Risk Management of Less Lethal Options ― Evaluation, Deployment, Aftermath, and Forensics

"Introduction It all began with a TASER incident in 2001 that brought two cops, Chris Myers and Tom Burns, and a forensic scientist, Rick Wyant, together to help develop protocols to better investigate a class of weapons that were quickly gaining momentum and popularity. As our partnership grew, we realized all shared a similar desire to take a new approach to understanding less lethal weapons. Tom wanted to test the ordnance used during the WTO riots. Chris asked if we could catch stuff on fire with pepper spray. John Allgire joined in to help with all of the testing. After determining that our unique methodology to testing products yielded some interesting and eye-opening data, we formed CRT Less Lethal to help share our knowledge. Years later, when CSI and Mythbusters copied one of our experiments on their TV shows, we knew we were onto something special. Rick, Tom & John compiled this text as a culmination of that testing and lessons learned from investigating negative outcomes from all over the US and abroad. We realized that there were people being injured or dying, as well as large settlements in court cases, based on inaccurate knowledge or insufficient testing of less lethal options. We will not only discuss how these tools are deployed, but also outline ways a police department can apply simple concepts and techniques to manage risk and limit liability. These methods were developed over a decade of testing, training, evaluating, deploying, analyzing and testifying to related to the use of thesetools. We were fortunate enough to have two icons in the less lethal realm to assist us in this venture. Steve Ijames launches the text with a brilliant and perceptive forward. Sid Heal keeps it going by sprinkling his wisdom and insight throughout the book's entirety"--

R. T. Wyant has been a forensic scientist since 1994 and currently supervises the forensic firearms unit at the Washington State Patrol-Seattle crime laboratory. He is court-qualified in firearm/tool identification, crime scene analysis, less lethal devices, and trajectory reconstruction. He has developed testing protocols for CEW (conducted electrical weapon), OC-pepper spray, and less lethal impact munitions. Wyant’s testing and analysis procedures have been adopted by other crime laboratories and manufacturers. He has established foundational criteria for the admissibility of forensic TASER evidence under the Frye standard. His testing protocols have been presented to agencies, SWAT teams, and attorneys in the US and abroad including the UK, Canada, Australia, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

Tom Burns has worked as an officer with the Seattle Police Department since 1989. During that time, he has been assigned to patrol, anticrime team, SWAT, and a proactive bicycle patrol unit. During his tenure in SWAT, he was a member of the chemical agent/less lethal cadre and was cadre leader for two years. He developed the concepts for the chemical agent response teams (CART) and was a lead instructor for the WTO riots in Seattle in 1999. Tom has also helped develop patrol level protocols for addressing Excited Delirium Syndrome (ExDs).