million, LAPD Chief Michel Moore said, a price tag that also covers certain add-ons, including upgraded dashboard cameras from Axon.
