A late-night bender recently turned into a shocking experience for an ISU student. On Aug. 31 Michael Crabb, a senior in hotel and restaurant management, received an honor he is “not proud of . by any means.”

Our young college senior happens to be the first student at Iowa State to challenge, and experience first-hand, the working end of the newly equipped ISU Police Department’s Air Tasers.

The situation was handled quickly and professionally by all of the law enforcement officials involved.

No extreme use of force. No violation of civil rights.

Past the use of pressure points and grappling holds, using the Taser was the next step in subduing Crabb, who was intoxicated at the time of the incident.

Crabb could have spent the night blinking tears out of his eyes or tending to the inevitable case of road rash a parking lot scuffle would have produced.

Instead he slept off the source of his predicament and embarrassment.

As law enforcement officials – especially those who are as minimally equipped as those with our police division – every call needs to be approached with caution. Tasers offer a safer alternative for both the officers and the suspects.

In the three months they’ve had the Tasers, the ISUPD has used them once, proving that while they are willing to use the Tasers, they are hardly zap-happy.

The ISUPD is well aware of the sensation – 50,000 volts – a Taser produces. Each officer carrying a Taser has completed the required 16 hours of training that includes firing and being shot by the weapon themselves. In addition to the specialized Taser training, officers undergo an additional use-of-force training specifically tailored to the ISUPD.

These aren’t part-time or work-study students, but fully trained, educated and licensed law enforcement officials. It is this training and its success in the field that give the ISUPD the credibility it deserves, and will help clarify the misconception that the Department of Public Safety’s Police Division and Parking Division are one and the same.

Nothing could be further from the truth. ISUPD officers work closely with a number of law enforcement agencies such as the Ames Police Department, the Story County Sheriff’s Department and the Story County Attorney’s Office. The department has regular contact with the State Division of Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

While the ISUPD may not have the equipment that is standard at its peer departments, the officers have proven they can effectively employ the tools for deterrence they have been granted.

Editorial Board: Cavan Reagan, Erin Randolph, Rachel Faber Machacha, Charlie Weaver, Zach Calef, Ayrel Clark.