Dobrindt wants to equip the Federal Police with electric shock devices

Berlin – Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) plans to equip the Federal Police with electric shock devices. "I am convinced that the use of Tasers by our police is absolutely necessary. I will ensure that the Federal Police are quickly equipped with Tasers and that the necessary legal framework for this is quickly established this year," Dobrindt told the newspapers of the Funke Media Group (Sunday editions). The minister also intends to provide the financial resources for the procurement of distance electroshock devices (DEIG). Dobrindt emphasized that the use of Tasers is "a suitable means of responding to the increased threat to police in public spaces." "The Taser is the right tool to function precisely at the interface between the baton as a close-quarters weapon and the pistol as a long-range weapon." Especially if individuals were to attack federal police officers with stabbing weapons such as knives, the officers could "disable the attackers more effectively" and "protect themselves better." In the USA, electroshock devices have been in use for many years, and several German states already use the Taser in special operations units, as well as in patrol duty, for example, in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate. A scientific study is currently underway in North Rhine-Westphalia to examine the impact of the Taser in police work.