Police Chief George Gascon still supports equipping San Francisco police officers with tasers despite a federal appeals court decision that restricts their use to situations when someone's safety is at risk.

The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Monday that officers couldn't simply deploy a taser when someone is acting belligerent or disobeying orders.

The SFPD will eventually deploy tasers and officers would be trained to use them only when someone is “in fear of being assaulted,” Gascon said.

“I believe the taser is a less lethal weapon,” Gascon said. “It's not a non-lethal weapon.”

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