I wonder if inflicting permanent disability without leaving any obvious physical traces on people that the police see as their adversaries is in fact part of what makes these devices attractive.
Similar to lethal injection, which looks more civilized than a bloody decapitation on the surface but can cause a slow and agonizing death to a completely paralyzed target?
Considering how rampant racism is in law enforcement (not even just in the US) as well as recent events in the US, I would actually say yes. It's "righteous punishment" for not submitting to the law (where law generally means whatever cops want you to do) and cops seem to enjoy that sort of thing.
