MONTICELLO  — The Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office has completed two weeks of training with the new TASER 7 after the TASER X26P has been discontinued. Corporal Brian Kelting said the new TASER 7 was an improvement over the old model: “the probes fly straighter and faster to ensure penetration [of subject’s clothing].” 

Using propulsion by compressed nitrogen charges, the TASER 7 fires two cartridges, which each house dart-like electrodes connected to the main unit by copper wire.

“The new tasers have a ‘Warning Arc’ that allows its user to display an electrical current that’s very noisy” on the front of the weapon.

Kelting continued, “You can see the spark,” and that the visual and auditory display act as a powerful deterrent to the subject. 

A TASER is known as a Conducted Electrical Weapon (CEW)- a weapon that discharges electrical current into a subject that will cause involuntary muscle contractions and override the subject’s voluntary motor responses. A TASER is one of several less-than-lethal options police officers have in their tool kit, including batons and O.C. spray (oleoresin capsicum; commonly called ‘pepper spray’), to use against a dangerous individual. 

Sullivan County Undersheriff Eric Chaboty explained that police have a “use of force continuum” to gain compliance from a subject; officers use these guidelines to evaluate the dangers posed by a subject against law enforcement and civilians that may be present. An emergency situation is a “fluid situation,” Kelting said, one in which the totality of factors can change in an instant. Chaboty said, “That’s why it’s so tough to be a cop - you have to make split-second decisions.” 

“The lowest level is verbal,” Chaboty said, explaining that the first course of action is always using words to gain compliance. If that is unsuccessful, an officer can use his hands to fight against a combative subject. If the conflict escalates, “police can use impact weapons (batons) and pepper spray.” The next level of force is the use of a TASER, and the highest threat level warrants the use of a firearm. 

Fortunately, Chaboty said, “since 2006 when Mike Schiff became sheriff, there have been no firearms discharged at a human being.” Chaboty said there were no tasers deployed by the sheriff’s office in 2024, although Corporal Kelting recalled an incident during the apprehension of a suspect when the now-discontinued X26P TASER failed to deploy its cartridge. 

Despite its “less-than-lethal” categorization, the TASER is still dangerous, and Kelting explains that it should not be used on “the elderly, children, or pregnant women.” Kelting said users of the TASER should avoid deploying it on a subject that is on an elevated platform, near water, or operating a vehicle. The website of Axon, the company that manufactures and sells TASER, warns that “individuals with heart disease, history of seizure, or a pacemaker are at greater risk.” The website also warns that “continued exposure to the weapon is not safe and total exposure should not exceed 15 seconds.” Chaboty said the new TASER 7 is programmed to shut off the electrical current after five seconds, even if the user is holding down the trigger.