NCJ Number
131451
Date Published
1991
Length
125 pages
Annotation
In 1981 the Los Angeles Police Department adopted nonlethal weapons known as TASER and chemical irritant spray; this study reports the degree to which these devices have reduced injuries in confrontations between police officers and suspects.
Abstract
The study focuses on eight nonlethal types of force that officers use to place resisting suspects on the ground: baton, kick, punch, miscellaneous bodily force, flashlight, swarm, chemical irritant spray, and TASER. The major hypothesis is that nonlethal weapons cause fewer and less severe injuries than the other force types. The study examines a stratified sample of 502 of the 1,160 incident reports from the Los Angeles Police Department for the first half of 1989. Variables were created for the force types, the injuries to suspects and officers, and the precipitating incident conditions. Research disclosed overwhelming data to support the major hypothesis: TASER and chemical irritant spray are effective devices which cause no significant injuries, but conventional force types do cause significant injuries. The study concludes that the existing literature on nonlethal weapons is replete with myth, misinformation, and "conventional wisdom" that is inaccurate. This has probably prevented nationwide adoption of TASER and other useful nonlethal weapons. Police agencies should form partnerships with politicians, scientists, and the military to develop the next generation of nonlethal weapons and to stimulate wider use of nonlethal weapons by police across the Nation. The study concludes that the expanded use of nonlethal weapons would lead to fewer and less severe injuries to suspects and officers, reduced civil liability claims and payments, reduced personnel complaints, reduced employee disability costs, and an improved public image for law enforcement. Appended supplementary data, 74 notes, and 41 references