The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office held a press conference Wednesday, February 15th 2017, to inform the public about two less than lethal force options that have been issued out for use by their Patrol Operations Division. These tools, the bean bag shotgun and the Pepper Ball launcher, were on display at the Sheriff’s Office during this presentation. The bean bag shotgun had previously been issued to Patrol Operations Division, but is now being reintroduced with new safety precautions and protocols in place. The bean bag shotgun is an excellent tool for dealing with armed and dangerous and/or barricaded suspects, giving Deputies another force option prior to the use of deadly force. The Pepper Ball launcher is newly available to the Patrol Operations Division, and will also be used for dealing with armed and dangerous and/or barricaded suspects, in addition to crowd control and civil disobedience situations. Initially, all Patrol Sergeants have received the training and will be carrying both of these tools in their vehicles. Eventually, the intent is for these tools to be available to all Patrol Deputies. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is committed to providing this community with the best service possible, and the implementation of these two tools, will provide more opportunities for peaceful outcomes to the dangerous and unpredictable situations that Deputies face each day.
Mike Downey
Sheriff
(Above left to right)
Sgt. Massaro, Sgt. Allen and Sgt. Braud deploying pepper ball launchers during a training exercise.