![Bean bag round close up](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Bean_bag_round_close_up.jpg)
A bean bag round, also known by its trademarked name flexible baton round, is a type of
baton round
Baton rounds, also known as kinetic impact projectiles (KIPs), are a less lethal alternative to traditional bullets. Baton rounds are designed to impact rather than to penetrate and are typically used for riot control.
Common types of baton round ...
, fired from a
shotgun
A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which usually discharges numerous small p ...
, and used for
less lethal
Non-lethal weapons, also called nonlethal weapons, less-lethal weapons, less-than-lethal weapons, non-deadly weapons, compliance weapons, or pain-inducing weapons are weapons intended to be less likely to kill a living target than conventional ...
apprehension of suspects.
Description
The bean bag round consists of a small fabric "pillow" filled with #9
lead shot
Shot is a collective term for small spheres or pellets, often made of lead. These were the original projectiles for shotguns and are still fired primarily from shotguns and less commonly from riot guns and grenade launchers, although shot shell ...
weighing about . It is fired from a normal
12-gauge shotgun. When fired, the bag is expelled at around ; it spreads out in flight and distributes its impact over about of the target. It is designed to deliver a blow that will cause minimum long-term trauma and no penetration but will result in a
muscle spasm
A spasm is a sudden involuntary contraction of a muscle, a group of muscles, or a hollow organ such as the bladder.
A spasmodic muscle contraction may be caused by many medical conditions, including dystonia. Most commonly, it is a muscl ...
or other reaction to briefly render a violent suspect immobile. It still can cause serious injury and death. The shotgun round is inaccurate over about and has a maximum
range
Range may refer to:
Geography
* Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra)
** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands
* Range, a term used to i ...
of around . Changes to the bean bag round since its inception in the early 1970s have included a
velocity
Velocity is the directional speed of an object in motion as an indication of its rate of change in position as observed from a particular frame of reference and as measured by a particular standard of time (e.g. northbound). Velocity i ...
reduction from 120 to 90 meters per second (400 to 300 ft/s)
as well as a shift from a square shape to a more rounded sock-shaped projectile.
Shotguns dedicated to being used for bean bag rounds are often visibly modified with either yellow or green markings, or bright orange
stocks and stops, to reduce the possibility that a user might inadvertently load lethal munitions into the weapon.
Use
![Beanbag shotgun](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Beanbag_shotgun.jpg)
Bean bag rounds are used when a person is a danger to themselves or others but is not a direct threat in such a manner that
deadly force would be appropriate – typically a
suicidal individual with a
bladed weapon
An edged weapon, or bladed weapon, is a melee weapon with a cutting edge. Bladed weapons include swords, daggers, knives, and bayonets. Edged weapons are used to cut, hack, or slash; some edged weapons (such as many kinds of swords) may also permit ...
. The round is intended to disable the person without killing them.
Dangers
A bean bag round can severely injure or kill in a wide variety of ways. They have caused around one death a year since their introduction in the US.
A round can hit the chest, break the ribs and send the broken ribs into the heart. A shot to the head can break the nose, crush the
larynx or break the neck or skull of the subject. This is why many officers are taught to aim for the extremities when using a bean bag round. A strike in the abdominal area can cause
internal bleeding
Internal bleeding (also called internal hemorrhage) is a loss of blood from a blood vessel that collects inside the body. Internal bleeding is usually not visible from the outside. It is a serious medical emergency but the extent of severity dep ...
or strike the
celiac plexus
The celiac plexus, also known as the solar plexus because of its radiating nerve fibers, is a complex network of nerves located in the abdomen, near where the celiac trunk, superior mesenteric artery, and renal arteries branch from the abdomi ...
which can disrupt breathing or heartbeat, but such a hit is generally safer than most other areas as well as presenting a larger target than an extremity. Fatalities are occasionally the result of mistaking other shotgun rounds for bean bags.
*In 2006, during
anti-corruption protests in
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
, Hungary, protestors were shot by beanbag rounds to the head. At least 3 of them were permanently blinded. One of the victims committed suicide in 2013 due to psychological complications arising from his blindness. In addition, many people suffered minor injuries (nose and finger fractures, hemorrhagic bruises). Furthermore, a few victims suffered from long-term psychological trauma due to the shock.
*In 2013, in
Park Forest, Illinois, an autopsy showed that a 95-year-old man had died from
hemoperitoneum
Hemoperitoneum (also haemoperitoneum, sometimes also hematoperitoneum) is the presence of blood in the peritoneal cavity. The blood accumulates in the space between the inner lining of the abdominal wall and the internal abdominal organs. Hemope ...
as a result of being shot by police with a bean bag gun.
*11 August 2019, during the
Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests, a female First Aider was suspected to have been hit with a bean bag round, resulting in rupture of one of her eyeballs.
* On 23 November 2019, a bean bag round fired by the
Colombian riot police hit student Dilan Cruz in the head, killing him.
* 31 May 2020, 20-year-old Justin Howell was shot in the head by the
Austin PD, suffering a skull fracture leading to seizure and brain trauma. The next day, 1 June 2020, 16-year-old Brad Levi Ayala also suffered a skull fracture after being shot in the head with a beanbag round by the Austin PD.
* 22 August 2022, Chris Amyotte, 42, an
Ojibwa man from Manitoba, died after being hit by a beanbag round fired at him by an officer of the
Vancouver Police Department
The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) (french: Service de police de Vancouver) is the police force for the City of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several police departments within the Metro Vancouver Area and is the second ...
in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
See also
*
Non-lethal weapon
Non-lethal weapons, also called nonlethal weapons, less-lethal weapons, less-than-lethal weapons, non-deadly weapons, compliance weapons, or pain-inducing weapons are weapons intended to be less likely to kill a living target than conventiona ...
*
Wooden bullet
Wooden bullets are wooden projectiles designed to be fired from a gun. They are intended to be used as less lethal weapons for crowd control by enforcing pain compliance at a distance. They have been known to raise large welts or bruises on thei ...
*
Shooting of Victoria Snelgrove
Victoria E. Snelgrove (October 29, 1982 – October 21, 2004) was an American journalism student at Emerson College in Boston, who died after being shot by officer Rochefort Milien of the Boston Police Department using a less-lethal weapon. ...
References
Further reading
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bean Bag Round
Non-lethal projectiles
Projectiles
Shotgun shells
Police weapons
Paramilitary cartridges
Riot control weapons