NON-LETHAL WEAPONS EMPLOYMENT AND PERSPECTIVES

Arseni Cosmin, Preda Sorina Ale andra

Faculty of Police, Police Academy Alexandru Ioan Cuza, Bucharest, Romania Abstract: Non-lethal technologys employment represents a major benefit for law enforcement, corrections, and military professionals, providing them with still another force option within their complete force continuum. Non-Lethal weapons are engineered to save lives including the life of the officer and subjects involved, or the public who may be third party to an incident. Keywords: non-lethal weapons, security, legality, technology, perspectives.

!" INTROD#CTION Each day, all over the lo!e, la" enforcement and security officers alon "ith the military structures are confronted on many occasions "ith dan erous situations and therefore must intervene #ro#erly$ %heir mission is clear& sto# ille al activities and arrest offenders$ Advances in non'lethal technolo y have !een made #ossi!le throu h additional investment !oth on the #art of overnments and #rivate com#anies, and throu h the fact that many of the technolo ies have dual'use military and civilian a##lications$ (ther factors that have nurtured this attention to non' lethal "ea#ons have !een de!ates concernin the revolution in military affairs and the revolution in military technolo y$ )ome analysts have ar ued that the term non'lethal is a misnomer, and that less lethal is a more a##ro#riate and accurate descri#tion of the "ea#ons descri!ed in this #a#er$ %here is no uarantee that any "ea#on can !e *++, non'lethal$ But, the la!el non' lethal has a useful eneric function and the criteria laid out in the follo"in definition clearly set the #arameters to "hat it is denominated as non'lethal "ea#on$ By -A%( definition, the term of non' lethal is used to descri!e "ea#ons "hich are ex#licitly desi ned and develo#ed to inca#acitate or re#el #ersonnel, "ith a lo" #ro!a!ility of fatality or #ermanent in.ury, or to disa!le e/ui#ment, "ith minimal undesired dama e or im#act on the environment$ 0o"ever the munitions de#loyed from these non'lethal "ea#ons may, in extremely rare

cases, in.ure a #erson to the de ree "hich may result in death under uni/ue circumstances$ Based u#on a calculated ris1 factor, the chances of in.ury meetin the deadly force definition are only mar inal$ If lethality levels increase to !eyond statistical outliers the "ea#on should !e reclassified$ At this time there are no national or industry standards for these "ea#ons or munitions$ $" LE%AL &RAMEWOR' 2ost le al systems, includin the Romanian one, sti#ulate a fundamental #rinci#le re ardin the #ro ressive and #ro#ortional use of force in ordinary missions$ )tartin from the first ste# in a ris1 situation, la" enforcement officers3 #resence may !e enou h to reconcile a conflict$ 4earin the uniform and the sim#ly /uality of #u!lic authority can influence the antisocial !ehavior of some individuals$ In case the violence continues, ver!alization, re arded as le al "arnin s and summons, re#resents the next ste# in mana in conflictual situations$ At this level, ne otiation is #refera!le as a method "hich secures the #rotection of hostile su!.ects, third #arties and of le al authorities as "ell$ If they shall not succeed, force intervention may !e necessary$ 5ery often, the use of fire arms is not the a##ro#riate solution, re#resentin a ris1 for third #arties$ 4hen facin the all or nothin dilemma, less lethal systems are the solution to force intervention$ 6sually, an enforcement officer should avoid #hysical contact !y 1ee#in a safe distance from the sus#ect !ecause "ithin a fraction of a

