Offensive Use of Tasers on UCLA Student

An Iranian-American UCLA Student, Mostafa Tabatabainejad, was tased after being unable to produce ID and reacting (irrationally) to being touched by cops at UCLA's Powell Library. Declan has a great summary at politech ("Refuse to show ID, get Tasered by angry cops with an attitude"), but do watch the video.

If you feel strongly about this, especially if you're a UC student, please consider writing acting chancellor Norman Abrams a letter at chancellor@conet.ucla.edu .

Here's the letter I wrote:

Chancellor,

I would like to express my dismay at learning that UC police recently used serious force, multiple times, to remove a student from a UCLA library.

From the video that was taken and posted, it is clear that this student was shocked with a stun-gun at least three times because he refused or was unable to stand, not because he was threatening anyone. At the beginning of this affair, it seemed reasonably clear that the student was emotionally affected by how he was being treated and that unnecessary force was used by UC police, multiple times, to remove him. Considering that electric shock tends to hinder mobility, it is completely unreasonable to require someone to stand or perform some other physical action lest they be shocked again.

Further, with the seriousness and intensity of academic work that we students engage in, it is not inconceivable to end up in a Library, working hard on a tight deadline, and to have forgotten one's ID.

Frankly, I am surprised that the officers' conduct during this event did not spark a riot and further injure other students and the officers themselves. That is unsafety. Unfortunately, I think that the way in which this event was handled only increase the insecurity of UCLA students and the possibility that further incidents will not be resolved in a peaceful manner.

Finally, tazing or administering a stun-gun should be used not to motivate an individual to do something, but instead to protect an officer from imminent harm. The tazer or stun-gun should be a non-lethal defensive alternative to the use of an officer's firearm, not an offensive "cattle prod".

I am not proud to be a UC graduate on this day, and I hope that these personnel are reprimanded and that all UC police are required to undergo training in the defensive use of their weapons. If someone needs to be forcibly removed from an area, there are a myriad of persuasive holds that these officers are trained to use. I also think a draconian "kick them out if they don't show their papers" atmosphere is not an environment that promotes safety and scholarly inquiry.

Sincerely, Joseph Lorenzo Hall