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QUARTERLY TECIINICAL PROGRESS REPORT

1 November 1970 - 31 January 1971

Technical progress in this period was'as follows:

1) Acquisition and review of applicable rcports and data,

2) Preliminary organization of a systcmatic approach to the problem of pcrsonnel incapacitation, and

3) Two ad hoc evaluations of proposed incapacitation systems.

1. Thirty-eight unclassified .and tweaty-five classified documents are now on hand, covering a wide range of electrical, chemical, sensory and physical means of restraint or behavior control. Each of these documents has been screened by one or more staff members.

2. On 18 November 1970, a report on an! flashblindness simulation proposal was forwarded to{ It was concluded that it might not be possible to extrapolate the proposed simulation results to levels of flash intensity that would be useful operationally. The risk of permanent eye damage at high light levels, furthermore, would not be clarified by the tests. The performan. tasks proposed were not detailed sufficiently to determine their relevance to real situations. Several operational drawbacks of the flash blindness technique itself were pointed out, for example, the critical positioning of flares with respect to the subject by reason of the inverse square law, and the limited usefulness during the daytime, and the conspicuity of the technique at night. The short time of effectiveness iakes this technique more useful as an adjunct svstem than as a primary behavioral control technique. Primate studies were suggested as a means of establishing darnage thresholds and performance decrements under actual (rather than simulatcd) flash conditions.

3. On 31 December 1970 a memorandum on the non-lethal clectrified net system was forwardcd to $i 1$ Unfortunately, the data provided by the manufacturer are not complctely cxplicit. Bascd on certain assumptions

0

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about the device, it was concluded that a) under some conditions the could cause partial incapacitation by paralyzing thc subjcct's arms; and that b) it would be unlikely to kill healthy people. Disadvantages of the system stem from the extreme variability of the skin resistance factcr -- depending on surfacc contact arca, hunidity, body sweat, ctc., the likelihood of thenet shorting itsclf out, the incflectiveness against fully clothed subjects (who might even be wearing gloves), and the probability that the subject, even though his arms were immobilizcd, could still run and free himself from the nct. The cffectivencss of the thereforc, is open to qucstion. A rough circuit diagram of a device which fulfills the specifications of the 7 was prepared.

4. Consideration has been given to a systematic approach to the incapacitation problem. There is a spectrum of situations or scenarios in which immobilization or restraint systems would be desirable. These range from a situation in which there is a single assailant (such as a hijacker) who must be subdued in the presence of a large number of innocent bystanders, to a one-to-one confrontation between individuals, to an individual (such as a diplomat) or small group surrounded by a large hostile crowd, to a full-scale riot situation. Each of these situations has different technical requirements for an optimum.system.

Incapacitation systems can be categorized in several other ways. They may be grouped according to the general method used:

Psychological

Impact Chemical Sensory Restraining Electrical

or they ay be categorized according to the agent employed Projectiles Bases Sound

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((

Light
Shock wave Nots
Bolas
Polymers
Drugs, etc.
Regardless of what type of dcvicc is used, certain attributes of each system
need to be considered, as they apply to differcnt sccnarios: Degree of incapacitation Delivery System Length of incapacitation Speed of action Requirement for antidote Residual effects Lethality risk Risk of system failure/countermeasures Range Covertness Suitable for individual (or group) Safety of user Size and weight Environmental requirements Shelf life Training requirements

Plans for future work

Definitive work on a systematic evaluation of known and prorising personnel incapacitation techniques awaits a confcrence with
tentatively scheduled for March, 1971.

The following steps will be taken in the meantime: 1) Literature scarch will be carricd out as follows: Document Collection

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Documient Library (computer search)

Medical Library

Library and

[Medical School Library

2) Schematics for a

type device will be forwarded \*

3) An evaluation of a patent of an clcctrificd projectile will bc forwarded

\* These reports are enclosed

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