second the situation could !ecome dan erous, ran in from ver!al a ression to #hysical attac1$ 7ess lethal systems #rovide a solution8 they ena!le la" enforcers to react from a safe distance "ith the a##ro#riate amount of force increasin the safety of the o#erator$ In res#onse to this #ro!lem, several #rivate com#anies have develo#ed non'lethal systems that include s#ecific measures desi ned to tem#orary neutralize the sus#ects$ %he use of fire arms should !e considered as a last resort solution in resolvin a conflict, if all other methods of intervention #reviously mentioned did not fulfill their #ur#ose$ %herefore, the use of "ea#ons is strictly re ulated in the le islation of all modern states, our country included$ In Romania, the frame"or1 is re#resented !y the 7a" *9:*;;< re ardin the status of fire arms and ammunition, "hich #rovides certain .ustified limitations in usin such extreme measures in order to res#ect the interests and fundamental human ri hts$ In cases "here the la" #rohi!its the use of "ea#ons, such as in #u!lic s#aces, or "hen life and inte rity of many #eo#le are endan ered, "e must mention that most of la" enforcement and security missions eventuate in #u!lic s#aces$ %his fact hinders the safe and le al use of fire arms$ Conse/uently, other means are necessary to ensure the same effectiveness "ithout .eo#ardizin the lives of #eo#le in conflict or those of the third #arties that mi ht !e involved$ (" THE #TILITY O& NON-LETHAL WEAPONS %he use of non'lethal technolo y is a reat !enefit for la" enforcement, corrections, and military #rofessionals #rovidin them "ith still another force o#tion "ithin their com#lete force continuum$ -on'7ethal "ea#ons are en ineered to save lives includin the life of the officer involved, the su!.ects involved and the #u!lic "ho may !e third #arty to an incident$

("!" Re)ard *or la+, re)ard *or ,-man ri),.s" -on lethal "ea#ons are a !etter choice !ecause "e must #ay hi h res#ect to la" and the sanctity of life$ 4e have no ri ht to send unconvicted #ersons to their rave !ased merely on sus#icion$ And even if "e cau ht them diso!eyin the la", everyone should deserve a second chance to chan e and live a !etter life$ In addition, the Euro#ean Convention on 0uman Ri hts in )tras!our , ela!orated as an ex#ression of the Euro#ean states3 "ill to ensure the com#liance of the #rinci#les listed in the 6niversal =eclaration of 0uman Ri hts, #rovides in its second #ara ra#h of Article < that Everyone char ed "ith a criminal offence shall !e #resumed innocent until #roved uilty accordin to la"$ 2oreover, the Romanian Constitution and Code of Criminal Procedure contain a series of #rovisions "hich state that until a final .ud ement of conviction is #resented, the #erson is #resumed innocent and therefore "e must #ay attention to our actions$ If it is #roven !eyond reasona!le dou!t that it "as a case of self defence, then one "ould !e .ustified for usin enou h force to commit a crime$ But ho" do "e measure reasona!le dou!t> 4e don3t have means, materials or any other o#tions to #rove such a thin and after all, one can easily !e #ayin for a crime he or she doesn3t deserve to #ay for$ In fact, the victim "ould !e #ayin for the crime of the criminal he or she 1illed$ ("$" R-nnin) amo/ Amo1 ?in 2alay& men '@mo1 meanin mad "ith uncontrolla!le ra eA is a #sycholo ical #henomenon that can occur in some individuals in extreme situations of overload$ In these cases they cannot control themselves and in their hel#less an er can !ecome extremely a ressive, a ressiveness "hich can reach u# to murder$ %hese cases have occurred /uite fre/uently lately in different situations such as the case of youn #eo#le "ho have !een ex#elled from school, unem#loyed "ith no #ros#ects or men "ho have a crisis in marria e$ %hese #ersons may !ecome #otential murderers "hen interactin

