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Phoenix Police veteran, ASU professor talks Minnesota gun, Taser ‘mix up’
A mix up like a handgun versus a taser is what many people are discussing after a deadly Minnesota police shooting and how something like this could happen.
PHOENIX - A mix up like a handgun versus a taser is what many people are discussing after a deadly Minnesota police shooting and how something like this could happen.
On Sunday, an officer in Minnesota shouted "Taser" before pulling the trigger of her gun and killing 20-year-old Daunte Wright.
Bodycam footage soon shows the officer in shock after the shooting, saying, " ... I shot him."
Phoenix Police veteran and professor of criminal justice at Arizona State University, Kevin Robinson, says it is hard to fathom this kind of mistake.
RELATED: Daunte Wright shooting charges: Second-degree manslaughter
"I find it hard to understand how an officer could mistake those two. I am not saying it can’t happen, but I find it hard to understand," Robinson says.
He says in police departments, officers are trained to have their taser on their non-dominant side and their gun on their dominant side.
Even with the training behind that, he says there are many differences between the two weapons.
"There is a significant weight difference. There is a significant feel. Their handles aren’t as long," Robinson says, adding, "They were made that way for a reason."
Robinson cannot speculate on what exactly happened during this incident until more information comes to light, but says, it is extremely important for officers to have continuous training.