[jdege]

Does anyone have particular models of taser you can recommend?

[JimP]

Jdge, if you wait a few more months, the actual Taser will be available for civilian purchase. Get the X-26. it will have a training requirement associated with it but worth the time. great tool.

[jdege]

The person who inspired my question has seen a guy hanging around her bushes for the last few weeks.

She's talked to the cops, and to her neighbors.

And because of prior indiscretions, a gun isn't an acceptable alternative.

I gave her a can of pepper spray, which she still has, but she was asking about a Taser, and I don't know much about them.

But we'll be deciding whether she needs one, and getting one if the answer is yes, on a shorter timescale than "a couple of months".

[Derek Zeanah]

Taser International also makes an "Air Taser" which costs about $300 (model 34000) in a gunshop with 2 cartridges, video, box, etc. It's apparently only 7 watts, but it's there now, and they claim an 86% effectiveness rate.

Never been shot by one tho - can't guarantee anything.

They have a step up for $400 is shaped like a pistol, uses AAs, and has more oomph.

[MrMurphy]

The pistol shaped M26 will drop someone in their tracks even on PCP (it locks up your muscles, not pain compliant), I know a dozen cops who were zapped with one before getting to carry one and they all reported they were down in 2 seconds or less even being big tough mean highly motivated SWAT guys. A PD somewhere back east shot a guy on PCP with it and he dropped in his tracks.


The newer smaller X26 is even more powerful.

[carpettbaggerr]

The person who inspired my question has seen a guy hanging around her bushes for the last few weeks.Is a long-gun out of the question as well? 'Cause a gun is really what is needed here. As well as calling the cops.

Wouldn't rely on a taser or pepperspray for anyone I know in this situation. 20 gauge shotgun or handgun caliber carbine would be my recommendation ( if legal for your friend).

[jdege]

Is a long-gun out of the question as well? 'Cause a gun is really what is needed here. As well as calling the cops.

Yep - a misdemeanor drug offense in Minnesota is a lifetime ban.

She's called the cops, and she's talked to her neighbors. And she's installed motion-detector lights, looked to the quality of her locks, etc.

There's no way of knowing how dangerous this guy really is, but taking precautions is never wasted.

[MrMurphy]

Baseball bat and a Taser backed up by Fox Labs 5.3, the cop sized stream can.

[LawDog]

Yep - a misdemeanor drug offense in Minnesota is a lifetime ban.

What? :scrutiny:

LawDog

[jdege]

Minnesota Statutes 2003


624.713 Certain persons not to have pistols or
semiautomatic military-style assault weapons; penalty.

Subdivision 1. Ineligible persons. The following
persons shall not be entitled to possess a pistol or
semiautomatic military-style assault weapon or, except for
clause (a), any other firearm:

[...]

(d) a person who has been convicted in Minnesota or
elsewhere of a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor violation of
chapter 152, or a person who is or has ever been hospitalized or
committed for treatment for the habitual use of a controlled
substance or marijuana, as defined in sections 152.01 and
152.02, unless the person possesses a certificate of a medical
doctor or psychiatrist licensed in Minnesota, or other
satisfactory proof, that the person has not abused a controlled
substance or marijuana during the previous two years;

[sully]

jdege,

In Minnesota you can legally have a taser. If you do not wish to wait the time for the X26C model to come out in the near future, then you can obtain the M18. These can be obtained from Uniforms Unlimited in Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Stay Safe,
Greg Sullivan "Sully"
Chief Instructor
www.thedefensiveedge.com

[tyme]

You might forget about and accidentally leave a handgun at her home, and should the shadowy stalker cause problems, she might happen to find said gun.

Another misdemeanor -vs- perhaps dead or raped? Is that the question? (It seems to be subdivision 2 part c of http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/stats/624/713.html that's applicable) Or does use of an illegal handgun remove the self-defense justification for homicide in Mich.?

I haven't seen a taser used in real life, but I despise them anyway. If she gets one, she should think very carefully about what she intends to do after the 5 or 10 seconds of tasering is up. Try to handcuff him? Beat him unconscious with a baseball bat? When LEOs or citizens have backup , they have leeway in using less-lethal weapons... but a lone victim using less-lethal weapons against an assailant? There was a very sobering thread about "seasoning" assailants that resulted from the murder of a LEO by a suspect who had just been seasoned. I can't locate it currently.

That's assuming she managed to hit him. Even if there are dual-shot cartridges, that's not much of a safety margin. Maximum range even for the X-26 is 21 feet, which has certain implications that should be burnt into every shooter's mind. Then there's the minor consideration that tasers aren't as accurate as any handgun, and both barbs have to hit the perp. Thick clothing might stop them. etc.

[deej]

And if a Taser is going to be of questionable effectiveness against "him," think about how effective it will be against "them."

[carpettbaggerr]

I'd get a "certificate of a medical doctor or psychiatrist licensed in Minnesota, or other satisfactory proof, that the person has not abused a controlled
substance or marijuana during the previous two years"
I'm sure you could find a sympathetic doctor or shrink somewhere.

Or move out of Minnesota. That law is so poorly written it makes my head hurt.

[jdege]

Certificates only end the ban for treatment.

The ban imposed by misdemeanor convictions is permanent.

(Or, at least, that's the way I read it.)

[armoredman]

Get a lawyer.
I use TASER at work. It works well on about 85% of people I have seen it used on. Some shrug it off, most drop and "do the chicken dance" right there. YES, the effects AFTER being shot can be shrugged off a lot sooner than gas.
BTW, do NOT use a TASER after OC, unless the OC is a water based carrier. Some inmates in other states have spontaneously combusted from the alcohol based OC spray when the TASER was used. Oops.

[Ex-Doc]

according to above mentioned law shotguns are ok?

[tyme]

No.