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| Stun Shield Garners Respect |
| By Akron Beacon Journal |
| Published: 05/01/2002 |
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When sheriff's deputies mention 'Thumper,'' bunnies don't come to mind. And when they refer to a burrito, they don't mean food. Thumper is the name of a riot shield Summit County deputies carry when they need to get a stubborn inmate out of a cell at the county jail. The shield delivers a jolt of 50,000 volts of electricity. A burrito is what deputies call an inmate wrapped in a blanket -- often one who has seen the power of Thumper. 'The first thing you hear is the 'thump' when the inmate is hit with the shield,'' said deputy Aaron Piekarski, explaining the shield's nickname. The shield is one of several tools deputies use to bring inmates under control in a new 'extraction'' method they have adopted to get inmates out of cells. Sheriff's officials say the process has dramatically cut down on injuries to both inmates and deputies. They have recently begun doing demonstrations and showing videotapes of the process to interested civic groups and citizens. Deputies have to do about six real-life extractions a month at the jail. In the past, Finical said extractions tended to be very disorganized -- often resulting in injuries to both deputies and inmates. He said deputies might be inside the cell for as long as half an hour. Since the use of the shield began, about 80 percent of inmates will comply with orders rather than face Thumper. Piekarski, who heads up the extraction team, said the jolt from the shield normally lasts about 15 seconds and deputies don't normally need to use it more than once. Piekarski compared the feeling to how a person's hand or foot tingles when it falls asleep. But he said the shield shocks in several different spots on the body at once -- with the goal being to take some of the fight out of the inmate so he or she can be cuffed and shackled. He said the shock from the shield is not strong enough to pose a health risk or make a person lose control of bodily functions. Every facet of the extraction team -- from Thumper to the number of deputies and the all-black uniforms -- is designed to intimidate inmates into not causing a confrontation. After an extraction, deputies make sure to parade the inmate around in front of the other prisoners as a warning of what could happen to them. Each extraction is videotaped. Piekarski said this protects the deputies in case they are sued, while at the same time insuring deputies will not step over the line. |
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