Club (weapon)

Truncheon redirects here. When used to describe a spear shaft (usage resurrected by Tolkien), see spear.

A club, cudgel, baton, truncheon, night stick, or bludgeon is among the simplest of all weapons. A club is essentially a staff, crock or stick, usually made of wood, and wielded as a weapon.

Typically, a club is small enough to be wielded in one hand. Clubs that need both hands to wield are called quarterstaffs in English.

Simplicity

The club is perhaps the simplest of all true weapons; a club is typically carved from a single piece of wood; any piece of wood that is narrow enough on one end to be grasped by the hand of its wielder can be used as or made into an improvised club. Baseball bats and axe handles or pickaxe handles are common instances of clubs. Police commonly refer to clubs as impact weapons, or impact tools.

The wounds inflicted by a club are generally known as bludgeoning or blunt-force trauma injuries.

Various kinds of clubs are used in martial arts and other specialized fields.

Police and army batons

Batons, truncheons, and nightsticks

A baton (from bâton, the French for stick) or truncheon (nightstick or billy-club in American English) is essentially a stick of less than arms-length, usually made of wood, plastic, or metal, and carried by law enforcement, correctional, riot control, and security personnel for non-lethal self-defense or combat situations. A baton is used to strike, jab, block, and aid in the application of armlocks.

In the Victorian era, police in London carried clubs about one foot long called billy-clubs or truncheons. The impact weapon has developed into several varieties available today. The basic impact weapon is a straight baton made from wood or a synthetic material, approximately one and a quarter inches in diameter, and from 18 to 36 inches long; this is also called a nightstick (by individuals outside of the law enforcement community). The 36" and longer batons are called "riot batons"; the handle end is sometimes fluted to aid gripping.

Sometimes wooden truncheons or batons are ornamented with organization's coats of arms and suchlike and used for symbolic presentation rather than as weapons.

Compare mace and staff of office for the marrying of defense and symbolism.

Making straight batons of rubber results in a softer initial impact due to some of the kinetic energy being used to bend and compress the rubber, causing it to bounce off the object that was struck. The Russian police standard issue baton is rubber, except in cold areas like Siberia where extreme winter cold makes the rubber go brittle and break if swung at a suspect.

The traffic baton is red to make it more visible when being used as a signaling aid when directing traffic.

Until the mid-1990s British police officers carried traditional wooden truncheons of a sort which had changed little from the Victorian era, but since the early 1990s all forces have chosen to replace truncheons with newer side-handle (tonfa shaped) and collapsible batons for all but ceremonial duties.

Batons in common use by officers in North America include (traditional) fixed-length straight batons, fixed-length side-handle batons, collapsible straight batons, and collapsible side-handle batons. All 4 types have their advantages and disadvantages (elaborated below).

Legal Aspects Regarding the Use of Batons by Peace Officers

As per the use of force policies of most American law enforcement agencies/departments, a baton may be used in a use-of-force situation when deploying a firearm would not be appropriate or justified, but greater force is needed than that which can be met by bare hands. Unless otherwise justified (such as in a deadly force scenario), the officer should avoid directing baton strikes towards the head, neck, face, spine, organs, kneecaps, elbow joints, collarbone, or groin; strikes that hit the subject in these areas can cause serious/permanent injury or death. Directing baton strikes towards non-critical areas of the body, such as arms and legs, is less likely to produce serious/permanent injury or death. However, it should be noted that even a baton strike to the leg has the potential of seriously/permanently injuring or killing the subject struck; for example, it is possible for the strike to cause a blood clot that, if not detected and treated by medical personnel afterwards, may cause death to the subject.

Before the 1970s, the common practice was to "skull" a suspect ^{[citation needed]} — that is, to hit him on the head with the weapon. As a result of civil lawsuits and claims of police brutality, more training was given to officers, and now the primary targets are nerves such as the common peroneal nerve, or large muscles such as the quadriceps or biceps.

Straight/Fixed-Length Batons

A Straight/Fixed-Length Baton (also commonly referred to as a "straightsick") is the oldest American police (long) baton design, often made of hardwood but also available in other materials such as aluminum. They can be found in lengths such as 23", 26", or 29". Despite having been replaced by side-handle and expandable batons in many if not most law enforcement agencies, it remains in use by many major agencies in the US, such as the Baltimore, Denver, Sacramento, Long Beach, Santa Ana, Riverside Police Departments.

Considerably longer straightsticks with a 36-inch length are often referred to as "riot batons", and are often used in such civil disturbances.

