Baton (law enforcement)
A baton is a roughly cylindrical club made of wood, rubber, plastic, or metal. It is carried as a compliance tool and defensive weapon by law-enforcement officers, correctional staff, security guards and military personnel. The name baton comes from the French bâton, derived from Old French Baston, from Latin bastum.
As a weapon a baton may be used defensively or offensively, and it can aid in the application of armlocks. The usual striking or bludgeoning action is not produced by a simple and direct hit, as with an ordinary blunt object, but rather by bringing the arm down sharply while allowing the truncheon to pivot nearly freely forward and downward, so moving its tip much faster than its handle. Batons are also used for non-weapon purposes such as breaking windows to free individuals trapped in a vehicle, or turning out a suspect's pockets during a search.
Some people other than law enforcement officers use batons as weapons because of their simple construction and easy concealment. The use or carrying of batons or improvised clubs by people other than law enforcement officers is restricted by law in many countries, by reason that baton strikes against vulnerable parts of the body can have the capacity to inflict lethal injuries.
History
In the Victorian era, police in London carried truncheons about one foot long called billy clubs. According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, this name was first recorded in 1848 as slang for a burglars' crowbar. The meaning "policeman's club" is first recorded 1856. The truncheon acted as the policeman's 'Warrant Card' as the Royal Crest attached to it indicated the policeman's authority. This was always removed when the equipment left official service.The Victorian original has since developed into the multitude of varieties available today. The typical truncheon is a straight stick made from wood or a synthetic material, approximately in diameter and long, with a fluted handle to aid in gripping. Truncheons are often ornamented with their organizations' coats of arms. Longer truncheons are called "riot batons" because of their use in riot control. Truncheons may have developed as a marriage between the club or military mace and the staff of office/sceptre.
Straight batons of rubber have a softer impact. Some of the kinetic energy bends and compresses the rubber and bounces off when the object is struck. Rubber batons are not very effective when used on the subject's arms or legs, and can still cause injury if the head is struck. That is why most police departments have stopped issuing them. The Russian police standard-issue baton is rubber, except in places such as Siberia, where it can be cold enough that the rubber may become brittle and break if struck. The traffic baton is red to make it more visible as a signaling aid in directing traffic. In Russia, traffic batons are striped in black and white for the same reason, and in Sweden they are white. Until the mid-1990s, British police officers carried traditional wooden truncheons of a sort that had changed little from Victorian times. Since the late 1990s, the collapsible baton is issued except for public order duties, where a fixed, acrylic baton is used. Side-handled batons were issued for a while, but fell out of favour.
The New York City Police Department used to use two kinds of batons depending on the time. The one for daytime was called a day-stick and was in length. Another baton, that was used at night, was long and called a night-stick, which is the origin of the word nightstick. The night-stick was longer so it could provide extra protection which was thought to be necessary at night.
Target areas
In modern police training, the primary targets are large nerve clusters, such as the common peroneal nerve in the mid-thigh and large, easily targetable muscle groups, such as the quadriceps and biceps. The baton is swung in fast, "snapping" strikes to these areas, sometimes only making contact with the tip. Taken together, these are intended to impair the subject's ability to continue advancing or attack by causing transitory neurapraxia. Modern systems strictly prohibit hitting the skull, sternum, spine, or groin unless such an attack is conducted in defense of life, with many jurisdictions considering this deadly force.Before the 1970s, a common use of the police baton was to strike a suspect's head with a full-force overhand motion in order to stun them or knock them unconscious by cerebral concussion, similar to the pre-baton practice of buffaloing with the handle of a revolver. However, this practice had two major liabilities. First, there was a high risk and incidence of death or permanent injury, as the difference in force between that required to concuss a suspect into non-resistance and that which would fracture their skull tends to be narrow and unpredictable. Second, there were problems with reliability, as resistance to cerebral concussion varies widely between individuals, and head strikes that did not disable the suspect were found to merely escalate the encounter. Officer Arthur Lamb, a well-known trainer on the baton, once stated:
As a result, civil lawsuits and claims of police brutality resulted in revised training for officers.
Designs
Batons in common use by police around the world include many different designs, such as fixed-length straight batons, blackjacks, fixed-length side-handle batons, collapsible straight batons, and other more exotic variations. All types have their advantages and disadvantages. The design and popularity of specific types of baton have evolved over the years and are influenced by a variety of factors. These include inherent compromises in the dual goals of control effectiveness and safety.Straightstick
A straight, fixed-length baton is the oldest and simplest police baton design, known as far back as ancient Egypt. It consists of little more than a long cylinder with a molded, turned or wrapped grip, usually with a slightly thicker or tapering shaft and rounded tip. They are often made of hardwood, but in modern times are available in other materials such as aluminium, acrylic, and dense plastics and rubber. They range in size from short clubs less than in length to "riot batons" commonly used in civil disturbances or by officers mounted on horseback.Straightsticks tend to be heavier and have more weight concentrated in the striking end than other designs. This makes them less maneuverable, but theoretically would deliver more kinetic energy on impact. Most agencies have replaced the straightstick with other batons because of inconvenience to carry, and a desire for their officers to look less threatening to the community they serve. Despite having been replaced by side-handle and expandable batons in many law enforcement agencies, straightsticks remain in use by many major departments in the US, such as the Baltimore, Denver, Sacramento, Long Beach, Santa Ana, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Riverside Police Departments. They also are used by NYPD Auxiliary Police officers, as well as many Military Police forces around the world.
Side-handle
Side-handle batons are batons with a short side handle at a right angle to the shaft, about from one end. The main shaft is typically in length. They are derived from the tonfa, an Okinawan kobudō weapon, and are used with a similar technique. The best-known example is the Monadnock PR-24; "PR-24" has become a genericized trademark within the law enforcement and security communities for this type of product.It can be held by:
- One end, and the intersection between the shaft and the handle used to catch a long swung blunt or sharp weapon.
- The side handle, and the long shaft held against the hand and forearm to splint and shield the arm against an expected blow from an attacker.
The advantages of a side-handle baton over a straight baton are numerous:
- There is a far greater number of defensive techniques/maneuvers that may be used with the side-handle baton in contrast with the straight baton.
- The side-handle component may aid in weapon retention, making it more difficult for a suspect to take the baton away from the officer in a struggle.
- The side-handle component prevents the baton from rolling far away if inadvertently dropped, unlike a straight baton.
- Subjectively, some officers may be able to deliver a strike of greater power with the side-handle baton over a straight baton.
- Due to its design, a side handle baton is generally used in a more defensive and less offensive manner than a straight baton, and thus it is less likely for an officer to "instinctively" use a side-handle baton as a simple bludgeon and direct indiscriminate strikes against a suspect. Also, the typically defensive stance the side-handle baton is used with is generally believed to present a more community-friendly image than a straight baton.
- More training is required for an officer to fully utilize the potential of a side-handle baton compared to a straight baton. Its use is not as instinctive as the straight batons.
- The side-handle slightly increases overall weight and bulk of the baton compared to a straight baton of identical length.
- When the side-handle baton is used as a simple bludgeon, it is less effective than a straight baton. Also, if an officer uses it incorrectly and strikes the subject with the end of the side handle while holding the baton from the other end it can cause serious injury.