Quebec City police use stun gun to bring 9-year-old boy wielding knives under control
Police say stun gun was 'best option' with 'least possible consequences' under circumstances
Police in Quebec City are defending their use of a stun gun to bring a knife-wielding, nine-year-old boy under control.
The child was not injured in the incident, which happened Sunday at the boy's home after his mother called police.
Police spokesman Const. David Poitras said officers tried without success to reason with the boy, who was brandishing two large knives.
The boy became violent when officers tried to enter the home, Poitras said.
Police resorted to a deploying a stun gun for a few seconds when the boy began making his way to a room where there was another member of the family.
The boy dropped the knives and officers were able to bring him under control.
"Given that we didn't know this child's intentions, that he had access to potential victims, that there was a chance he was a danger to himself, at that moment the best option was the stun gun," Poitras said.
"In those circumstances, that was the option with the least potential consequences," he said.
Poitras said police guidelines in such circumstances call for responding officers to judge the best option, "where the potential consequences are the least serious."