Reasons some agencies have replaced the straightstick with other batons include inconvenience of carry, as well as a desire for their officers to appear less threatening to the community they serve. However, many proponents of the straightstick argue that it is more effective at rapidly disabling a suspect than newer designs (anecdotally requiring fewer strikes than many expandable batons), and that officer safety should be the overriding consideration.

Expandable Batons

Swedish riot police with expandable baton.

An expandable baton (also referred to variously as a collapsible baton, telescopic (or telescoping) baton, tactical baton or spring cosh or beater or Harding Bar) is an intermediate-force weapon commonly carried by peace officers, correctional officers, and security personnel. It is used to defend against physical attack, as well as control combative and non-compliant subjects. It may also be used by military personnel.

An expandable baton is typically composed of a cylindrical outer shaft containing telescoping inner shafts (typically 2 or 3, depending on the design) that lock into each other when expanded. The shafts are usually made of steel, but lightweight baton models may have their shafts made from alloys.

Expandable batons may have a solid tip at the outer end of the inner-most shaft; the purpose of the solid tip is to maximize the power of a strike when the baton is used as an impact weapon.

Expandable batons are made in both straight and side-handle configurations.

The most well-known example of the straight expandable baton is the ASP (Armament Systems and Procedures) Baton, which has become a genericized trademark within the law enforcement and security communities for this type of product.

Depending on the holster/scabbard design, it may be possible to carry an expandable baton in either collapsed or expanded position (which would be helpful if an officer needs to holster an expanded baton and it is not possible or convenient to collapse it at the time).

An expandable baton is opened by being swung in a forceful manner while collapsed. Depending on the design, expandable batons may be collapsed either by being brought down (inverted) on a hard surface, or by depressing a button lock and manually collapsing the shafts.

The advantages of a collapsible baton over a fixed baton are numerous:

The collapsible shaft makes it easier for the officer to carry it and to sit in a car seat wearing it, since when collapsed it is between six and ten inches long. Officers may, as a measure of convenience, often resort to removing a non-collapsible baton from their belt when seating themselves in a vehicle.
Non-collapsible batons are typically carried in a "ring" type belt attachment; fixed batons carried in such holders are notoriously prone to working themselves out of the holder (through inertia) when the wearing officer is required to sprint/run (for example, when pursuing a suspect on foot). Two solutions to this problem are to either hold the baton down in the ring with a hand, or have the baton *in* the hand; neither of these two alternatives may be desirable, depending on the circumstances requiring the officer to sprint/run. Conversely, the typical collapsible straight baton and its scabbard do not suffer from this problem, and will remain secure regardless of the wearing officer's movement.

In theory, the mere display of extending the baton may in some instances be psychologically intimidating to an aggressive suspect (due to both the sight and sound of the action), and may thus deescalate the situation and preclude the necessity of any physical force being used at all.
Many police officers believe that it presents a more community-friendly image to the general public than non-collapsible batons, due to the formers lower profile while collapsed; many citizens may not even know what the collapsible baton is for when it is collapsed and residing in the officer's duty belt; a 29-inch wooden straightstick's designed purpose, on the other hand, is clearly more self-evident. In this regard, the collapsible baton may be considered more suitable for community-oriented policing.
A collapsible baton may be deployed against a suspect whether expanded or collapsed; expanded, the baton's reach is extended, but collapsed, the baton is handier in close quarters. This provides greater versatility in a wider range of environments over the fixed-length baton.

However, expandable batons are not without some disadvantages:

Some police may prefer to carry a fixed baton due to the greater visual deterrence it may provide (which may be a benefit in the form of increasing the officer's command presence). Similarly, a fixed baton serves better as a conspicuous symbol of authority (i.e. "badge of office") than a collapsed expandable baton.
Fixed batons may often be less expensive than their collapsible counterparts of identical or similar quality. Because of this, some law enforcement departments (such as the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department) may issue a fixed-length baton, but require their officers/deputies to privately purchase their own expandable baton at their option, should they desire one).
Fixed batons may be inherently faster to bring into action, due to their not needing to first be extended before use as an impact weapon (unless one wishes to use a collapsible baton in collapsed form).
If an expandable baton is of friction-lock design (most are), there is an inherent risk that the baton may inadvertently close at an inopportune moment while being used to strike a suspect.

Additionally, the baton, in collapsed configuration, may be used as a control device against non-compliant subjects in conjunction with pain-compliance control techniques (such as to remove a driver refusing to exit his or her vehicle).

Although not *specifically* prohibited by name, expandable batons are generally considered deadly/prohibited weapons in the State of California under Penal Code Section 12002/12020, and as such, may be lawfully possessed only by authorized law enforcement and security personnel.