"ith a un and commit mass murder, 1illin innocent #eo#le in their hysterical ra e$ %he Vir)inia Te0, massa0re "as a school shootin that too1 #lace on A#ril *<, B++9, on the cam#us of 5ir inia Polytechnic Institute and )tate 6niversity in Blac1s!ur , 5ir inia, 6nited )tates$ In t"o se#arate attac1s, a##roximately t"o hours a#art, the #er#etrator, )eun '0ui Cho, 1illed CB #eo#le and "ounded other BD committin suicide after"ards$ %he massacre is the deadliest shootin incident !y a sin le unman in 6$)$ history$ )uch cases are increasin ly common "orld"ide, and the /uestion is& 0o" do "e handle such situations> 4e are dealin "ith #eo#le "ith mental disorders, hel#less #eo#le on the one hand and a ressive on the other$ %he o#timal solution in these cases is to use #ro#er means to immo!ilize them, "ith a minimal ris1, so that their #rotection and safety "ould !e insured$ %he radual use of force is also necessary in this situation, !ut "hen the mere #resence of the com#etent authorities, "arnin s and in.unctions, self defense no lon er have any effect, the use of non lethal "ea#ons in order to immo!ilize these #eo#le is the !est ans"er$ ("(" Pro.e0.ion and +el*are A story !oth terrifyin and sad has circulated in the Romanian #ress in =ecem!er B+**$ A ti er esca#ed from the zoo in )i!iu "as 1illed after attac1in the teams tryin to catch it$ %he 1ee#er left the ca e door o#en and the animal fled$ At first, the ti er "as shot "ith a tran/uilizer un, "hich didn3t have any effect8 on the contrary it caused an increased an er for the animal "hen a hunter shot it from a five feet distance a"ay$ %his is a ood exam#le of a situation that is also common, more s#ecifically the contact "ith animals "hen fulfillin a mission$ )ince the #olice forces are o!li ed to res#ect and #rotect the lives of animals, they must a##ly the ri ht methods and techni/ues that allo" them a successful intervention, meanin !oth self #rotection, and animal "elfare$ -on lethal "ea#ons, "ith their diversity and s#ecificity, have the a!ility to remove such dan ers, to ensure maximum efficiency

reflected in achievin the t"o oals listed a!ove ' #rotection and care$ All in all, in this cha#ter "e have tried to reveal the fact that "e live in a "orld overned !y rules and re ulations$ But rules and re ulations are not meant to inhi!it freedom or ham#er #ursuance of #ersonal interests$ %hey are meant to uide our actions and ma1e sure each and every one of us can ans"er to "hatever actions they too1 in the course of life$ %hat is ho" la" should !e #erceived !y every morally u#ri ht #erson !ecause indeed, "ithout the rule of la" "e are no !etter than sava es$ In line "ith this idea, non lethal "ea#ons are the !est choice for authorities, com!ined "ith the lethal one, !ut also for the civilians "ho must #rotect their lives daily$ (nce the non'lethal "ea#on has served its #ur#ose, "e can then call in the a##ro#riate authorities and stay #ut "aitin for them to ta1e the necessary ste#s$ 1" NON-LETHAL WEAPONS CATEGORIES AND
EFFECTS

Existin non'lethal "ea#ons include ru!!er and #lastic !ullets, entan lin nets, irritant s#rays such as #e##er or tear as, and electrical stunnin devices such as the TA !" un$ -e" non'lethal "ea#ons are on the "ay, "hich "ill include acoustic and micro"ave "ea#ons, non'lethal landmines, and malodorants$ 2any analysts "ould a ree that there is a le itimate role for non'lethal "ea#ons, !oth for civilian and military a##lications$ 0o"ever there is a considera!le disa reement as to the o#erational effectiveness of non'lethal "ea#ons, and the threat such "ea#ons #ose to arms conventions and international la"$ As usual, a !alance has to !e achieved "here the !eni n advanta es of develo#in and de#loyin non'lethal "ea#ons are not out"ei hed !y their more mali n effects$ In #articular, emer in non'lethal technolo ies offer an increasin o##ortunity for the su##ression of civil dissent and control of #o#ulationsEthese are sometimes referred to as the technolo ies of #olitical control$ %herefore "e could classify non-lethal
weapons according to several criteria:

a) de#endin

the field of em#loyment& military or civilian8 b) in terms of the su!.ect& a ainst human !ein s, animals, vehicles:materials8 c) de#endin on the technolo y em#loyed& 1inetic ener y, electrical, !arriers and entan lements, acoustic, directed ener y, riot control a ents and malodorants, !iochemical inca#acitatin a ent$ %hese !ein said, "e "ill analyze this last class, "hich in our o#inion is the most com#rehensive, focusin es#ecially on emer in technolo ies$
on

