When an inmate refused to enter his cell at the Northern Nevada Correctional Center (NNCC), the facility's Special Response Team (SRT) was called in.  They arrived on the scene armed with a PepperBall launcher and, before the team could even reach the inmate, the non-lethal technology had done its job.  The unruly inmate was uninjured, on the ground and compliant.

The PepperBall launcher is the newest addition to the SRT's less and non-lethal weapons arsenal.  It joins the Advanced Taser M26 and the OC fogger, among others.  These types of technologies, which are continually evolving, are a means for agencies to restore order in their facilities without seriously injuring inmates or officers.

"The biggest benefit to [less lethal technologies] is resolving the situation and gaining compliance from the inmates with the least amount of force necessary," said Lt. Adam Watson, Commander of NNCC's SRT. 

According to Watson, the PepperBall launcher, which the team just acquired in March, was a perfect tool to use in the situation where an inmate refused to lock up on an open tier.  As opposed to a Taser, which can only reach a limited distance, the PepperBall Launcher has far-reaching dispersal and saturation capabilities, he said. 

Because the technology is so new to the department, not all 25 SRT officers are certified to use it yet.  Those who attended this year's Mock Prison Riot in early May were the first to receive training on it, said Watson, who regards the yearly event sponsored by OLETC in conjunction with NLECTC as a "top notch" training experience and an excellent showcase for cutting edge less lethal technologies.

After holding fundraisers - a car wash and a dog wash - to pay their way to the Riot in Moundsville, W.V., Watson and 23 people from his SRT and other Nevada Department of Corrections emergency response teams had an opportunity to try out other technologies that they might want to someday add to their less lethal line-up.  The tools they sampled included a hydro force fogger and a noise device that would disperse inmates rioting on a large field, Watson said.

Making the Move Toward Less Lethal

These kinds of less and non-lethal weapons, which the field of corrections really began to take an interest in during the mid-90s, continue to be the direction in which law enforcement is headed, according to Watson.

"I think that [less lethal technologies] are going to be incorporated nationwide, not only in corrections, but in police departments as well.  I find them to be truly effective, especially the new Taser," Watson said.  "It's instantly incapacitating.  I would put it up against the biggest, strongest guy I know," he added about the weapon that uses Electro-Muscular Disruption Technology to subdue subjects.

The Harris County, Texas, Emergency Response Team (ERT) is another team putting Tasers to the test.  They recently added the M26 and X26 to their less lethal weaponry.

"The less lethal option has really played a huge part in our ongoing daily operation," said Johnny Gonzales, Tactical Team Entry Sergeant for the Harris County ERT.  "With less lethal, you have less [of a] chance of injuring the suspect or the inmate or doing lethal damage to them."

The Harris County ERT, too, attended this year's Mock Prison Riot, where it also experimented with different less lethal technologies. 

"The past two years that we've been there, I found it very beneficial to [be able] to go back and bring the latest technology and present it to [my] command staff," Gonzales said. 

One technology that Gonzales currently has his eye on is the PepperBall system, which he hopes to eventually purchase for the team through grant money.  For now though, the ERT carries a 37 mm multi-launcher with foam batons and bean bag rounds and the M26 Taser, which is basically a standard tool used on just about all of the team's missions, he said.

"[In addition], we always have a ready box with a variety of other less lethal options, be it chemicals [or] stinger grenades," Gonzales said.  "We also carry flashbang distraction devices."

Continual Training

According to Gonzales, the team members are trained on a variety of less lethal weapons, with different people having certification in different technologies and then training the other members of the ERT.  Training typically consists of the ERT officers trying the weapons out on each other, so that they won't be startled if they, themselves, are affected by the less lethal technologies when they are using them in the field and so they understand the capabilities.

"We required everyone who went through the Taser certification on the team to be Tased," Gonzales said.  "They have to go through it so they will know the effect of the tool they're utilizing," he added.  "If they're exposed to it prior to [using it during a mission], the chances of [them] panicking are pretty much gone and they will know how to take care of their business."

According to Gonzales, these trainings take place throughout the year and each officer is required to become certified to use the various less lethal weapons.

"We do mandatory in-service training [with] all of our weapons in out arsenal," Gonzales said.  "We have dedicated days that are just strictly less lethal.  Every year we recertify our guys pretty much in all of our options as far as less lethal."

Less Lethal Threats Keep Order

Despite all of the training that the Harris County ERT officers undergo on the less lethal weapons at their disposal, they aren't often required to use them, said Gonzales.

"Most of the time, when we're called out, the mere presence of our less lethal options has been a deterrent factor in a lot of our incidents," Gonzales said.  "When [they're] looking down the barrel of [a multi-launcher], they tend to cooperate."

But even if the ERT were required to use the multi-launcher or the other less lethal technologies they are armed with, the result would be far better than when lethal force options were exercised in corrections: the inmates will not be seriously injured and the officers, too, will stay out of harm's way.  And, ultimately, corrections departments benefit.

"[Less lethal technologies] cut down on the civil liabilities that the department may be faced with [and] the wrongful death suits or anything of that nature," Gonzales said.  "[And they] cut down on your officer-involved shootings and workers' compensation claims," Gonzales added.  "[They] are definitely tools that are needed in our agency."

Resources:

To contact Watson, call (775) 887-9230

To contact Gonzales, call (713) 755-8800