Side-Handle Batons

Side-handle batons are batons with a short side handle at a right angle to the shaft, about six inches from one end. The main shaft is typically 24 inches in length. They are derived from the tonfa, a Japanese martial arts weapon, and are used with a similar technique (although Tonfas are usually used in pairs, whereas side-handle batons are not). The most well-known example is the Monadnock PR-24.[1], which has become a genericized trademark within the law enforcement and security communities.

It can be held by:

One end, and the corner between the shaft and the handle used to catch a long swung blunt or sharp weapon.
The side handle, and the long shaft held against the hand and forearm to splint and shield the arm against an expected blow from an attacker.

Side-handle batons are made in both fixed and collapsible models, and can be constructed of materials ranging from wood, polycarbonate, epoxy, and aluminum.

Some side-handle batons are one-piece in design; the side-handle component and primary shaft are permanently fused together during manufacturing. One-piece designs are potentially stronger in design than 2-piece designs, and have no risk of having a locking screw loosen from its threads. Other side-handle batons are two-piece in design (common among cheaper makes); the side-handle component is screwed into primary shaft. The side handle may be removed from the shaft by the end-user, converting the side-handle into a straight baton. Users of 2-piece side handle batons would be well-advised to apply a thread-locking compound to the side-handle screw to prevent loosening under use. It would also be prudent to occasionally check the tightness of that screw.

The advantages of a side-handle baton over a straight baton are numerous:

There are a far greater number of defensive techniques/maneuvers that may be used with the side-handle baton in contrast with the straight baton.
The side-handle component may aid in weapon retention, making it more difficult for a suspect to take the baton away from the officer in a struggle.
The side-handle component prevents the baton from rolling far away if inadvertently dropped, unlike a straight baton.
Subjectively, some officers may be able to deliver a strike of greater power with the side-handle baton (when used in conjunction with a "power stroke") over a straight baton.
Due to its design, a side handle baton is generally used in a more defensive and less offensive manner than a straight baton, and thus it is less likely for an officer to "instinctively" use a side-handle baton as a simple bludgeon and direct indiscriminate strikes against a suspect. Also, the typically defensive stance the side-handle baton is used with is generally believed to present a more community-friendly image than a straight baton.

Side-handle batons have a few disadvantage:

More training is required for an officer to fully utilize the potential of a side-handle baton compared to a straight baton.
The side-handle slightly increases overall weight and bulk of the baton compared to a straight baton of identical length.
When the side-handle baton is used as a simple bludgeon (without gripping the side-handle), it is less effective than a straight baton.

Side-handle batons have been involved in high-profile incidents of alleged police brutality, such as in New Zealand's 1981 Springbok Tour [2][3], and the Rodney King beating.

Recent design innovations

Several design innovations are being tested in response to some of the perceived limitations of the currently popular expandable baton and side-handle baton. These drawbacks include inherent compromises due to the dual (and competing) goals of 1) control effectiveness and 2) safety for both officer and subject. Generally speaking, the more control a piece of equipment offers an officer, the less safe it is for the subject (eg; Gun). This has spurred a review of "arrest & control" tactics as well as a flurry of design innovations. Three of the more notable designs to come to light are 1) The Rapid Rotation Baton, 2) the Cuffing Baton, and 3) the TSB-45. Each of these offers a unique redesign of the basic baton with a value proposition based on a better combination of control and safety characteristics.

Rapid Rotation Baton

Rapid rotation batons focus on handle characteristics that permit rapid and fluid grip changes as well as incorporating an additional hand protector and "rotator" to a normal tonfa in the form of a "cross-guard". It is purportedly effective as an extreme close quarter baton against grips, grabs, body holds and ground defense. It has recently been picked up by the Federal Bureau of Prisons for maximum custody use.

Roy Bedard, a Tallahassee Police officer, designed the RRB in 1995 due to his belief in that the current baton being offered was ineffective. The telescopic baton, usually known as the ASP baton, had the penchant for collapsing upon impact, and did not provide the user with a defensive position. The RRB is used by many different agencies, primarily for agencies who use community policing, due to the RRB's non-threatening carry position.

Cuffing baton

A cuffing baton marries a baton design and an integrated handcuff. The baton itself is reminiscent of the steering wheel locking device commonly known as "the Club" - it has a long straight section and a "y-shaped" yoke at the other end. The yoke includes a triggered handcuff that can be remotely unlocked.

Electric-shock batons

See stun baton for batons designed to administer an electric shock.

