Thirty-six new hand-held tasers have arrived at the Anchorage Police Department. Police Spokesman Lieutenant Dave Parker says the new tasers will bolster the number of patrol officers carrying the weapons to about half. The tasers were ordered in July, shortly after two fatal officer-involved shootings. The new tazers can fire two-shots in a row. The other 100 or so tasers used by officer now fire just one shot. Officials say studies show that when tasers are available to officers, there is a reduction in injury to officers and to suspects. In order for a taser to be used, there must be another officer present with a firearm. The tasers were paid for through a 2011 state appropriation. They cost $1,300 each. That’s between 2 and 3 times the cost of the handguns the officers carry.
Daysha Eaton is a contributor with the Alaska Public Radio Network.
Daysha Eaton holds a B.A. from Evergreen State College, and a M.A. from the University of Southern California. Daysha got her start in radio at Seattle public radio stations, KPLU and KUOW. Before coming to KBBI, she was the News Director at KYUK in Bethel. She has also worked as the Southcentral Reporter for KSKA in Anchorage.
Daysha's work has appeared on NPR's "Morning Edition" and "All Things Considered", PRI's "The World" and "National Native News". She's happy to take assignments, and to get news tips, which are best sent via email.
Daysha became a journalist because she believes in the power of storytelling. Stories connect us and they help us make sense of our world. They shed light on injustice and they comfort us in troubled times. She got into public broadcasting because it seems to fulfill the intention of the 4th Estate and to most effectively apply the freedom of the press granted to us through the Constitution. She feels that public radio has a special way of moving people emotionally through sound, taking them to remote places, introducing them to people they would not otherwise meet and compelling them to think about issues they might ordinarily overlook.
