What Weapons Do Police Officers Use?

Police officers must handle difficult situations each day, many of them dangerous. Because their work is unpredictable and has potential for personal harm, police officers use a variety of weapons to deal with different circumstances.

Handguns

Handguns are the most common lethal weapons police officers use. The most prevalent calibers are 9mm, .40 and .45.

Night Sticks

Night sticks or batons also are used by police officers to subdue criminal suspects who are fighting or fleeing.

Tasers

Tasers are weapons which look like handguns, and shoot dart-shaped electrodes that deliver a low-current, high-voltage shock, effectively disabling the criminal.

Controversy

Tasers are a source of controversy because their use has resulted in several deaths over the years. Amnesty International estimates that since 2001, over 330 people in the United States died after being hit with Tasers.

Other Stun Weapons

Other stun weapons, such as the stun baton, also are used by police officers.

Pepper Spray

Police officers use pepper spray when dealing with several violent people at once, as in a riot.

Crowd Dispersal

Police officers also shoot rubber bullets and spray tear gas into crowds which are becoming violent or causing property damage.

Resources

• Controversy over Taser use