Researchers are loo1in into the use of s#ider sil1 as a non'lethal entan lement material for disa!lin #eo#le$ %he ".NN(N* *!A" !NTAN*L!/!NT 0 T!/ ?"*! A is a net de#loyed to sto# #ro#eller'driven "atercraft that is in use "ith the 6) Coast Guard$ 1"(" Ele0.ri0al Electrical "ea#ons include stun uns, stun !atons, electrified shields, electrified nets, electrified "ater cannon, stic1y shoc1ers, stun !elts, landmines and renades$ Pro!a!ly the !est 1no"n electrical un is the TA !", "hich fires out t"o !ar!s attached to fine "ire$ %hese catch the clothin or the s1in of the tar et and a disa!lin electrical shoc1 is administered$ )everal com#anies are develo#in "ea#ons that can deliver disa!lin shoc1s "ithout the need for "ires$ )ome of these are, essentially, a com!ination !et"een directed ener y and electrical "ea#ons$ %he underlyin #rinci#le is to use a laser !eam to #roduce an ionized as or #lasma throu h "hich an electrical char e can !e conducted to the tar et #erson or vehicle$ %he )L$ ! 1.A"T!" '$)2 "(3L! ?)1 "A is one such #rototy#e "ea#on$ %he com#any claims that it "ill !e a!le to fire a stream of electricity li1e "ater out of a hose at one or many tar ets in a sin le s"ee#$ %he )1 " !ou ht a s"ift res#onse from human ri hts or anizations, such as Amnesty International, "ho a ain hi hli hted the fact that, in their vie", inade/uate research has !een carried out on the #otential !iomedical and #sycholo ical effects of such a "ea#on$ %here is also a dan er of innocent !ystanders !ein affected "hen such an indiscriminate "ea#on is used$ 4ireless electrical #ro.ectiles are also !ein desi ned to et round the ran e limitations of the %aser ?around six metersA and offer the increased stand'off ca#a!ility that military and #olice desire$ But, as "ith all #ro.ectiles, there is still the #ro!lem of decreased accuracy at lon er ran es, and this means that #eo#le are more li1ely to !e struc1 in unintended #laces such as the head and nec1$ It is also unclear ho" the #ro.ectiles "ill cause electrical inca#acitation$ %he %aser, for exam#le, can only remain

1"!" 'ine.i0 Ener)2 Finetic ener y ?FEA "ea#ons, such as !aton rounds ?#lastic and ru!!er !ulletsA, truncheons, shot'filled !ean!a s, small ru!!er !alls and "ater cannons, have !een used !y #olice and military forces for many years$ In s#ite of the lon ex#erience of o#erational use, these "ea#ons have their limitations$ Recent research #oints out that their short ran e, to ether "ith a deterioratin accuracy at lon er distances, limits their use to situations of close en a ement$ (f more concern are safety considerations and the control of trauma level from !lunt #ro.ectiles remains a serious #ro!lem$ A variety of confi urations exists "ith some recently develo#ed o#tions ena!lin ultra'cold slu s of "ater to !e fired, or for the .ets to !e electrified$ %he "ater can also have a dye added allo"in an easy identification of rioters, or a chemical irritant as a re#ellent factor$ )everal ty#es of #lastic !ullet are in usa e, includin the #lastic !aton round and foam'ti##ed #lastic !ullets that have !een desi ned to minimize in.uries$ 1"$" 3arriers and En.an)lemen.s 5ehicle !arrier systems currently availa!le include the #$"TA%L! &!'()L! A""! T(N* %A""(!" and the +-N!T ?or &!'()L! L(*'T,!(*'T A""! T(N* -!&()!, &LA-A, "hich has !een successfully used !y 6) 2arines in 0aiti$ %he +-N!T is made from a stron #olyethylene called dyneema$ -ets are also availa!le to ca#ture individuals8 these nets can !e electrified or have stic1y su!stances added to them$

