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What Does 50,000 Volts From a Taser Do to Your Brain?

What Does 50,000 Volts From a Taser Do to Your Brain?

1 minute read

The Taser X2 electronic weapon is arranged for a photograph at the Taser International headquarters in Scottsdale, Arizona, U.S., on Wednesday, April 22, 2015. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg — The Taser X2 electronic weapon arranged for a photograph at the Taser International headquarters in Scottsdale, Ariz., April 22, 2015Patrick T. Fallon—Bloomberg/Getty Images

February 8, 2016 10:34 PM EST

New research has found that an increasingly popular law enforcement weapon, the Taser stun gun, can create short-term cognitive impairment comparable to dementia.

In a study published this month in the journal “Criminology & Public Policy,” researchers from Arizona State University and Drexel University examined what they describe as a little known corner of the criminal justice world: the effect of 50,000 volts on a person’s brain.

The researchers say their findings are especially significant for that routine part of police work that occurs at the point of arrest — the reading of a person’s Miranda rights…

Read the rest of the story from our partners at NBC News

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