Maglite and Other Large Flashlights

Although the Kel-lite in the 1970s appears to have been the first flashlight designed specifically to be useful as emergency defensive weapon[4], the most well-known example is the 5 D-cell Maglite, popular with law enforcement and security staff. Due to their inefficient size/weight-to-power ratio compared to smaller, lighter, and brighter lights such as lithium-powered Surefire lights, Maglites are often regarded as being more useful in their improvised impact weapon role than as illumination devices.

Use of such flashlights as a club or baton is generally officially discouraged by the manufacturers and law enforcement officials, but its use is obviously an option. As with all police weapons there have been many allegations of misuse, such as in the Malice Green beating in Detroit. However, it should be noted that the use of flashlights as improvised impact weapons is subject to the same use of force regulations as the use of purpose-designed impact weapons like batons.

Peace officers may often choose to use such flashlights because they are viewed primarily as illumination devices; thus, if a peace officer carries one in his hands during nighttime encounters with potentially violent subjects, it would be more difficult to file valid complaints (of "unnecessarily" brandishing a weapon) against him than if he/she were to have a baton or OC canister in his/her hands instead. This permits the officer to have an impact weapon already in his/her hands and ready for instantaneous action, as opposed to having to draw a baton or OC canister.

Characteristic of a flashlight used as a baton or club is the grip employed. Flashlights are commonly held with the bulb end pointing from the thumb side of the hand, i.e. pointing outward from the body when held palm upward. When wielded as a club, the bulb end points inward when the hand is palm upward, and the grip is closely choked to the bulb end. This grip has several advantages, in that the bulb end of a flashlight is usually flared and thus serves as a pommel preventing the flashlight from slipping out of the hand when swung, the bulb end is also relatively more fragile and more likely to break on forceful contact, and the bulb end has less mass than the opposite end which is usually filled with heavy batteries. Gripping a flashlight in this way is somewhat less convenient for use as a light, since the natural position of the resting hand points the flashlight to the rear when standing. Thus when a flashlight is held in this manner it is often perceived as an “offensive” posture.

Another advantage to using a flashlight as a club is that in poorly lit situations it can be used to initially blind the eyes of an opponent. Law enforcement officers often deliberately shine flashlight beams into the eyes of suspects at night to cause temporary night-blindness as a preemptive defensive measure, whether or not the individual is likely to behave violently.

Pickaxe handle

In the past pickaxes were much more common than they are currently, and replacement handles even more so. Strong and heavy, they make a formidable club and have often been used this way. For instance they were handed out by segregationist Lester Maddox to the white patrons of his Pickrick Restaurant to keep that establishment from being "integrated".

Baseball and T-ball bats

The baseball bat is often used as an improvised weapon, much like the pickaxe handle. In countries where baseball is not played much, baseball bats are often first thought of as weapons.

Tee ball bats are also used in this manner. Their smaller size and lighter weight make the bat easier to handle in one hand than a baseball bat.

Snapstick

This is a variation of the blackjack. It consists of a longer strap which lets it be used flail-type, and can be used as a club or for trapping techniques as seen in the use of nunchaku and other flexible weapons. Other concealable batons include the kubotan and yawara.

Palm sap

This is a variation of the sap. It is a lead weight sewn into a leather or nylon cover, carried in the palm and held in place with a cord or elastic band. A glove is usually worn over the palm-sap. The palm-sap is used by slapping a suspect. A police officer related a story of using a palm-sap on a combative suspect and indicated the suspect "dropped like a sack of potatoes" when slapped on the side of the head.^{[citation needed]}

Saps are often classified as prohibited weapons in many jurisdictions, and are specifically banned by name in California (Penal Code Section 12020). Although there are no known legal exemptions to this prohibition for law enforcement personnel, some municipal California peace officers can nonetheless be seen carrying and using a sap, and they are even openly offered for sale to peace officers at some police equipment shops in California

Sap gloves

These are a variation of the sap. They are gloves with lead shot or powder contained between layers of leather located across the knuckles. Police officers tend to refer to such items in euphemistic terms. Sap gloves have been referred to as "balanced driving gloves." ^{[citation needed]}

Shillelagh

File:StPatDayShillelagh.jpg

The St. Patrick's Day Shillelagh

A Shillelagh (pronounced "shi-LAY-lee") is a wooden club or cudgel, typically made from a stout knotty stick with a large knob on the end or on the side, that is associated with Ireland in folklore. They are traditionally made from blackthorn (sloe) wood (Prunus spinosa) or oak. It was named after the Shillelagh forest in County Wicklow, a forest of oak which produced some fine examples. The wood would be smeared with butter and placed up a chimney to cure, giving the Shillelagh its typical black shiny appearance. Shillelaghs may be hollowed at the heavy "hitting" end and filled with molten lead to increase the weight; this sort of Shillelagh is known as a 'loaded stick'. They are commonly the length of a walking stick (distance from the floor to one's wrist with elbow slightly bent). Most also have a heavy knob for a handle which can be used for striking as well as parrying and disarming an opponent.

