St. Paul cops order tasers in time for RNC protests

Jeff Fecke at Shakesville, reports that the police department in St. Paul, Minnesota, where the Republican National Convention will be held in early September, have put in an order for 230 tasers. He quotes from a Minnesota Monitor story

The purchase is expected to arrive in St. Paul just in time for the Republican National Convention prompting media speculation that the weapons are being purchased specifically for the convention. When asked by Fox 9 News whether the police will use the weapon at the convention particularly against protesters, police spokester Tom Walsh said, “Our hope is that no one will have to use any degree of force. If it becomes necessary, will that be one of the tools available to them? I suppose that's safe to say.”

Jeff's post piqued my interest because I previously had written about the warm and fuzzy vibes the Asst. Chief Matt Bostrom, the St. Paul cop in charge of convention security had about the upcoming protests.

Yeah, maybe the warm was right (how hot is a jolt of 50,000 volts?), but fuzzy? Not so much.

In fact, comments left to the MinnPost.com article I quoted tell a radically different story. Jess Sundin, with Anti-War Committee and the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War said

Unlikely as it might seem, this article was full of lies and innuendo, aimed at dividing the people who plan to protest at the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul. Don