By News Editor Declan Wilkes

Amnesty International claims that over 300 people have been killed by the use of tasers in the US.

The human rights charity says it against Home Secretary Jacqui Smith plan to issue 10,000 stun guns to non-firearm officers.

Amnesty's comments come as a report shows 334 people have died since 2001 as a result of being 'tasered'. Their data analysed information from 98 autopsies taken from coroners and medical examiners reports.

The report claims that the device:

"is inherently open to abuse and is not always used in accordance with international standards".

Their use in London

London looks set to swerve the new policing impetus on taser stun guns after the Met watchdog said it has "no intention" of wider deployment.

The Metropolitan Police Authority said the plans to issues thousands of officers with the 50,000-volt weapons may spread fear and damage public confidence in the force.

In late November the Home Office announced its intention to arm 30,000 frontline cops with tasers.

At present 400 Metropolitan police officers have been trained to use the weapons since last December - the Home Office will now hand 10,000 tasers to all 43 police forces in England and Wales.

The weapon

The taser is intended to be a non lethal way of dealing with dangerous situations by paralysing a target by delivering a five-second 50,000-volt charge. The barb ended weapons have a range of up to 21ft and used, ID tags are released - identifying the officer who opened fire.

Previously only a trained officer could use the weapons, but under new laws an officer can carry the shock devices after only two days training. Amnesty International called it the start of a "slippery slope".

No increase

A spokesman for the MPA said they would not immediately "sanction any increase in the availability of tasers to officers in the Met."  Continuing that:

"The current arrangements in the Met are that only trained and supervised specialist officers may deploy tasers and (they) were introduced after extensive consultation and communication with London's communities."

IPCC investigations

According to the Independent Police Complaints Commission there have been 35 complaints over the use of the stun guns since 2004.

Most of the cases involved the weapons being fired at point blank range, also known as "drive stun" mode - the barbs hitting the head, chest, neck and shoulder.

Police guidelines say they should not be used to the head or neck unless "absolutely necessary" to save life.

Met's current use of tasers

We previously reported on how over 50 suspected criminals have been tasered by London cops in the last year.

Officers have drawn the guns nearly 400 times but only 53 of those resulted in the assailant being shocked.

The details were only revealed after Mayor Boris Johnson responded to a question by Lib Dem assembly member Dee Doocey.

Smith - "police say they need them"

Home Secretary said of the £8 million project:

"I am proud that we have one of the few police services around the world that do not regularly carry firearms and I want to keep it that way.

"But everyday the police put themselves in danger to protect us, the public. They deserve our support, so I want to give the police the tools they tell me they need to confront dangerous people."

Police Association backs move

140,000 rank and file police officers and chief constables have backed Smiths move. Derek Talbot, from the Association of Chief Police Officers said trials in ten police forces showed that in 80 per cent of incidents where Tasers were used, the situation as resolved without police needing to use a weapon. Continuing that:

"This reinforces the value of Taser as a useful tool to make the public and officers safer and to resolve potentially violent situations effectively and rapidly.

"The conclusions of this trial provide further evidence that Taser is a proportionate, low risk means of resolving incidents where the public or officers face severe violence or the threat of such violence which cannot safely be dealt with by other means."

Photo - Met Police force