NORTH CAROLINA, USA — With just one push of a button, law enforcement can now restrain a suspect using a long cable to wrap around the body instead of using lethal force.
The device is Called BolaWrap, and it's currently being used by 70 different law enforcement agencies across the country, including some in North Carolina.
The tool is about the size of a cell phone and sounds like a gunshot when it goes off, but it’s not deadly. When BolaWrap is deployed, an 8-foot Kevlar cable can reach a suspect as far away as 25 feet and wrap around the person’s body or legs.
"This device is meant to be used early in an encounter to control somebody’s movements," Wrap Technologies CEO Mike Rothans said.
Rothans also tested the product on law enforcement officers who volunteered to see firsthand how the device works. Most agreed it’s a good alternative to help keep everyone safe.
"This would be the first line you go to before you went to maybe mace, taser or things of that nature and definitely before you ever escalate to deadly force," a police officer from the Goldsboro area said.
Just last month, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police announced its new use of force policy called Response to Resistance. The department said the top priority now is de-escalation.
"We’re saying sanctity of life is paramount," Chief Kerr Putney said. "It’s in writing, and we have to stand by it and the community can hold us accountable for it."
At this point, CMPD has not specifically said if the department will consider the BolaWrap as part of its new use of force policy.