A quick primer on "less than lethal" weapons used by police forces.

[TheWraith]

First off, the correct term is not "non-lethal" but "less than lethal." This is primarily for the benefit of the people using these, to remind them that they are still potentially dangerous, particularly if used incorrectly.


Rubber bullets:

Technically, these aren't really "bullets" per se. They're rubber balls or rods launched out of specially designated shotguns used specifically for this purpose, and they come in several types. The most common is a flat-tipped rubber "baton" round, weighing about 5 grams. An example can be seen below.



Slightly less common is rubber buckshot. This is essentially 9 rubber pellets, each .3 inches in diameter and weighing half a gram. Being much smaller and ligher, these have less impact than baton rounds, but they're also harder to aim.

Rounds like these are always fired out of specially marked weapons, which are in turn never used for lethal ammunition, to avoid mixing the two.


"Flashbang" grenades:

A flashbang could best be described as a kind of firecracker on steroids: at their core is a roughly 5 gram load of explosive powder, which when ignited produces a bright flash (~1 million candlepower) and produces a sound of between 120 and 130 decibels, for the purpose of stunning and disorienting. (For reference, the threshold of pain is 125 decibels, 140 is the maximum recommended exposure to any sound.

Being too close to one (less than 3 feet) can result in permanent hearing damage, and holding or being on top of one when it goes off has been known to cause fatal burns in at least one case, a police officer who had one discharge accidentally while he was organizing his gear.

Flashbangs are most often used by SWAT teams breaking into a building or room, particularly when hostages are involved; indoors, the loudness of the noise will make it almost impossible for the target to react to the entry, without running the risk of killing bystanders.


Tear gas canisters

Tear gas isn't actually a gas at all, but a very fine acidic powder which irritates the eyes and the respiratory system, causing a burning sensation and crying, hence the name. Typical tear gas canisters weighs about 8 ounces, and are either propelled by a dedicated launcher, or by a "canister launcher" which fits on to the end of a firearm loaded with blank rounds. Either way, gas pressure effectively "throws" the canister toward the target. Depending on the system, the effective range can be anywhere from 50 feet to over 1,000. An example of a canister launcher is seen below, firing a round tear gas grenade.

[Kennah]

1. A few other interesting "non lethal" items

http://www.pica.army.mil/pmccs/D3IEDProtect/D3_2NLCS/counterPers.htm

Note the rubber ball claymore mine, or Modular Crowd Control Munition (MCCM).

[TheWraith]

2. That's military gear, not used by any police force I'm aware of. nt

[Kennah]

5. AFAIK, the police use military M84 Flashbangs. The rubber buckshot is made by lots of makers.

[TheWraith]

6. But I'm not aware of any police force using rubber ball mines.

To the best of my knowledge, only the military has developed them.

[Kennah]

7. Yet, but agreed.

[intaglio]

3. Plastic bullets used to be called "Baton Rounds"

They and the older rubber bullets were used by the British Army in Northern Ireland. At least 14 deaths were attributable to these weapons. They were never supposed to be discharged at closer than 100 ft. One major problem is ricochet from the ground, rubber bullets would ricochet uncontrollably and often lethally. Plastic bullets were supposed to reduce the problem by being softer, hence losing more energy, on contact with a hard surface. But ...

Two ex-Servicemen told me that there is a "use by" date on these rounds because the rounds degrade over time, becoming harder. Such rounds were supposed to be returned to the quartermaster or discharged in firing drills. What would actually happen was that newer rounds would be discharged and older, harder rounds would be kept.

[Shagbark Hickory]

4. Even a goose down pillow can be lethal under the right circumstances. nt