effective "hilst the tri er is held do"n and the electrical current flo"in into the !ody is maintained$ 1"1" A0o-s.i0 Acoustic "ea#ons, em#loyin audi!le sound, infrasound or ultrasound re#resent one emer in non'lethal technolo y that is !e innin to ro"$ In the audi!le ran e, one com#any has develo#ed '(*' (NT!N (T0 -("!)T!- A)$. T() ?'(-AA devices such as the L$N* "AN*! A)$. T() -!&()! ?L"A-A, desi ned to deliver audi!le "arnin messa es over lon ran es ?u# to *1mA$ 0o"ever, at closer distances it is considera!ly more disa!lin $ In addition to ear #ain, re#ortedly some '(-A devices can cause such side effects as loss of e/uili!rium, vomitin and mi raines$ %he L"A- "as ac/uired !y the 6) 2arines for use in Ira/ and there have !een re#orts that an acoustic device has also !een used in Af hanistan$ %he -e" Hor1 Police =e#artment ac/uired t"o units in the run u# to the B++I Re#u!lican Convention in the city$ 1"4" Dire0.ed ener)2 %here are several ty#es of directed ener y ?=EA "ea#ons under develo#ment for non' lethal "ea#ons #ur#oses that em#loy different sorts of electroma netic ener y& millimeter "ave, hi h'#o"er micro"ave, lo"'#o"er diode laser, or hi h'ener y chemical laser$ 2ost are under develo#ment and still to !e de#loyed, !ut there are indications that a ne" eneration of "ea#ons "ill soon enter into usa e$ %he use of =E for non'lethal "ea#on #ur#oses is only one as#ect of a lar er vision held !y the 6) =e#artment of =efense, "hich is to ex#loit the military #otential of =E to achieve asymmetric advanta e over adversaries$ %he A)T(&! -!N(AL 0 T!/ ?A- A is a "ea#on that uses millimeter "ave ener y to heat u# "ater molecules in the su!cutaneous layers of the s1in, causin a #ainful !urnin sensation$ '(*'-#$,!" /()"$,A&! ?'#/A "ea#ons deliver a !urst of radio' fre/uency ener y desi ned to de rade or destroy the circuits of electronic e/ui#ment$ %here are t"o main ty#es of '#/ "ea#ons&

"ide'!and "ea#ons that release a !urst of radiation over a !road fre/uency ran e enerated !y a hi h ex#losive or an electroma netic enerator8 and narro"'!and "ea#ons that are electrically driven and are directed at s#ecific tar ets$ '#/ "ea#ons have not !een descri!ed !y the military as non'lethal and can !e seen as an extension of lethal force$ (ther a##lications for '#/ "ea#ons include their #otential for sto##in vehicles !y disa!lin on!oard com#uter control systems$ 7aser "ea#ons include lo"' and hi h' #o"er systems$ =evices called illuminators or da44lers, "hich are already availa!le, use a lo"'#o"er diode laser to tem#orarily !lind or o!scure vision$ 0i h'ener y lasers are also !ein investi ated for non'lethal a##lications such as !urstin automo!ile tires, ru#turin fuel tan1s, selectively cuttin throu h electrical or communications lines, or settin fires$ )ome ty#es of hi h'ener y laser are also under consideration for anti'#ersonnel #ur#oses$ (ne such "ea#on in the early sta es of develo#ment is the #.L !- !N!"*0 #"$5!)T(L! ?#!#A, the effects of "hich have !een descri!ed as follo"s& #!# "ould utilize a #ulsed deuterium'fluoride ?=FA laser desi ned to #roduce ionized #lasma at the tar et surface$ In turn, the #lasma "ould #roduce an ultrasonic #ressure "ave that "ould #ass into the !ody, stimulatin the coetaneous nerves in the s1in to #roduce #ain and induce tem#orary #aralysis$ 1"5" Rio. 0on.rol a)en.s and malodoran.s "($T )$NT"$L A*!NT ?")AsA include synthetic chemicals C), C-, and CR as "ell as (leoresin Ca#sicum ?(CA or #e##er s#ray, "hich is !iolo ical in ori in$ Riot control a ents are com#ounds that cause tem#orary inca#acitation !y irritation of the eyes ?tearin and !le#haros#asmA, causin them to close, and irritation of the u##er res#iratory tract$ %hey are often called irritants, irritatin a ents, and harassin a ents8 the eneral #u!lic usually calls them tear as$ PA5A, a synthetic version of (C, has !ecome more #o#ular for usa e in la" enforcement since it is more #otent than the natural #roduct$ %here are a variety of shells,

