For years, watchdog groups have been warning that the allegedly "nonlethal" Taser is not, in fact, nonlethal, based upon circumstantial evidence such as, you know, a lot of dead people. Taser has always disputed that, because it would be bad for business. Now comes science.

A new report in a medical journal has found that being hit with a Taser "can cause cardiac electrical capture and provoke cardiac arrest." But how ambiguous are these findings? From the NYT:

"This is no longer arguable," said Dr. Byron Lee, a cardiologist and director of the electrophysiology laboratory at the University of California, San Francisco. "This is a scientific fact. The national debate should now center on whether the risk of sudden death with Tasers is low enough to warrant widespread use by law enforcement."

The whole "don't make any sudden movements around cops" thing still applies regardless.

[NYT]