In the folk song "Finnegan's Wake", shillelagh law refers to a brawl. There was a popular song, "The Same Old Shillelagh", recorded by several Irish-American singers in the 1940s, including Bing Crosby and Billy Murray, about such a weapon being passed along from father to son. X-Men villain Black Tom Cassidy was portrayed to wield a Shillelagh both as a club and, with his mutant power, he could generate destructive concussive force through the wooden stick. Professional wrestler and Northern Ireland native Finlay uses a shillelagh as his signature illegal weapon.

Sally rod

A Sally rod is a long, thin wooden stick, as the name suggests generally made from willow (Latin Salix), used chiefly in the past in Ireland as a disciplinary implement, but also sometimes used like a club (without the fencing-like technique of stick fighting) in fights and brawls.

Knobkierie

A Knobkierie, occasionally spelled knopkierie or knobkerry, is a strong, short wooden club with a heavy rounded knob or head on one end, traditionally used by Southern African tribes (e.g. Zulu) as a weapon in warfare and the chase. The word Knobkerrie derives from the Dutch knop (knob or button), and the Bushman and Hottentot kerrie=kirri (stick).

It is employed at close quarters, or as a missile, and in time of peace serves as a walking-stick. The head, or knob, is often ornately carved with faces or shapes that have symbolic meaning. The knobkierie itself serves this function in the crest of the 2000 new federal coat of Arms of South Africa.

The name has been extended to similar weapons used by the natives of Australia, the Pacific islands and other places.

Rungu

A rungu (Swahili, plural marungu) is a wooden throwing club or baton bearing special symbolism and significance in certain East African tribal cultures. It is especially associated with Maasai morans (male warriors) who have traditionally used it in warfare and for hunting.

Aklys

The Aklys is a club with an integrated leather thong, used to return it to the hand after snapping it at an opponent. Its origin is unclear.

Jitte

One of the more unique weapons of the samurai police (Keisatsu-Kan) was the Jitte (or Jutte). Basically an iron truncheon, the Jitte was popular because it could parry the slash of a razor-sharp sword and disarm an assailant without serious injury. Essentially a defensive or restraining weapon, the length of the Jitte requires the user to get extremely close to those being apprehended.

A single hook or fork, called a Kagi, on the side near the handle allowed the Jitte to be used for trapping or even breaking the blades of edged weapons, as well as for jabbing and striking. The Kagi could also be used to entangle the clothes or fingers of an opponent. Thus, feudal Japanese police used the Jitte to disarm and arrest subjects without serious bloodshed. Eventually, the Jitte also came to be considered a symbol of official status.[5]

In sports

Clubs or club-like implements figure in a number of sports. The tools used in golf to hit the ball with are called golf clubs, although golf clubs are perhaps less traditionally club-like than baseball or cricket bats, both of which are still made of wood. A baseball bat is a round club traditionally made from ash tree wood. A cricket bat resembles a paddle and is traditionally made from willow wood. Few golf clubs are made of wood in current play.

A hurley (or camán) is used in the Irish sport of hurling. A hurley is made from ash and is between 26"-40" long with a flattened end that is used to hit a small ball (sliotar). Traditionally hurling was used to train Irish warriors dating back to at least 400 AD.

A much smaller wooden truncheon-like bat is used to strike the ball in pelota, a game similar to jai-alai.

A shillelagh appears in the logo of the Boston Celtics.

The Shillelagh Trophy is an annual football game between members of the University of Notre Dame and Purdue University and takes place in Indiana, United States.

The Jeweled Shillelagh is awarded to the winner of the annual football game between the University of Notre Dame and the University of Southern California. The club has small medallions representing the winner: a shamrock for the Irish and a Trojan head for USC. Notre Dame leads the series 42-30-5. In case of a tie, the medallion is a shamrock with a Trojan head overlay. The first club ran out of room and is stored at Notre Dame University, South Bend, Indiana, United States.

References

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

External links

Assessing the Expandable Side Handle Baton – a UK government document comparing various types of baton (PDF)
State of California Penal Code sections 12020 - 12040
TSB45: The Baton of the Future An article on the TSB45 Baton
Article on the virtues of the telescopic steel baton
Article on "USE-OF-FORCE TACTICS AND NON-LETHAL WEAPONRY"
Where have all the batons gone? Article on the Rapid Rotation Baton