Baltimore police use of Tasers in poor, black neighborhoods questioned

Baltimore police officers exceeded widely accepted safety limits for Tasers more than any other force in Maryland, and in nearly all cases fired the weapon at suspects who were not complying with police orders but did not pose a threat.

Most of the suspects hit by Tasers in Baltimore were black, according to data obtained and analyzed by The Baltimore Sun, and more than two-thirds of the incidents from 2012 to 2014 took place in ZIP codes with the city's lowest median incomes.

The trends concern the city's top cop.

"Who suffers the most when police departments have deficient policies and procedures? Minorities and poorer communities suffer," Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis said in response to The Sun's findings.

Davis has begun reorganizing the department and implementing new policies aimed at reforming its practices, including how officers use Tasers. His efforts come as the Justice Department continues a yearlong investigation into whether Baltimore officers violate federal civil rights laws when using force on residents, ranging from deadly force to Tasers and pepper spray.

Civil rights leaders and attorneys contend that more needs to be done. They say that residents increasingly complain about police abuse of Tasers and that the data shows that officers treat residents differently, depending on where they live and the color of their skin. Tessa Hill-Aston, president of the Baltimore chapter of the NAACP, called The Sun's findings "troubling."

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