Handcuffs, the jewelry worn by most, if not all captured bad guys.

OJ’s worn them. Charles Manson and Martha Stewart too.

In fact, practically everyone who’s run afoul of the law has been introduced to the feel of steel circling their wrists.

The unmistakable sound made when the ratchet locks in place is a noise like no other. Trust me, there’s not much in this world that’ll ruin a person’s day more than hearing that sickening “clickity-click” when the ratchet teeth slide across the corresponding notches of the pawl (see diagram below).

But there’s more to handcuffing than merely slipping the “bracelets” over a suspect’s wrists.  Before we continue, though, let’s take a moment to first learn a bit about these extremely important restraint devices.

I’ve already mentioned “pawl” and “ratchet,” and it’s easy to understand how those two parts work because they’re basically backward/opposite-facing teeth that, when pushed together, form a tight lock. They cannot be pulled apart. However, the locking action of the pawl and ratchet only works in one direction. In other words, they can continue to tighten since the rear-facing teeth only lock in one direction. The ratchet can continue to move forward against the pawl, but cannot be pulled backward.

Parts of chain-link cuffs (above).

Ratchet teeth face in a backward direction (below).

Closeup of the pawl between the two cheek plates (below).

To lock the cuffs in place, the ratchet is inserted into the receiver/cheek plates where it locks against the corresponding teeth of the pawl.

Hands and/or paws should ALWAYS be cuffed to the rear.

Each pair of handcuffs is fitted with two locks. The first is the automatic lock that connects when the pawl hooks to the ratchet. This allows the officer to apply cuffs to the wrists of combative suspects without having to fumble around while trying to locate a lock, insert a key, etc., while the bad guy is throwing punches to the officer’s nose and jaw.

The second lock (double-lock), a button inset, is found on the underside of the body of the cuff near where the end of the ratchet exits the cuff body.

Double-lock button (above).

To activate the double-lock, the officer uses the pointed tip of the handcuff key, the double-lock tip/actuator, to depress the button. This action prevents the ratchet from moving in either direction. Otherwise, the cuffs could, and often do, continue to tighten on the wearer’s wrists which could cause injury. Double-locking also prevents the wearer from picking the lock.

Officers double-lock cuffs after they’ve gained control of the suspect, but prior to placing the bad guy inside the patrol car/transport vehicle. ALWAYS double-lock cuffs before placing bad guys in the car. ALWAYS!

Above – Actuator tip, or double-lock tip.

Above – Use double-lock tip to depress double-lock button.

To release handcuff locks, officers insert the L-shaped portion of the key, the key flag, into the keyhole and turn the key to the left, much like unlocking your front door or a padlock. Turning the key releases the connection between the pawl and the ratchet, opening the cuffs. This action ONLY unlocks the first lock (when cuffs have NOT been double-locked)..

Above – Key flag

Above – Keyhole

Above – Handcuff key inserted into keyhole.

To release the second lock, the double-lock, the key must first be turned 90 degrees to the left to unlock the pawl and ratchet. Next, the officer turns the key back to the right, 90 degrees past the starting point where the key was first inserted. So, left 90 degrees and then 180 degrees in the opposite direction. Make sense?

So now you know the full details of, well, an open and shut operation.

 

A Taser delivers an electrical charge that disrupts muscle function. The devices are carried on the officer’s non-gun side, and they’re often marked with bright colors. The purpose of these two important details is to prevent officers from confusing the non-lethal Taser with their definitely lethal handgun.

Other less-than-lethal weapons available to law enforcement include handcuffs that are capable of delivering an electrical charge to the wearer. These cuffs (stun cuffs) are typically used when transporting prisoners, especially potentially dangerous or high-risk inmates.

Stun belts are also available, especially for use in prisons. Corrections officers (CO’s) train with the belts and are often called on to demonstrate and/or experience its effects. Officers refer to the painful act as “riding the belt.”

Many years ago, though, officers didn’t have the luxury of non-lethal devices, such as the aforementioned Taser. Neither did they we have have access to pepper spray, cages in police cars, rubber bullets, bean bags, etc. Instead, we had to rely on fast talking and sheer muscle power to get out of jams.

Sometimes the only thing that stood between having a wonderful day and a serious butt-whupping handed to you by a nine-foot-tall intoxicated, fire-breathing behemoth (well … that’s how big and mean they seemed to be at times) was using a flashlight to deliver a gentle “love tap” to an attacker’s thick skull (an aluminum shampoo). Of course, that’s no longer an option, but the tactic saved my butt more than once. And there’s one such event will forever stand out in my mind.

Rechargeable flashlight

While arresting a very unruly man, a guy who just happened to be twice my size (and I’m not small), my future prisoner decided he was allergic to handcuffs. And, during a brief struggle, my neck somehow wound up in the gentle grasp of the giant’s skillet-size hands. In other words, he was choking me with every ounce of strength he could muster up. I couldn’t breathe and I knew then how it must feel to be icing inside a pastry bag, because he was squeezing so hard I thought my eyes would pop from their sockets. Now, whether or not they’d eject in the form of delicate little rosettes, well, I didn’t want to find out. So …

The thug had me pinned against a wall in a position that made going for my gun (a revolver in those days) impossible. However, I finally managed to get a hand on my metal Maglite. So I started swinging with all my might (short strokes because of the odd angle), hoping to force the guy to release his grip. Finally, after a few hard whacks to his head, he let go. And, as they say, it was game on!

Revolver

I eventually got that big moose handcuffed and delivered him to the jail. But, my car was not equipped with a “cage” to put him in for safekeeping (none of our cars had cages back then). So I placed him in the front seat next to me, latched his seat belt, and off we went. I made a point to let him know that my gun was in my hand with my finger on the trigger, and if he so much as looked at me wrong I’d shoot him. He behaved nicely. Actually, I think we were both too exhausted to do anything more than ride.

Aluminum and Plexiglass divider between the front and rear seats creates a “cage.”

The two of us must have been a real sight when we arrived at the jail—clothes torn, badge ripped from my shirt, bloody lips, flashlight-shaped knots on his head, fingerprint-shaped bruises on my neck, and more. But that was how it was back then.

Yep, those were the days, my friend …