Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, June 26, 1993 TAG: 9306260042
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By STEPHEN FOSTER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Mace.
Cayenne peppers.
Which sounds more intimidating?
Police departments throughout Virginia and the nation are switching to oleoresin capsicum - a spray made with the oil that makes cayenne peppers hot - not because of what it sounds like, but because of what it does.
It does the job better.
"This is the thing of the future for cutting back on crime and not killing people," said Bedford Police Sgt. Melvin Massie. "No. 1, it is not harmful. No. 2, it completely incapacitates the person."
Supporters of OC in the police ranks - and they are many - say the weapon can reduce injuries to civilians and officers. It also might reduce the probability of excessive-force lawsuits by immobilizing a suspect who otherwise might be restrained with greater force.
Unlike Mace, a chemical-based irritant, OC is inflammatory. When it strikes a person or animal, it causes the eyes to immediately slam shut. It inflames the membranes in the throat and nose, making them swell to restrict breathing.
Its success rate runs up to 95 percent, authorities said, while Mace sometimes can be overcome by vicious animals or people high on drugs or alcohol.
"Mace is something that tends to make people mad more than anything else," said Massie, whose department began using OC six months ago.
Police value the sprays as an intermediate step in trying to restrain suspects. In the levels of force that police use - from verbal commands to physical, hands-on techniques, and ultimately to deadly force and firearms - OC use falls in the middle. While each department follows its own policy, law-enforcement officers generally are instructed to use OC only after verbal commands fail and before drawing their firearms.
The Roanoke County Police Department was one of the first in the Roanoke Valley to implement OC 14 months ago, Chief John Cease said. Since then, it's been used 60 or 70 times and has failed only three times; authorities think one time the officer missed his target with the spray.
The county's Sheriff's Office, which oversees the courts and jails, has issued OC to its 10-member emergency response team, said Maj. Mike Winston.
Salem's Police Department held an OC training session for officers Friday.
Roanoke's Police Department uses Mace now but expects to start training with OC by fall, said Lt. William Althoff.
Other departments that have signed on include: Botetourt and Bedford counties, Lynchburg, Virginia Beach and Norfolk.
Virginia State Police hope to issue OC, which is authorized by the FBI, to troopers by year's end, said Sgt. Ron Watkins of the State Police Academy in Richmond. He said there are about 50 manufacturers of OC who could submit bids to the agency.
Watkins expects the agency will spend about $25,000 to $30,000 to issue it to 1,300 troopers, Watkins said.
Salem spent about $750 to equip its 58-member force with OC, Salem Standards Officer David Rorer said.
Not everyone has signed on to it, though.
Some departments don't see a need for OC - or any spray - or feel the costs and potential liability make its use unnecessary.
"We don't want our deputies using any chemical agent like that," said Chief Deputy Dan Haga of the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. "We just don't see a need for it."
"It is not a cure-all," Roanoke's Althoff said. Officers still will have to fight sometimes, and they can't use it in close quarters.
During Friday's training in Salem, an instructor advised against using it on elderly people or children, because afterwards, convincing them that they're going to be OK can be difficult.
Authorities stress the need for proper training, with some departments requiring officers to be sprayed with OC before issuing it. Others make it voluntary, but all go through some type of training.
"It's a tremendous tool for modern law enforcement," said Rorer of the Salem department. When a potentially violent suspect has been taken into custody and 30 minutes later is physically fine, "To me, that's the greatest saving grace."
by CNB