Improvised weapon

Rocks being thrown in 2005 Belize unrest

An improvised weapon is an object that was not designed to be used as a weapon but can be put to that use. They are generally used for self-defence or if the person is otherwise unarmed. In some cases, improvised weapons are commonly used by attackers in street fights, muggings, murders, gang warfare, during riots, or even during insurgencies, usually when conventional weapons such as firearms are unavailable or inappropriate.

Improvised weapons are common everyday objects that can be used in a variety of defensive applications. The objects are generally used in their normal state;[1] they are not physically altered in any way to make them more functional as weapons.[2]

Examples

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A spinlock adjustable dumbbell

Other than items designed as weapons, any object that can be used to cause bodily harm can be considered an improvised weapon. Examples of items that have been used as improvised weapons include:

In martial arts

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Modern factory-made machete, US Forces issue

Throughout history, common tools were used so often as weapons in self-defense that many of them evolved specifically into weapons or were adapted with the secondary purpose of being used in self-defense, usually by adding modifications to its design. Well-known examples include the Irish shillelagh, which was originally used as a walking stick; the Japanese , which may have originally been used to carry buckets and baskets; and the Buddhist monk's spade, a shovel monks used for burying corpses, which often had sharpened edges to help defend against bandits.[citation needed]

Many martial arts use common objects as weapons; Filipino martial arts such as Eskrima include practice with machetes, canes, bamboo spears, and knives as a result of the 333-year Spanish colonization in the Philippines that prohibited the ownership and use of standard swords and bladed weapons;[56] Chinese martial arts and some Korean martial arts commonly feature the use of improvised weapons such as fans, hammers and staves. There are even some western martial arts that are based on improvised weapons, such as British quarterstaff fighting and Irish stick fighting.[57]

After the German Peasants' Wars during 1524 and 1525, a 1542 fencing book edited by Paulus Hector Mair described fencing techniques using a scythe.[58]

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Improvised weapons of the British Home Guard, prepared against the possibility of a German invasion in WWII

Because of the use of common objects as weapons in violent crimes, many countries have laws that prevent the use of some tools and other non-weapon objects to be used for causing harm. It is possible for a person to be detained or even arrested by a law enforcement official or security personnel for carrying a potentially-harmful object if there is no reasonable use for it. For example, it is legal and perfectly understandable for someone to possess a kitchen knife or a hammer and keep it for use in one's home, but it could be judged suspicious for someone to carry a kitchen knife or a hammer concealed on their person or in plain sight when walking down a city street.[citation needed]

There are places that prohibit people from entering with objects that may be used as weapons. Most public schools in North America do not allow their students to bring pocket knives, butter knives[59] or chain-wallets,[59] sometimes with harsh zero tolerance policies. Airports typically prohibit objects that could be used as weapons from being carried as a carry-on or in a carry-on bag into the aircraft cabin. The security repercussions after the September 11 attacks saw restrictions widely extended to cover even objects like nail clippers and spiked wristbands.[60][61]

Makeshift weapons

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A Finnish soldier with a Molotov Cocktail during the Winter War
Improvised submachine gun "Carlo", made out of a toy gun. Used in West Bank.
An improvised tire puncturing device (slang term ‘Ninja’), composed of an iron nail inserted into a rubber disc from a used tire. Many of these makeshift weapons were scattered by Palestinians on main roads in the occupied territories of the West Bank during the First Intifada.

A makeshift weapon is an everyday object that has been physically altered to enhance its potential as a weapon.[62] It can also be used to refer to common classes of weapons such as guns, knives, and bombs made from commonly available items.[1]

Examples of makeshift weapons include:

The improvised Molotov cocktail was used with great success by the heavily outnumbered Finnish forces in the Winter War against the Soviet Union.[citation needed] The mixture of flammable petroleum, often thickened with soap or tar, was so effective against the Soviet tanks that the Finns began mass producing Molotov cocktails, and issuing them to their troops. While the first documented use of such improvised incendiary devices was in the Spanish Civil War, their use in the Winter War was much more prevalent, and it was at that time they were named after the Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov, to match the Molotov bread baskets.[64]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Zorn, Steve (3 March 2005). "Defensive Use of Improvised Weapons". USA dojo. Archived from the original on 3 February 2013.
  2. ^ The Bourne Arsenal: Use Anything as a Weapon by DARRIN COOK, ASIN: B07MNLJJVY
  3. ^ "Baseball bat as used was a deadly weapon". Archived from the original on 25 July 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
  4. ^ Mayorga, Carlos (10 May 2010). "N. Ogden man charged in golf course assault with deadly weapon". Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  5. ^ Sturcke, James (14 December 2009). "Self defence or malicious revenge? Jail for brothers who beat burglar with bat". The Guardian – via www.theguardian.com.
  6. ^ Banker, Andy (12 December 2012). "Hockey Stick Used To Break Man's Jaw".
  7. ^ "Wabash Valley Correctional Facility inmate in critical after attack". Terre Haute Tribune-Star. 6 February 2008. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  8. ^ "N.C. man arrested after allegedly hitting man with pool cue at bar in Wildwood". Villages-News: News, photos, events in The Villages, Florida. 23 July 2021.
  9. ^ Ratcliffe, Michael J. (August 2008). "Police say broken bottle was wielded as weapon in Princeton robbery". Retrieved 5 June 2010.
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  28. ^ "The Lawyers reports annotated, Volume 21" Page 504
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  38. ^ "Medieval Men - Medieval-Period.com". medieval-period.com. Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 10 November 2019.
  39. ^ Verhovek, Sam Howe (4 February 1998). "EXECUTION IN TEXAS: THE OVERVIEW; Divisive Case of a Killer of Two Ends as Texas Executes Tucker". The New York Times.
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  43. ^ "Man jailed for Handsworth meat cleaver attack". BBC News. 17 September 2021.
  44. ^ Maenchen-Helfen, Otto; Helfen, Otto (1 January 1973). The World of the Huns: Studies in Their History and Culture. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520015968 – via Google Books.
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  54. ^ "Guitar-Smashing Comedian Kenny Moore Recalls Infamous Heckling Moment". GuitarPlayer.com. 15 April 2020.
  55. ^ "Fireworks attack on French police sparks protest". France 24. 12 October 2020.
  56. ^ "Escrima - The Filipino Martial Art". Archived from the original on 6 June 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
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  58. ^ Digitale Bibliothek - Münchener Digitalisierungszentrum
  59. ^ a b "Girl arrested for butter knife in backpack".
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  61. ^ "What Can I Bring?". Transportation Security Administration.
  62. ^ Improvised Weapons & Munitions – U.S. Army Ultimate Handbook: How to Create Explosive Devices & Weapons from Available Materials: Propellants, Mines, Grenades, ... Fuses, Detonators and Delay Mechanisms by U.S. Department of the Army, Madison & Adams Press, ASIN: B06WGP4FJZ
  63. ^ "Delhi violence: Not just 'petrol bombs', 'acid packets' also found on AAP neta Tahir Hussain's terrace [VIDEO]". www.timesnownews.com. 27 February 2020.
  64. ^ "None".
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