WATCH: Police armed with new technologies to deal with life-and-death situations
Seven News has obtained exclusive video of police using tasers to diffuse dangerous encounters.
Police face life and death situations on a daily basis.
The images shown here are confronting, but police say the weapons are saving lives.
Queensland officers will soon be getting new tasers that will provide them with even better protection.
"If police make a decision to actually use a taser, there has to be a risk of serious injury," says Acting Inspector Gary Tobin.
In one example, a man carrying a large knife in each hand taunts officers at a Townsville service station.
It's a textbook taser deployment, allowing police to take control of the situation.
Police say tasers are changing the way they react to violent outbursts.
"I think we are now better equipped with handling those situations," Acting Inspector Tobin says.
On Friday night an angry patron lunges at police in Surfers Paradise.
Outnumbered and intimidated, officers deploy a taser.
It sends two barbs into the skin, delivering a five-second jolt that causes the muscles to seize up.
It can misfire if the barbs don't land in the right spot, or if the target is wearing very thick clothing.
That's why police say tasers will never completely replace firearms.
"The officer has to respond and make a decision on force and what level of force is necessary based on his or her training," says Professor Gary Alpert of Griffith University's School of Criminology.
A new model of taser, with an extra metre's reach, is being rolled out in Queensland and they are already being used in Ipswich and Toowoomba.
Body worn cameras are also being rolled out to officers statewide.
Police officers never know what will confront them when they go to work each day, but this new technology gives an insight.
In 80 per cent of cases, just the threat of using a taser can lead to a peaceful outcome, police say.
