Use of force, Tasers drops to 5-year low

By Paul Shockley
Sunday, April 15, 2012

While crime increased last year in Grand Junction, instances of reported use of force by Grand Junction Police Department officers hit a five-year low, according to a Police Department report.

There were 40 reported officer-involved incidents of force in 2011, a 30 percent decline from 2010, and down from a high of 88 incidents in 2008, according to the Police Department’s professional standards yearly summary of officer force.

Also notable, the use of Tasers declined sharply in 2011, according to the report. Officers reported using Tasers 11 times last year, another five-year low.

Three injuries to suspects who were hit with Tasers were reported in 2011, accounting for minor abrasions suffered while falling to the ground, according to the report.

Officers reported using Tasers 28 times in 2008.

Fourteen suspects suffered injuries, mostly cuts and bruises and at least one concussion, during instances of police force in 2011, the report said.

Two officers reported suffering injuries while applying force, down from seven in 2010.

Reporting “hands-on” interaction, or taking a suspect to the ground, has been mandatory reporting for officers since 2001, the report said.

The declining number of reported instances of officer force came as police reported an uptick in crime in 2011. While declining in 2010, violent and property crime in Grand Junction increased 23 percent in 2011, according to the Police Department’s 2011 reported crime and traffic report.