renades and s#ray devices for deliverin ")As and recent "ea#ons develo#ment has focused on ne" methods of delivery such as the #aint!all'ty#e PA5A, (C or C) #o"der' filled #ro.ectiles fired !y the #!##!" %ALL 0 T!/ or the 3N 676 launcher$ %he 6F =efence )cience and %echnolo y 7a!oratory are develo#in a fran i!le #ro.ectile called the -( )"(/(NAT(N* (""(TANT #"$5!)T(L! containin #o"dered C)$ /alodorants are foul'smellin chemical com#ounds that are seen as havin #otential use for controllin cro"ds, clearin facilities and area$ /alodorants are not considered toxic chemicals, since they do not causeEor are not s#ecifically desi ned to causeEdeath, tem#orary inca#acitation, or #ermanent harm to humans or animals$ 1"6" 3io0,emi0al in0a7a0i.a.in) a)en.s (ne of the most controversial areas of non' lethal "ea#ons research and develo#ment is that related to inca#acitatin a ents, "hich have also !een called calmatives, 1noc1' out as or immo!ilizin a ents$ %hey are distinct from ")As due to their mechanisms of action$ Inca#acitatin a ents, have central effects, actin on cell rece#tors in the central nervous system to #roduce various effects includin sedation, disorientation, unconsciousness and death$ %he !oundaries of chemistry and !iolo y !ecome !lurred in this area since su!stances that can exert influence !y action on s#ecific cell rece#tor sites can have either a synthetic chemical ori in ?i$e$ toxic chemicals:dru sA or a natural !iolo ical ori in ?i$e$ !iore ulatorsA$ 4" CONCL#SIONS In order to accelerate the im#lementation of the non'lethal "ea#ons systems, the reasons outlined in this #a#er reveal the necessity of international Governments3 involvement in

terms of investments and scientific research in this field$ Althou h it re#resents a real !enefit to society as a "hole, these methods are not ris1' free$ 0o"ever, none of the coercive measures is ris1'free at all, !ut if "e "ere to ran1 them, the non'lethal devices are the !est solution !y choosin it as the most harmless measure$ %he military and civilian leaders must have a sound understandin of non'lethal "ea#ons technolo ies as they !ecome availa!le to the armed forces$ %he #remises of this fact could !e achieved only "ith the involment of the international di#lomatic authorities in order to creat an unanimously acce#ted frame"or1$ 3I3LIO%RAPHY *$ Constituia Rom@niei B$ 7e ea nr$*9:*;;< #rivind re imul armelor de foc i al muniiilor C$ 2inisterul Internelor i Reformei Administrative, Ins#ectoratul General al Jandarmeriei Rom@ne ?B++KA$ *hid de intervenie profesional8 $ Bucureti& 2inisterul Internelor i Reformei Administrative$ I$ Richard 7$ Gar"in, Graham %$ Allison, Paul L$ Felly$ "eport of an independent tas9 force Nonlethal weapons and capabilities$ Council of Pu!lic Relations Press D$ Committee for an Assessment of -on' 7ethal 4ea#ons )cience and %echnolo y ?B++CA$ An Assessment of Non-Lethal ,eapons cience and Technology$ -ational Research Council Press <$ -ational Research Council of %he -ational Academies ?B+**A$ 'ealth care comes home. The human factors$ 4ashin ton,=$C& %he -ational Academies Press 9$ -ic1 7e"er, -eil =avison ?B++DA$ Nonlethal technologies : an overview $ =isarmament Forum K$ """$"i1i#edia$or